Bob Petit died at the age of 93 while I was on hiatus. Bob Petit had an 11-year career in the NBA back in the 1950s and 60s starting with the Milwaukee Hawks who then became the St. Louis Hawks. In those 11 years:
- He was named to the Al-Star team all eleven seasons.
- He was the Rookie of the Year
- He was voted as the league MVP twice.
- He averaged 26.4 points per game and 16.2 rebounds per game.
- He won an NBA Championship in 1958 despite the presence of Bill Russell at that time.
Rest in peace, Bob Petit.
And thinking of the “old-school NBA” reminds me to mention a baseball team that is probably going to go through an age-induced transition very soon – – and possibly in this offseason. The Philadelphia Phillies fielded an “experienced team” in 2026 which made the playoffs by a whisker on the last day of the regular season. Father Time marches on and that “experienced team” might be ripe for an implosion if the Phillies’ GM tries to milk one more season out of that roster. Yes, the core of that Phillies team has made the playoffs in each of the last 5 seasons but looking ahead does not produce such a rosy picture:
- The Phillies need a new manager. In the early season, they fired Rob Thomson as the team started off 9-19; he was replaced by Don Mattingly who rallied the team to make the playoffs. But with the season over, the team has not named Mattingly as the permanent manager and the GM is “considering his options”.
- It would appear that the Phillies have a strong starting rotation with three established pitchers. Christopher Sanchez is deservedly in the Cy Young discussion; Zack Wheeler came back from surgery and was his old self in 2026; Jesus Lazardo was a pleasant surprise in 2026, and Aaron Nola may have another year or so left in his arm. That’s the good news …
- The Phillies’ bullpen was a certified hot mess in 2026 and needs major changes. And Father Time has his eye on that starting rotation with Aaron Nola turning 34 next season and Zack Wheeler becoming 38. The Phillies have a tantalizing prospect in Andrew Painter but his showing in 2026 was mediocre at best and outrageously bad on some occasions.
- The Phillies’ position players are long in the tooth. Bryce Harper, Tre Turner and Kyle Schwarber will all turn 34 next year and JT Realmuto will be 37. Harper and Schwarber were still productive in 2026, but Realmuto was an offensive liability, and Turner’s offense fell off to the point that it did not make up for his defensive liabilities. Two of the younger position players – – Alec Bohm and Luis Arraez – – will be free agents this winter and they will be hard to replace internally.
The Phillies’ President of Baseball Operations is Dave Dombrowski who has been in the MLB roster-building business since the 1980s. He has been with the Phillies since 2021 and his teams there have posted a cumulative regular season record of 529-421 (win percentage = .557). He has overseen roster rebuilds with the Marlins, Tigers and Red Sox in the past; I think he has his work cut out for him now with the Phillies.
Finally, a former colleague had this comment about Father Time:
“Middle age is that awkward part of your life where Father Time overtakes Mother Nature.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………