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Official Publication of the NBRPA<br />

<strong>CedriC</strong><br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong><br />

Turning dreams<br />

into reality<br />

We Made This Game<br />

living large<br />

Kareem’s New book<br />

Spring 2012 • VOL. 1 iSSUE 2<br />

www.reboundmag.com


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<strong>Luxury</strong> Air offers your valuable clients a travel experience that is virtually impossible to duplicate<br />

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INsIDE IssUE<br />

this<br />

Features<br />

8 Remembering Bob Boozer<br />

9 See You in the Big Easy<br />

10 Turning Dreams into Reality<br />

15 Staying Agile<br />

16 Cowens Gets Candid<br />

22 Persistence Pays Off<br />

24 Legends Helping Out<br />

25 Better or Easier?<br />

26 Choosing An Advisor<br />

30 Golf Course Living<br />

Departments<br />

5 Tip-Off<br />

Eric Carlyle, Publisher<br />

5 FISH Talk<br />

Matt Fish, Editor<br />

7 Executive Summary<br />

Arnie Fielkow, NBRPA CEO<br />

18 Center Court<br />

28 <strong>Luxury</strong> Lifestyles<br />

30 Hoop Dreams<br />

Dr. Dick Barnett<br />

Volume 1, Issue 2 • Spring 2012<br />

NBRPA REBOUND MAGAZINE<br />

PUBlIshER/sAlEs<br />

Eric Carlyle • eric@reboundmag.com<br />

AssOcIAtE PUBlIshER/MANAGING EDItOR<br />

Connie Wardman • connie@reboundmag.com<br />

ADvIsOR<br />

Bernard Thompson • bernard@reboundmag.com<br />

EDItOR<br />

Matthew Fish • matt@reboundmag.com<br />

ARt DIREctOR<br />

Jay Gelnett • jay@reboundmag.com<br />

WRItERs<br />

Dr. Richard Barnett, Bryce Carter, Cedric<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong>, Paul Corliss, Nella Decesare, Brett Rice,<br />

Jason Riley<br />

WEBsItE/It<br />

David Riach • david@reboundmag.com<br />

sAlEs<br />

Shane Hicke • shane@reboundmag.com<br />

ExEcUtIvE EDItOR<br />

Paul Corliss • pcorliss@legendsofbasketball.com<br />

NBRPA<br />

cEO<br />

Arnie Fielkow<br />

stAff<br />

Adrian Colón, Paul Corliss, Kim Durr, Scott<br />

Roskind, Mark Scoggins, Charece Williams, Sam<br />

Vincent<br />

NBRPA BOARD MEMBERs<br />

Robert A. Elliott, President & Chairman<br />

Otis Birdsong, Vice President<br />

Marvin Roberts, Treasurer<br />

Steve Hayes, Secretary<br />

Dr. George Tinsley Sr., Past President<br />

Thurl Bailey, Director<br />

Harvey Catchings, Director<br />

James Donaldson, Director<br />

LaRue Martin Jr., Director<br />

Johnny Newman, Director<br />

Danny Schayes, Director<br />

Copyright 2012 Media Out Loud, LLC<br />

4703 S. Lakeshore Drive, Suite 3<br />

Tempe, <strong>Arizona</strong> 85282<br />

P 480.222.4223 • F 480.889.5513<br />

www.reboundmag.com<br />

REBOUND is a trademark of Rebound Sports Media<br />

3


s u i t s h i g h – e n d d e n i m s u e d e<br />

w i l l i s a n d w a l k e r . c o m


Tip-Off<br />

by eriC Carlyle<br />

It amazes me how<br />

much the media<br />

business is like<br />

basketball. Both are<br />

comprised of a team<br />

of skilled members,<br />

both are competitive<br />

and both of them<br />

entertain. But what<br />

makes basketball so<br />

different is the ability<br />

Eric Carlyle, Publisher<br />

and drive of many<br />

former players to give back to the communities<br />

where they live and/or have played.<br />

In this issue you will catch up with Cedric<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong>. Cedric’s non-profit, Hoop2Heal, is<br />

