Sports

May, 1983

When Darryl Dawkins joined the Philadelphia 76ers straight out of high school eight years ago, he definitely wasn't your average N.B.A. player. Besides wearing a diamond earring and shattering glass backboards, the 6'11", 251-pound center gave himself nicknames and said that he came from the planet Lovetron. Craig Modderno caught up with the self-proclaimed Chocolate Thunder of the New Jersey Nets over dinner in Phoenix. His report: "If E.T. had met Dawkins first, he certainly would ha...