Dwight Hardy: Baddest Man On The Planet

InsideStreetball.com

St. John's guard Dwight Hardy, a longtime presence on New York City's streetball circuit, was once pegged by local emcee Uncle G Stacks as the "Baddest Man On The Planet."

Hardy developed the alias while carving up defenders with showmanship during the annual Hoops In The Sun summer tournament at Orchard Beach, his favorite playground court with nice proximity to his Bronx home.

Outlandish nicknames are the norm in NYC streetball. Such a moniker will not massage Hardy's ego.

Hardy, who got his baller's teeth cut at Kennedy High in the Bronx, turned in a volcanic, 49-point eruption against a team led by former professional Kenny Satterfield (whose NBA career was short-lived but featured a stay with the Denver Nuggets).


Hardy buried the opponent under a barrage of 3-pointers, with the sea of onlookers' outbursts growing louder and louder after the splash of each trey.

It was the coming-out party for Hardy, whose 3-point onslaught made his name loud and clear to St. John's fans.

The epic streetball performance provided proof that then-coach Norm Roberts was guiding St. John's into the right direction, recruiting-wise.

Roberts had scoured the Big Apple's hoops hotbeds for talent in thorough fashion during those summers leading up to his final season at St. John's last year.

The man who St. John's faithful seemed hell-bent on helping out of Queens, Roberts got a steal when he plucked Hardy from Indian Hills Community College (Iowa), where the kid some know as "Buckets" refined aspects of his game. Buckets boasted his dependable jumper, glossy-smooth forays to the cup and 3-point stroke, garnering interest from the Big East program that urgently needed to right the ship.

In no way would the soon-to-be Baddest Man On The Planet's game fade into obscurity.


Rather than falling victim to the microscopic, image-puncturing New York media circus, instead of wobbling under the tremendous weight of New York's hoops-heavy hype machine (see Stephenson, Lance for more on that one), Hardy actually slipped through the cracks.

Hardy knows plenty about the lofty expectations that systematically come with playing in New York.

He doesn't expect anyone to roll out the red carpet for him. Hardy is the exact opposite of a prima donna athlete, a true New York kid (not another mid-town elitist who recently moved in from New Jersey because "no city even compares to NY!") who totes that relentless New York savvy. That sheer toughness has been coursing through Hardy's veins since he first learned the game on the city blacktop.

The physical, black-and-blue brand of basketball comes with the territory. Hardy knows there are plenty of Big East and New York City guards cut from similar fabric as him. He certainly won't ask anyone to address him as "The Baddest Man On The Planet."

Yet in the Johnnies' recent string of games Hardy has lived up to the unique nickname Uncle G Stacks once bestowed on him.

Hardy torched then-No.3 Duke for 26 points as St. John's ran roughshod over the Blue Devils in a stunning 93-78 thumping.

Hardy (who shot the ball at a scintillating 9-for-13 clip) had been due for a performance of this ilk. He shot a meager 10-for-35 as the senior-laden Johnnies floundered during an exasperating three-game slide against Big East foes Louisville, Cincinnatti, and Georgetown.


Ever since Hardy's outburst on the Blue Devils, SJU has been revitalized. They've received a pyschological lift that's vaulted them back into the realm of national relevance.

The credibility has been restored. New York has its NCAA team back and the fake fans that laughed at you for wearing a Felipe Lopez jersey back in the day are now draped in Johnnies garb as they make their way to the front of the bandwagon.

Fans who claimed they were down with the Johnny Jungle, every self-proclaimed "SJU fan from Day One" are starting to emerge from the freshly-cut grass.

SJU is back where it belongs in the city game. Back as a top-tier program which highly-decorated recruits will no longer snub for Pittsburgh, UConn, or Louisville.

"(The Duke win) is big for us because we know when we play to our potential we can compete with any team in the country," said Hardy, who's averaging 17.3 points.

"(Coach Steve Lavin) has talked about the seniors leaving on a great note and giving NYC a reason to love St. John's basketball."

Hardy has been giving NYC a reason to love St. John's basketball.

He's orchestrating quite the memorable sendoff for himself and his teammates.

The 6-foot-2, 195-pound senior torched UConn for 33, scorching the nets on 10-for-17 shooting (5-for-8 from downtown) during an 89-72 drubbing of UConn.

Hardy again morphed into the Baddest Man On The Planet during a must-win against Marquette. He hung 26 points, snared six boards, and collected five steals in a thorough 80-68 defeat of the Golden Eagles back on Feb. 15.

It was the day after Valentine's Day and the only love Hardy showed was for the program, as his exploits helped snap an 11-game losing streak to their Big East foes.

Then, with the program finally making waves in the regal recruiting real estate of NYC, Hardy scored the game-winner to lift SJU to a thrilling 60-59 win over then-No.4Pitt.

Hardy dropped in an acrobatic reverse scoop with 1.2 ticks remaining. It was the Johnnies' fourth victory over a Top-10 team.

SJU's resurgence has generated high-end buzz, pumping life into a city that was in such desperate desire to renew the days when NYC legends Walter "The Truth" Berry and Chris Mullin electrified the Garden.

The lights-out shooting and game-changing antics is only what one may expect from the "Baddest Man On The Planet."