Arizona Basketball Flashback: Steve Kerr, Sean Elliott Lead Unlikely Rap Crew

Jump to the rhythm,

Jump, jump to the rhythm,

Jump.

All right, so maybe they aren't C+C Music Factory (don't laugh, I know love you that song), but the Arizona basketball program's completely gangster, not-at-all gangster smash hit of 1988 made a lasting impression on music moguls of the highest order. Or at least on me.

Let's break this one down from the top:

You'll notice Gumby making an appearance on the "approved for all audiences" opener.

That's retro, homes.

Back when Arizona was just starting to take off under Lute Olson in the early 1980s, the Wildcats roster was full of over-the-top knuckleheads who gyrated uncontrollably on the sidelines whenever anything went right. Weird enjoyment and keeping the sidelines loose was the whole point.

They called themselves the Gumby Squad. And that was the group that helped take Arizona to its first Final Four and No. 1 national ranking.

With future pros Steve Kerr, Sean Elliott and Jud Buechler leading the way, that crew won extremely often.

It all starts with awesome 1980s crowd shots, the glasses thick and the short shorts looking short.

"

W-I-L-D Cats,

W-I-L-D, Wildcats,

W-I-LD Cats,

Wild about the Cats.

"

All right, solid intro on the chorus. 

Just to set the stage as to who the hell we're looking at here, there are several Wildcats-turned-NBA players featured in this gem. See if you can spot: Steve Kerr, Sean Elliott, Tom Tolbert and Anthony Cook.

And Kenny Lofton—who was a point guard on this squad—who went into the MLB and became one of the premier leadoff men of the last 20 years.

Harvey Mason went on to become a renowned producer.

You see a vintage Gumby handshake at :34, the up-top high five down to a straight-leg lean over finished with a tap on the calf. Well-executed.

The first three people with verses are radio deejays in Tucson for 93.7 KRQ, or at least they were back then.

I especially like the dramatic squinty face on the blond lady when talking about how Tucson, Ariz. is a basketball town. Cheetos.

Now on to the classic lines (the final two lines of each verse are sung by the player named in the first two):

"

When Craig McMillan is in the game, 

He makes the offense flow,

I better find the open man,

And get the ball down low.

"

McMillan was a baller, a McDonald's All-American, the type of player than can impact all facets.

He was an orchestrator, just as the tune says.

Next, it's on to Anthony Cook, one of the glass men for Arizona back then, a low-post force who bodied his way into the NBA with the Denver Nuggets. The first two lines of his verse are delivered by one the NBA's journeymen centers of the '90s and 2000s, Sean Rooks.

"

And Cook himself, he plays the game,

Like only some can do,

Give me the ball and stand back,

And watch me jam for two.

"

Sean Elliott, the greatest player in program history and the foundation piece for Arizona's heavy production of NBA talent, gets only one line, the second in the following duo.

"

Elliott's here, it's time to play,

They want me in the NBA.

"

That's followed by the dumbest lines of the whole song, coming via Tom Tolbert. The lyrics were probably written for him, so we'll let him off the hook.

"

When Tolbert plays,

He plays to win,

I put it up,

And it goes in....Uhhh

"

Wow, just wow, that is lame.

Tolbert went on to play for the Warriors, Magic and Clippers before embarking on a successful broadcasting career that saw him call the NBA Finals for ABC in 2003. And he now has a popular talk show in the Bay Area.

Another man heavy on the broadcasting is next on the list, probably the most loved player in Arizona history, Steeeeeeeeve Kerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Besides being the only player in nearly four decades to win four straight NBA titles, he also just happens to be the best three-point shooter in NBA history. Oh, and he's been a highly successful broadcaster for CBS and TNT and the general manager for the Phoenix Suns.

Not too shabby.

"

Give Kerr the ball,

Giver Kerr a hand,

I'll drill it in from three-point land

"

Finally, they end it with a message.

"

Ask the Gumbies,

Ask the rest,

We don't do drugs cause we're the best.

"

Telling kids to stay off drugs is so '80s.