an amazing charity. I recently had the opportunity<br />

to attend a Hoop2Heal event and was not only<br />

impressed by Cedric’s hard work but also by the<br />

support of his fellow athletes who turned out to<br />

support Hoop2Heal. You can read more about<br />

Cedric on page 10.<br />

But <strong>Ceballos</strong> isn’t alone in his desire to give<br />

back to others; he has great company in his<br />

philanthropic efforts. We have spotlighted a few<br />

other players who give back, including Chris<br />

Dudley and Dikembe Mutombo, on page 24.<br />

Giving back can be more than establishing<br />

a charity, though. In this month’s Center Court<br />

you can read about Kareem abdul-Jabbar’s new<br />

children’s book, What Color is My World? What<br />

about golf tournaments, bowling fundraisers,<br />

and youth mentoring? The legends give back<br />

in countless ways—too many for us to cover<br />

them all. So while the media business is a lot like<br />

basketball in a number of ways, the athletes give<br />

back so much to the community in the spirit of<br />

friendly competition that they have the media<br />

beat (in a good way).<br />

fROM REBOUND MAGAZINE<br />

Big Guys,<br />

Big Hearts<br />

by MaTTheW Fish<br />

The phoenix NBRpa<br />

Chapter recently held its<br />

8th annual Kids Fight<br />

Cancer Golf Classic,<br />

an event that’s always<br />

near and dear to our<br />

members’ hearts. as we<br />

were wrapping it up, it<br />

caused me to reflect on<br />

my experiences over my<br />

last seven years as an<br />

NBRpa member. as I’ve<br />

become more and more<br />

Matthew Fish, Editor<br />

involved with NBRpa at<br />

the national level, one of the things that has continued<br />

to impress me is the overall willingness of our members<br />

to get involved in community outreach efforts, especially<br />

those projects and events relating to children.<br />

We’re all big guys—that’s just one of the reasons we<br />

got to play basketball in the pro ranks. and when we<br />

retired, we could all have rested on our laurels as retired<br />

NBa, aBa or Harlem Globetrotters and never become<br />

active in our communities across the U.S. But based on<br />

my observations, I think our guys also display very big<br />

hearts in their willingness to give back to the people and<br />

communities who have so eagerly supported all of us<br />

over our playing careers.<br />

None of us have to do that—there’s no requirement<br />

for NBRpa membership that says we have to be good<br />

community citizens, there’s no demerit system if we<br />

don’t participate. No, this is an inner drive, a desire to<br />

leave a legacy for our families, friends, teammates and<br />

fans that goes beyond our individual and team records<br />

for points, rebounds and dunks. It’s a common desire to<br />

be positive role models, using our sports notoriety and<br />

fame to leave a positive legacy for the latest generation<br />

of kids who look up to us. It makes me proud to say I’m<br />

an NBRpa member!<br />

5


DEAR NBRPA MEMBER,<br />

Arnie D. Fielkow, NBRPA<br />

Chief Executive Officer<br />

Executive Summary<br />

They say time<br />

flies when<br />

you’re having<br />

fun. I am<br />

already seven months<br />

into my job serving you<br />

as Ceo of the National<br />

Basketball Retired players<br />

association and it feels<br />

as if we’re moving a mile<br />

a minute. Since my fulltime<br />

arrival in october,<br />

we have looked hard at what was working and we have<br />

tried to make those programs and services even better.<br />

We have eliminated what was not working and we are<br />

constantly introducing new programs and services to<br />

add value to NBRpa members.<br />

We now offer free programs in the areas of health,<br />

finance, career/life skills, education and legal to<br />

help equip our members with tools for success. our<br />

newly re-launched web site, legendsofBasketball.<br />

com, is a world-class portal for news, information and<br />

interactivity. We also continue to innovate with sociallyaware<br />

events for members and the general public.<br />

During the recent NBa all-Star Weekend in<br />

orlando, the NBRpa partnered with Wells Fargo<br />

to celebrate Black History Month. as part of a daylong<br />

celebration on Feb. 26, former New York Knicks<br />

star Dr. Dick Barnett and our own legends Band—a<br />

soulful music act comprised of former NBa and<br />

WNBa players–delivered a rousing assembly program<br />

to a group of local school children to celebrate africanamerican<br />

heritage and the opportunities that lie ahead.<br />

later that evening, the NBRpa and Wells<br />

Fargo hosted a public reception and historic panel<br />

discussion on the african-american impact on the<br />

game of basketball and sports, in general. For two<br />

hours NBRpa members Kareem abdul-Jabbar, Julius<br />

erving, Spencer Haywood, earl lloyd and Dolph<br />

Schayes—joined by Sharon Robinson (daughter of<br />

Major league Baseball’s first african-american player,<br />

Jackie Robinson), sports/social activist Dr. Richard<br />

a. lapchick, author Mark Johnson (son of former<br />

Harlem Globetrotter, andy Johnson) and emcee<br />

