21.   Patterson continued to play above the rim and hustle to turn loose balls into putbacks.

22.   Parker relates to kids, typically gets them to play above their abilities, and simply loves to coach.

23.   So much for playing above the rim.

24.   Sometimes mediocre teams are fooled by a late-season stretch in which they play far above the level they had played previously.

25.   Still, the most thrilling facet regarding Bell is how much of his game is played above the rim.

26.   That team, in retrospect, played well above its talent level.

27.   That was the early book on the kid, whose only real distinction was that he brandished his tongue while playing above the rim.

28.   The team has played far above expectations, taking the best record in the game into Yankee Stadium this weekend.

29.   The zones were all designed to keep center Steve Goodrich from being such a critical factor by playing above the free throw line and to prevent backdoor cuts.

30.   There were several notable omissions, including former Suns star Connie Hawkins, who revolutionized the game long before Michael Jordan learned to play above the rim.