The cherry on top in this video is Dikembe Mutombo pointing his finger at Brian Davis after Davis had his dunk blocked/stolen/destroyed/whatever you want to call it. But it wasn’t Deke that got the block; that credit goes to LaPhonso Ellis.
The 5th pick from the impressive 1992 draft doesn’t get mentioned in many of those “if it wasn’t for injuries” articles that Penny and Grant Hill usually headline, but Ellis was an All-Star in the making before a series of career-ending injuries. Somehow, he found ways to bounce back and even returned as a 3-point threat (he made 95 3-pointers in 1996 and only had 13 in his previous 4 seasons), one season after injuries took away his bounce.
His first significant injury came during his third season when he injured his knee. He lost half of his fourth season to another knee injury and then ruptured his Achilles tendon during his fifth season. A hernia then plagued him for the rest of his career, until he retired in 2003 (no, he did not retire because Jordan broke his ankles -- video below).
Ask anyone who has ever met or known the Phonz, and they will tell you how much of a class act he is. Ask anyone who remembers him dunking on Patrick Ewing or blocking Brian Davis, and they will tell you how absolutely nasty he was.
Happy (Birth)days with the Fonz.
@PhonzESPN x @Gramatik pic.twitter.com/JnyDVbmbrV
— Dunk Comp (@DUNKC0MP) May 5, 2023
MJ vs FONZ
17 years ago today: Michael Jeffrey Jordan picks on LaPhonso Ellis. #TheJump distant replay pic.twitter.com/gg6YBl6M7b
— Michael Bodmer (@mbodmer) December 12, 2018