Big Bad Baller

FORMER NBA CENTER JIM McILVAINE’S 1969 CYCLONE GT IS A SLAM DUNK STREET MACHINE

- Evan J. Smith

It’s hard to miss Jim McIlvaine and his Grabber Blue 1969 Mercury Cyclone GT. At 7 feet 1 inch, the 46-year-old former NBA center towers over most, and his Merc, dubbed “Confucius,” makes an equally powerful appearance. McIlvaine played pro ball from 1994 to 2001; in fact his first field goal was a dunk against Shaq. Following his career, McIlvaine moved into the automotive field, signing on as a part-time freelance writer penning stories for a host of automotive titles, and then as a social media specialist for Optima Batteries.

“When I was in the NBA, I had a lot of down time on the road, and that gave me the chance to think about what car I’d like to own. I wanted to get a modern performance car, one I could modify and take to the next level. I couldn’t fit in a Corvette, so I looked at Mustangs, including Roush’s Stage 3, but ultimately I ordered a 1999 Z/28 with a six-speed. It was a convertible because I couldn’t fit in the T-top or hardtop. It was bright green metallic and got dropped shipped to Buds Chevrolet in St. Mary, Ohio.

“It was the first LS1 F-body that Lingenfelter built with a 383 stroker. It got Kenny Brown subframe connectors, produced 440 hp at the crank, and had Fikse FM5 17-inch wheels. I signed up on Camaroz28.com in April 1999 and became friends with Chris Frezza and Jason Debler who started the forum. Not long after that, John Hunkins (then editor of the now-defunct GM High Tech Performance and now editor of Car Craft) showed up online. He was provocative and controversial and happened to be based in New Jersey. At the time, I was playing for the Nets in New Jersey, so they asked if I would connect with Hunkins, and we hit it off. He started reading my posts and asked if I wanted to write for the magazine.