Marc H. Morial, president & Ceo of the National<br />

Urban league—were united in frank and captivating<br />

discussion about the historic relevance of race in sports.<br />

Several hundred people attended the Hardwood<br />

pioneers Reflect panel at the Walt Disney Swan Resort<br />

in orlando and thousands more accessed the historic<br />

discussion live online at legendsofBasketball.com.<br />

Without the support of our partner, Wells Fargo, the<br />

NBRpa would not have been able to produce such an<br />

historic and culturally-relevant menu of programming<br />

in celebration of Black History Month. These are the<br />

types of impactful partnerships we are working hard to<br />

create and execute at the NBRpa.<br />

From an event standpoint, our organizational<br />

focus now turns to the 2012 legends World Sports<br />

Conference in New orleans on august 17, 18 and 19.<br />

as the former president for the New orleans City<br />

Council and executive Vice president of the New<br />

orleans Saints, the Crescent City is obviously a place I<br />

hold dear to my heart and I can promise our members<br />

and partners a truly unique world-class event.<br />

are you ready to hit the French Quarter for a<br />

weekend of philanthropy, fraternization, food and fun?<br />

our annual retreat to share ideas, to network and learn<br />

from one another will be held at the historic Royal<br />

Sonesta Hotel in New orleans. located on Bourbon<br />

Street in the heart of the French Quarter, the Royal<br />

Sonesta offers quick access to everything New orleans<br />

has to offer. and we are putting together a one-of-akind,<br />

all-inclusive itinerary that combines business with<br />

entertainment for NBRpa members in good standing.<br />

NBRpa membership dues cover a two-night hotel<br />

stay as well as a host of entertainment, dining and<br />

learning opportunities. The agenda won’t be limited to<br />

just the Royal Sonesta—we’ve booked activities to take<br />

place on the Mississippi River as part of a steamboat<br />

cruise for conference attendees. If you know former<br />

teammates or friends from your playing days who aren’t<br />

7


8<br />

ExEcUtIvE sUMMARy<br />

current NBRpa members, now is the perfect time<br />

for them to sign up and take advantage of everything<br />

our conference has to offer—the 2012 legends World<br />

Sports Conference promises to deliver members far<br />

more in value than their $250 annual dues.<br />

look for registration materials in your inbox<br />

soon. In the meantime, please email us any ideas for<br />

conference sessions or topics you wish to be addressed<br />

as part of the 2012 legends World Sports Conference<br />

at memberalert@legendsofbasketball.com.<br />

our other primary focal point at the NBRpa is<br />

solidifying the long-time partnership we have with<br />

the NBa as we negotiate new terms for our Group<br />

licensing agreement. Your Board of Directors has<br />

created a committee that is meeting regularly with one<br />

another and with the NBa to reach the best agreement<br />

possible to support not only our members but also<br />

A fOREvER lEGEND<br />

bob boozer<br />

The recent passing of NBa legend Bob Boozer<br />

has rekindled many wonderful stories of his amazing<br />

basketball career from those who knew and loved<br />

him. and while the stories come from different eras—<br />

college, olympic and professional play—what remains<br />

the same throughout them all is that he was a great<br />

man—a great Hall of Fame basketball player, an<br />

ultimate professional with a great jump shot. Boozer<br />

often used to say that an open 15-foot jumper was like<br />

a layup.<br />

From winning all-american honors at Kansas State<br />

University in 1958-59, the 6-foot-8 power forward<br />

went on to become the first overall pick in the 1959<br />

NBa Draft by the Cincinnati Royals, the start of an<br />

11-year career with six different teams—the Royals,<br />

New York Knicks, l.a. lakers, Chicago Bulls, Seattle<br />

SuperSonics and finally the Milwaukee Bucks where he<br />

was part of their 1971 NBa championship team.<br />

Jerry West was his teammate on the gold medal U.S.<br />

Basketball team at the 1960 olympic Games in Rome.<br />

“In 1960, when we all started playing professional<br />

basketball, that was really the start of the change of<br />

the bigger players in the NBa…part of the era where<br />

players started looking more like the modern-day<br />

athletes,” said West.<br />

“He knew the game and how to play,” said Chicago<br />

teammate Jerry Sloan, referring to Boozer as a pro’s<br />

pro. and his good friend and olympic teammate oscar<br />

the programs and services we offer. look for updates<br />

with regard to our NBa negotiations as the discussions<br />

progress.<br />

as I reflect on my first seven months working<br />

alongside you, I want to say thank you. The opportunity<br />

to serve the NBRpa is truly one-of-a-kind—the<br />

potential of this organization is limitless and I am<br />

excited by the daily progress our Board of Directors<br />

and staff are making. There’s never been a better time<br />

to be a member of the NBRpa and I thank each and<br />

every one of you for your support.<br />

