Rick Mahorn on playing in today's NBA: 'When you talk about the Emirates game for $500K, nobody would be standing'

Rick Mahorn was the poster boy for playing hard and physical in an era that demanded both. So what if "McNasty" magically turns back into his 25-year-old self and plays in today's NBA? Well, hoops fans don't even have to think twice: Mahorn will play the same brand of basketball he was known for during his playing days.

"It was only 22 teams and 11 players on the team, and you talk about a straight-up fistfight," recalls Rick on The Cedrix Maxwell Podcast. "For $50,000, I was going to whoop somebody's ass because I wanted their jobs. Now, when you look at it, you talk about the Emirates Cup game for 500K, nobody would be standing."

"But you know, the rules have changed, but I think it's fun for the league because you get two teams… you know, this can change someone's life, a guy that don't even play that's on the roster," Mahorn added.

Mahorn entered the Association in 1980, a time when the league had 23 teams (not 22, as he claims). The Dallas Mavericks were the latest expansion franchise that year, but still, his point stands. There were limited roster spots, especially for a second-round selection like Rick. If he didn't make an impression, which, back then, meant being physically imposing, he was not going to make it.

"The baddest of them all"

Mahorn was a member of the "Bad Boy" Pistons of the late 80s. He was traded during the second championship run, but what Ricky did was establish a culture fit in Motor City that enabled Detroit to be a championship contender. In fact, former teammates call him the essence of a Bad Boy, doing the dirty work and displaying physical tenacity. Because of that, long-time Pistons announcer George Blaha anointed Mahorn "the baddest of them all."

While hypothetically, playing in today's NBA poses a challenge for Rick because of his physicality, he would surely find other ways to set the tone with that style. As Mahorn himself admitted, his game was not necessarily about elbowing people on the ribcage or whatnot; he could set bone-crushing picks for the guards and enjoyed getting hit in the process. If Isaiah Stewart makes $15 million throwing his body around, Rick could absolutely do that with a smile on his face.

The Wes Unseld influence

Mahorn was a master at the battle of the brawns, but it was actually Wes Unseld who taught and showed him the tricks of the trade. "The Oak Tree" played his last year with the Washington Bullets, which happened to be Rick's first in the big boys league. There was a reason why they nicknamed Hall of Famer after one of the most durable living things on the planet.

"Let me just say this to you," Mahorn said. "I'm a strong man. I feel I can handle mine. But that dude (Unseld). … He taught me the little things like how to place your finger on a guy's waist and how to irritate him. He was amazing at what he did. He taught me about playing against different players like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bob Lanier, Artis Gilmore, Moses Malone. There were no nights off back then, especially at the center position."

"My first impression was that I know I couldn't beat him," added the 1990 NBA All-Defensive Team member. "How can I be in this world? The first hit was like, wow, oh my gosh. I felt like my bones were shaking. When I say a cinder block or running into the side of a building, that's what it felt like. This was every day, that training camp."

Mahorn became Unseld's "successor of the dark arts of interior defense," as Keith Langlois of NBA.com put it. He became as indestructible as Wes, picking up the little tricks, including the "pull-the-chair," while putting his own physical spin into things.

Make no mistake, if "McNasty" wanted that $500,000, the cash prize for each player on the Emirates Cup champions' roster, he would make a run for it. And in typical Bad Boy fashion, he wouldn't promise that there would be no trail of bodies in the wake.