I had a special relationship with Coach Thompson that all started from me not being recruited by him.
Anybody I grew up with will remember that I always wanted to go to Georgetown (Syracuse was actually my 2nd choice) I remember my high school teammate Ryan Humphrey saying that I was like the kid in the movie Rudy who always wanted to go to Notre Dame. That actually wasn’t an inaccurate analogy.
See, I grew up admiring Coach John Thompson from the first time I heard him speak out about the racism of the NCAA.
I remember seeing him asked how it felt to be the first Black coach to reach the NCAA final four, he replied live on air something to the effect of and i’m paraphrasing.
“I resent the hell out of that question. The implication is that I was the first Black coach capable of coaching a team to the final four. And that’s just stupid and insulting to a lot of Black coaches who didn’t get the opportunity could have and should have been here before me”
(Something to that effect)
I remember reading about how he specifically recruited inner city Black players, and molded them both on and off the court. Focused on their education, enforced discipline and structure, taught them and educated them about society and being a Black Man in America, was a father figure in that he actually cared about his players far beyond wins and losses (although he definitely wanted to win), and made sure he stressed that his players graduate and not squander their time allowing the system to use them. Of course that was the coach and program I wanted to be a part of.
Add to that, he coached one of my favorite players Alonzo Mourning, someone who I wanted to pattern my game after, and I grew up a die hard Knicks fan and he coached Patrick Ewing. I wanted to be able to block shots like Mutumbo and have defenses literally draw plans to avoid bringing the ball inside. I actually wanted to carry on the tradition and wear number 33 at Georgetown (one of the reasons I wore 33 at Syracuse, but I’ll explain that later) I even went to Georgetown basketball camp when I was in the 8th grade. I remember reading about the next center who was going there Othella Harrington and seeing a picture of John Thompson with his arm around Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutumbo, and Othella Harrington and dreamed of seeing myself in that same picture in that same pose with the great centers of Georgetown and myself at the end of the line.
Fast fwd to the summer of my junior year and I’m being recruited by everyone in the country but Georgetown and he called me and told me that they had a lot of big men and named off 5 big men Jamel Watkins, Boubacar Aw, Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje, they had a young Jahidi White and Ya Ya Dia, so they really didn’t need anymore big men. I was heart broken to be honest. May have even shed a few thug tears but I vowed to terrorize Georgetown for my entire college career and picked their biggest rival Syracuse University.
My freshman year, Feb. 8, 1997
Syracuse fans know it as the Donovan McNabb game, where star football quarterback and two sport athlete Donovan McNabb ignited the Carrier Done with an electrifying performance and we won the game. Meanwhile, me (a young freshman who who didn’t receive much playing time after the beginning of the season and was playing behind and learning from the great Otis Hill) had one of the worst games of my career. I set a Syracuse record for the quickest foul out by a player in Syracuse history and maybe even Big East history.
https://www.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/2013/02/syracuses_1997_win_over_george.html
After not playing for a long stretch of games, I was put into one of the biggest games of the season after Otis Hill got in foul trouble. I found myself in the unfortunate position of having to guard an explosive, quick off his feet, 300 pound monster named Jahidi White who could have been called the Shaq of the Big East.
Well, as soon as I checked in the game, Coach John Thompson ran every single play for Jahidi and apparently told him to dunk on me every play. Well I had too much pride for that so I fouled him every time he tried to dunk on me. I tried to block the first two or three attempts and almost got my arm ripped off in Jahidi’s Shaq like power moves to the rim. So the next two times, I just fouled him. And fouled out of the game in front of 30,000 people in the Carrier Dome in one of the biggest games of the year, and I remember looking at Coach Thomson as I was walking to the bench and him giving me a little nod that said to me, that’s why I didn’t recruit you. I was destroyed inside. I wanted to hear straight to the locker room and hide in the closet until everyone left.
After the game a ball boy gave me a note from Coach Thompson that simply read keep working, keep your head up, you’ll be fine.
The next year, my sophomore year was really my breakout year and one of the games I had circled on my schedule was the Georgetown game. I had an monster game. 23 pts 7rbs 6blocks thunderous dramatic dunks, beating my chest, swatting shots into the stands, screaming into the crowd, I was so hyped I couldn’t even calm down on the free throw line to shoot my free throws.
After the end of the game buzzer went off, I ran first right up to Coach John Thompson, shook his hand, looked him in the eyes and said, “You could’ve had me” and he replied with a big smile “Yea, I Know”.
https://www.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/2013/01/in_1997-98_season_syracuse_get.html
That was the start of our relationship of mutual respect and support that spanned for two decades.
I came to DC in 2000 with the Washington Wizards and John Thompson would have me on his show, he would support my events around DC, he would offer me advice or encouragement or chastisement, or praise by either calling me or sending me a text.
I remember after I spoke at a big anti war rally in DC shortly after the invasion of Iraq
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/dcsportsbog/2007/09/etans_antiwar_speech.html
Coach Thompson callee me and I remember he said
“You have no idea what you just stepped into young man do you ?”
And true I honestly didn’t. I had been speaking all over DC about the war. I had 3 different poems and two different speeches against the war all from my first poetry book More Than An Athlete
https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/561-more-than-an-athlete
And I remember him saying,
“You are lucky you play for Abe Polin because if you didn’t, this could be very bad for your professional career “
He also told me that he had the utmost respect for me and if I needed some support when I feel the wrath of America after this speech, he’s here for me.
I would have events for many years to come around DC and look into the crowd and see Coach Thompson right there in the front row with his arms folded.
I remember at a debate I had at Georgetown University with Bill Rhoden on his book 40 Million Dollar Slave, Coach Thomson brought his entire team there and had them all taking notes. including a young Roy Hibbert, Jeff Green and Patrick Ewing Jr.
I interviewed him for my Fatherhood Book where he wrote
“In my life l, I’ve been fortunate enough to meet presidents, senators, congressmen, CEO’s of major companies, cardinals of churches, heads of states from several countries and some of the finest athletes and coaches this world has ever known. I’ve learned to respect them all and admired their accomplishments, but I’ve never met a man who accomplished so much with so little as my dad. And I have come to realize that nothing has more meaning to me than the honor of being named after the finest man I have ever met, my Dad, John Robert Thompson.”
I had never even heard him tell that story before and was honored by the fact that he felt comfortable telling me this for my book.
This past winter I was watching a high school tournament at Wise high school and doing some recruiting for my AAU team FBCG Elite Dynamic Disciples, and he saw me before I saw him. He had someone chase me down and bring me to him and he said you better come over here and say hi to me. He was in obvious pain, with his walker and I asked him how he was feeling. He smiled and said just old but you keep doing what you’re doing. I said yea looking at some players for my team, and he responded that’s great but that’s not what I’m talking about. You keep using your platform and speaking and writing truth. I may not get around like I used to but I’m always watching you and proud of you. Now move out my way, I gotta get out of here. And he left before I could even get a picture with him and my son Malcolm who was with me (and who was slow coming coming up and missed the entire exchange) After, Malcolm asked me who the man in the walker was, and I told him, one of the best coaches to ever walk the planet.
Rest In Peace Coach John Thompson
