Howdy! It’s Joey, back with more Fun Fact Friyay. Today’s fact might tilt your entire world upside down (or, you know, at least slightly to the side).
Before we dive into this fact, a bit of self-promotion! I was recently a guest on the excellent podcast “You, Me and an Album” hosted by Al Melchior. Each episode features a guest talking about an album that means something special to them.
I joined the show to chat about The Gaslight Anthem’s “The ‘59 Sound,” which is somehow approaching 20 years old. I do not like that one bit.
HOWEVER, I do like this conversation a lot, and I learned plenty of new fun facts about the album during the preparation process. Perhaps you’ll discover something new, too! Or maybe you’re simply sick of reading Fun Fact Friyays and would rather hear a voice. Your listen is welcome either way.
Here’s the Spotify link, and here’s the Apple Podcasts link, though you can find the episode on your podcast platform of choice.
Thank you for supporting. Now, onto the fact!
If you type the word “askew” into Google, the search results page will have a slight tilt.
When I was a child, I would sometimes simulate basketball games while playing at the park.
This typically happened when I was just shooting around, since it’s hard to simulate a game while you’re actually playing in another one (talk about multitasking!).
But when it was only me? Turning what is essentially throwing a ball at a basket and then chasing after it into a full-fledged, pressure-packed game made things all the more entertaining.
While plenty of kids around pretend they’re Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Steph Curry, or any number of elite players, I was always drawn to some of the more fringe NBA guys. The ones who might not appear in all the games or only get a few minutes here and there.
I also quite enjoyed players with unique names. Sedale Threatt. Walt Hazzard. Pooh Richardson. I’ve even written about this very subject.
Vincent Askew is another one of those players. The list of teams he played for during his professional career is among the longest you’ll find. Sure, he had several NBA seasons, most notably with the Seattle SuperSonics, but he also appeared for excellently named non-NBA squads like Formula Shell and Cocodrilos de Caracas.
Over his NBA career, Askew played in 467 games. He never scored more than 21 points in a single contest, and he had pretty pedestrian shooting stats across the board. But he was a solid defender and good team player, which can make for a lengthy career.
During the 1996-97 season, Askew was traded from Seattle to the New Jersey Nets. He played one game in New Jersey before the team traded him to the Indiana Pacers. Later that season, the Pacers traded Askew to the Denver Nuggets. He played in one game for the Nuggets. That’s a fun bit of seasonal symmetry!
Early in his career, he was a member of the Continental Basketball Association, then a minor league of the NBA. He’s the only player to win back-to-back MVP awards in that league (and it ran for 63 years).
He also had a pair of terrific nicknames: The Fiddler and ‘Skew.
Though the name Askew has Old Norse origins, the word itself means something out of line or at an angle. Google’s search engine knows this definition, and it’s got a good bit of humor as a nod.
Type “askew” into your Google search bar. The resulting page will be a little bit tilted.
Go ahead and try it, right after you share this post with a friend. Optional bonus if you want to tilt your head while you’re recommending Fun Fact Friyay.