A.D. Attitude

Even in being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, last week, former Jazz forward Adrian Dantley revealed some of the attitude that delayed his induction in the first place.
Dantley noted how long he had waited and said at the ceremony, ‘Ever since I’ve been in high school, I’ve dominated at every level, but my critics always had something to say about me. All those other guys, they were supposed to get in, they were talented. But I got in through hard work.’
As though nobody else in the Hall was a hard worker.
A.D.’s numbers prove he should have been in the Hall long ago, but Jazz management, and perhaps some poll voters, were often put off by his dour attitude. Though obviously dedicated and professional, he could be a hard guy to like. He always sounded like he felt short-changed.
And even in his greatest accomplishment, he couldn’t help but be the old chip-on-his-shoulder Dantley that feuded with Frank Layden so long ago.
Maybe that’s what made him so good.