Interview with NBA Legend Mike Bibby

A conversation with the basketball icon.

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Bibby is only 44 years old and has lived several lifetimes in basketball. The son of a legitimate hoops legend did what so few others in the same situation could do - he emerged from his father's shadow to carve out an equally successful career. 

Bibby won an Arizona high school state championship before leading the Arizona Wildcats to the 1997 NCAA Championship the following year. The 6'2" point guard running around in Nike Foamposites quickly developed a passionate fanbase that followed him through his 14 NBA seasons. 

Bibby's playing days are over, but he's still in the family business. The decorated hooper spends his days coaching the younger generation and managing never-ending media requests. 

Many of the interview questions revolve around the controversial 2002 Western Conference Finals. Everyone remembers Robert Horry's Game 4 buzzer-beater. But what so many people forget is that Bibby came back with an even more devastating clutch shot in Game 5. Yesterday was the 20th anniversary of Bibby's dagger.

Bibby is a walking museum of basketball history and knowledge. I could spend all day picking his mind about his strong friendship with Kobe Bryant, joining 'The Big Three' in Miami, or his unmatched collection of Air Jordans. But after months of annoying him with requests, I finally got the superstar on the phone for a few delightful minutes. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.

Atlanta Arrival

Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

After the Vancouver Grizzlies selected Mike Bibby with the second overall pick of the 1998 NBA Draft, the prodigy point guard dutifully spent three seasons in the Pacific Northwest. Bibby didn't miss a game during his time with the Grizzlies. But when presented with his choice of a trade destination following the 2000-01 season, Bibby got his wish with the number one team on his list - the Sacramento Kings. 

Despite being initially nervous upon arrival, Bibby was welcomed with open arms in Sactown. From 2001 to 2008, the floor general helped build the Kings franchise - most notably through raucous rivalries with the Los Angeles Lakers. By 2007, Bibby was the last remaining piece of 'The Greatest Show on Court' and the Kings organization was preparing for a rebuild.

Bibby reflected on the 2007 trade deadline, saying, "It was supposed to be Cleveland for two years. The year before I got traded to Atlanta, I wasn't even getting ready for a game we played in Washington the day before the trade deadline. And they didn't expect me to play the next game. I didn't go to the shootaround or nothing. But then they were like, 'Hey, the trade didn't go through. You got to play the game tonight.'" 

Bibby finished the 2006-07 season with an average of 17.1 points and 4.7 assists per game. It was the sixth time in his eight seasons that he played every single game. Halfway through the 2007-08 season, the trade rumors linking the Kings to the Cavaliers resurfaced again. But Bibby had other plans and called his old friend, Kobe Bryant.

"At first, it was supposed to be the Lakers. I called and talked to Kobe, and we were trying to get it done. But I don't think the Maloofs wanted to send me to the Lakers. So that fell through." Understandably, the Kings' owners didn't want to bolster the Los Angeles Lakers roster. The Lakers eventually advanced to the 2008 NBA Finals before losing to the Boston Celtics in six games.

Bibby's agent, David Falk, assured his client that no trade would go down until after the 2008 All-Star break concluded. Bibby recounted, "So a day passes, and one of my friends tells me I just got traded to the Hawks."

The breaking news caught Bibby totally by surprise. "There was no talk about the Hawks ever. So I called David and asked, 'They traded me to the Hawks?' He said, 'No, no, just wait.'" An incredulous Bibby insisted, "David, it's on ESPN." 

Falk went to make a phone call to a team owner before calling Bibby back to confirm the trade was official. On February 16, 2008, the Hawks acquired Bibby in exchange for Shelden Williams, Anthony Johnson, Tyronn Lue, Lorenzen Wright, and a 2008 second-round draft pick (which was used to select Sean Singletary).

Team Player

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Bibby didn't get his wish of teaming up with Kobe Bryant or LeBron James and pursuing a championship. Instead, he wound up in Atlanta, a team that had been irrelevant since the late 1990s. 

But at 29 years old, Bibby was excited about serving as a team leader. He wanted to recreate the familial vibes of Sacramento in Atlanta. "I kind of took the role of Vlade Divac when I got there. That's what made it kind of fun for me, brought everybody closer together, and the camaraderie better." 

