101 Greats of European Basketball

MVP award in a row for another spectacular campaign.
He remains the only player in that award’s first 13 years
to win it twice, let alone back to back.
A brilliant NBA return
For the 2006-07 season, Parker, at 31 years old,
returned to the NBA. But in some ways, we could say
that he had signed for the Toronto Raptors on October
16, 2005. Maccabi, as EuroLeague champion, was on
a North American tour. It’s true that the Raptors were
in the middle of the preseason, but nobody in Toronto
expected such a tough game and such a tough loss.
With 11 seconds to go and the score tied at 103-103,
the 17,281 fans in the Raptors’ arena saw the best of
Anthony Parker. The ball was in his hands on the right
side of the court and it was clear that he would take it
one-on-one. Morris Peterson’s defense looked good,
but Parker used a side-step move to pull up for a favorite,
high-arced shot of his. It was an impeccable shot,
as if taken from a manual, one that youngsters should
study to see perfection on an individual play. And, of
course, it was good. Parker finished the game with 24
points and said after, “It was really fun, it’s fun to be
part of history.”
It was the first loss by an NBA team at home against
a team from Europe and the first such defeat, home or
away, in more than 20 years since Maccabi itself had
beaten Phoenix and New Jersey two nights apart in
Tel Aviv during the 1984 preseason. Previously, Maccabi
had also beaten the NBA defending champion
Washington Bullets 98-97 in Tel Aviv in September of
1978. The big Jewish community in Toronto celebrated
the magnificent win for Maccabi and was even happier
when they learned that Parker would play with the Raptors
in 2006.
At Maccabi, he wore number 8 and in Toronto, he
wore 18, the Hebrew number symbolizing life. Soon, he
was in Toronto’s starting five, earning the respect of his
teammates, the media and opponents. He averaged
12.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists. He was the
team leader in three-point accuracy (44.1%) and ranked
fourth in the league. Call it a coincidence or not, but
that season Toronto was a division champion for the
first time and was back in the playoffs after a four-year
absence.
In three seasons in Toronto, Parker played 243 regular
season games out of the possible 246 and shot
44.1%, 43.8% and 39.0%, respectively, from threepoint
distance. After the third season, he would go
back home to the United States on a three-year deal
with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He lowered his scoring
numbers (7.3, 8.3 and 7.2) but he shot his threes just
as well: 43.4%, 39.9% and 36.2% in his last active season,
2011-12. In two stints, he had totaled nine seasons
in the NBA with 494 games, averaging 9.1 points and
shooting 40.4% on threes. In 22 playoff games, (11 with
Toronto in two seasons and 11 more with Cleveland in
one) Parker shot 43.4% on threes and averaged 10.9
points. His highest scoring game was 27 points against
the Chicago Bulls in 2007. He announced the end of his
playing career on June 27, 2012, and shortly thereafter
signed with Orlando as a scout.
Anthony Parker was a great player who shined in
Europe, Canada and – eventually – at home.
101 greats of european basketball
Anthony Parker
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