Naturally, the point guard wanted to make sure everybody was happy. "I was the older guy on the team, I had the most experience, and I got everybody together." He would insist that they all walk around the mall together, eat lunch with each other, and move as one. Bibby explained, "Eventually, everyone was getting along, and everyone was talking to each other. Not just a few groups of people."

As the Hawks chemistry improved off the court, so did their performance on the court. The team's record improved in each of Bibby's three seasons in Atlanta, from 37-45 to 47-35 to eventually 53-29. 

The Hawks made it to the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2009 and 2010. But it's the first round defeat in 2008, which is the most memorable. The 8-seed Hawks pushed the eventual NBA Champions Boston Celtics to a 7-game series.

Bibby said of the series, "We played them tough. We were a young team. A lot of those guys, it was their first time in the playoffs. I think maybe me and Joe Johnson were the only guys with playoff experience. So just for us to fight against the NBA Champs like that - it was remarkable. Just the improvement that Mike Woodson made with the younger guys and how everybody came together was just a miraculous change."

NBA TV is airing Hawks-Celtics Game 6 from the 2008 Playoffs right now, which brought us this gem from @zaza27. pic.twitter.com/rt6EcsVdTj

— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) August 30, 2019

Coaching Influences

Paul Abell-USA TODAY Sports

Since college, Mike Bibby has played under some of the most respected coaches in the game. Lute Olson, Rick Adelman, Mike Woodson, Erik Spoelstra, and Mike D'Antoni. But no coach more than Woodson had a greater impact on Bibby.

When asked about his fondest memory in Atlanta, Bibby gave a surprising answer. "Just meeting Mike Woodson. He is probably the best coach I ever had, if not the best. Just all the way around - the way he treated the guys and how he was as a person. That's what stuck out most to me."

Bibby continued lavishing his former coach with praise, "And he's great at X's and O's; I got a lot of my plays that I teach my guys from what he taught me. Also, just being in Atlanta, bringing those guys together, and taking a different role on that team from what I had in years before."

Business of Basketball

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Hearing Mike Bibby's name pop up in trade rumors before the deadline had become increasingly common. On February 23, 2011, the Hawks were in the middle of a brutal 7-game road trip that took them from New York to Los Angeles to eventually Phoenix.

Bibby remembered the call, "I was going to Phoenix, we were about to play the Suns, and you know when you get a call from the team you're on and the team you're going to, that means you're traded. I had two phone calls from two area codes. I was like, 'Damn.' The veteran knew what that meant.

Bibby and his son were headed to the game when he was told to stop. "There's a trade that's like 95% done, and if it goes through, they won't let you in the arena." Taking it in stride, Bibby said, "Alright, cool, where did you trade me to? The voice on the other end of the phone said the Washington Wizards. "I was like, 'Daaamn.' 

BREAKING NEWS Hawks trade Bibby/Evan/JordanCrawford/1st RD pick to Wizards for PG Kirk Hinric & C Hilton Armstrong

— 680 The Fan (@680TheFan) February 24, 2011

The Hawks traded Bibby, Jordan Crawford, Maurice Evans, and a 2011 first round draft pick in exchange for Kirk Hinrich and Hilton Armstrong. Bibby had always been dutiful in fulfilling his contractual obligations. But with time running out on his career, he had to make a tough decision. After playing two games in Washington, Bibby agreed to a contract buyout.

"It was nothing against the city or the team. I knew I was coming down to the end of my career, and I wanted to play for a contender and try to win a championship. I thought I had a little bit left in the tank. They wanted me to kind of help John Wall along and kind of do that. I wasn't ready for that yet."

The following week, Bibby signed with the Miami Heat. Unfortunately, it was one year too early. The Dallas Mavericks won the 2011 NBA Finals. After sitting through another lockout, Bibby finished his professional playing career with the New York. The team that drafted his father, Henry, in the fourth round of the 1972 NBA Draft.

"I'm going to do whatever it takes to help the team win." - New #KNICKS PG Mike Bibby answers qs during #KnicksCamp pic.twitter.com/XLrRlTd3

— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) December 11, 2011

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Basketball is in Bibby's DNA. He never stood a chance of being anything other than a player and a coach. As enjoyable as it would have been to see a 6'2" lawyer with a fade and Jordan's running through desks at his firm, it wouldn't have had the same impact on the world.

Bibby was a hoops icon at the turn of the century. If the NBA was dominated by centers in the 1990s, then the 2000s were owned by point guards. And Mike Bibby was just as good as any of them.

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