Yours in basketball,<br />

arnie D. Fielkow<br />

Chief executive officer<br />

Robertson described<br />

him as “a big man<br />

who could shoot<br />

outside,” noting that<br />

“he could stretch the<br />

defense.”<br />

Coming of age as<br />

an african-american<br />

player in the late<br />

1950s and early<br />

‘60s, Boozer had<br />

expressed concern<br />

to Kansas State<br />

Coach Tex Winter<br />

about the potential<br />

of being forced to<br />

Bob Boozer during the Basketball Hall<br />

of Fame Class of 2010 reception on<br />

August 13, 2010 in Springfield, Mass.<br />

stay in different hotels when the team was on the road.<br />

But his Wildcat teammate Jack parr doesn’t recall any<br />

racial problems, especially inside the locker room.<br />

“How can you be prejudiced against someone who is so<br />

wholesome and has such a sense of humor and is such<br />

a terrific player?” parr said. He remarked that Boozer<br />

was so special he thinks it would have taken someone<br />

with a real case of prejudice not to recognize that.<br />

after retiring from the NBa, Boozer returned to<br />

his native omaha, Neb. and worked as an executive for<br />

Bell Systems. He was later appointed to the Nebraska<br />

parole Board and also volunteered his time at Boy’s<br />

Town, a facility for troubled youth. Boozer, who died<br />

due to a brain aneurysm at the age of 75, will always be<br />

remembered as one of the great NBa legends.


LegendS<br />

World Sports<br />

Conference<br />

The National Basketball Retired players<br />

association (NBRpa), the only association<br />

comprised of NBa, aBa and Harlem<br />

Globetrotters alumni, will host its annual legends<br />

World Sports Conference for members in New<br />

orleans on august 17-19. Widely recognized as the<br />

premiere gathering of its kind for former professional<br />

basketball players, the legends World Sports<br />

Conference (lWSC) is the NBRpa’s annual retreat<br />

for members and partners to share ideas, network and<br />

learn from one another. Wells Fargo will serve as the<br />

presenting sponsor for the 2012 legends World Sports<br />

Conference, with registration information set to be<br />

distributed to NBRpa members in early June.<br />

“as the former president for the New orleans City<br />

Council and executive Vice president of the New<br />

orleans Saints, the Crescent City is obviously a place I<br />

hold dear to my heart and I can promise our members<br />

and partners a truly unique world class event,” said<br />

NBRpa Chief executive officer arnie D. Fielkow.<br />

“We would like to thank Wells Fargo for their support<br />

of the 2012 legends World Sports Conference—a<br />

weekend that promises to be chock-full of idea-sharing,<br />

philanthropy, fraternization and fun.”<br />

The historic Royal Sonesta Hotel—located on<br />

Bourbon Street in the heart of the French Quarter—<br />

will host the 2012 lWSC. all members attending the<br />

conference will receive two complimentary room nights<br />

from the NBRpa at the Royal Sonesta, a timeless<br />

landmark hotel that offers quick access to everything<br />

New orleans has to offer. Members in attendance will<br />

also receive a host of all-inclusive entertainment, dining<br />

and learning opportunities.<br />

Conference workshop sessions will feature industry<br />

experts covering a variety of relevant topics, including<br />

Franchising opportunities, Jobs in Sports, Finance,<br />

Career Transition, Continuing education, Speakers<br />

Bureaus, Social Media, Health & Wellness, Starting a<br />

Charitable Foundation and more.<br />

The NBRpa also has a host of unique hands-on<br />

philanthropic events planned to help give back in New<br />

orleans, including a charity fishing rodeo, a healthrelated<br />

event and a special youth basketball clinic in the<br />

Hurricane Katrina-ravaged Ninth Ward.<br />

The agenda won’t just be limited to activities at the<br />

Royal Sonesta, as the NBRpa has booked an excursion<br />

on the Mississippi River as part of a steamboat cruise,<br />

multiple city tours and a casino party for conference<br />

attendees. additional opportunities for recreation<br />

include dinners at renowned New orleans restaurants<br />

and home-grown jazz and blues concerts.<br />

NBRPA members may register for the 2012 Legends<br />

World Sports Conference at www.legendsofbasketball.<br />

com/event/legends-conference/register/test/.<br />

The Royal Sonesta<br />

9


<strong>CedriC</strong><br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong><br />

Ðreamer<br />

extraordinaire<br />

TRYING<br />

To pICK JUST oNe aDJeCTIVe To DeSCRIBe<br />

CeDRIC CeBalloS IS aN exeRCISe IN FRUSTRaTIoN BeCaUSe<br />

HIS TaleNTS Go FaR BeYoND BaSKeTBall. BUT WHeN YoU<br />

aSK CeBalloS To DeSCRIBe HIMSelF, WITHoUT HeSITaTIoN<br />

He CallS HIMSelF a DReaMeR. He’S a MaN WITH loTS<br />

oF DReaMS aND He INTeNDS To ReaCH all oF THeM. oR<br />

aT THe VeRY leaST, He INTeNDS To TRY oUT all oF THeM.<br />

THaT DeTeRMINaTIoN To expeRIeNCe all HIS DReaMS, To<br />

expeRIeNCe eaCH NeW aDVeNTURe, SeTS HIM apaRT FRoM<br />

oTHeR TaleNTeD people WHo TeND To Be RISK-aDVeRSe.<br />

HIp-Hop RappeR, MUSIC pRoDUCeR, RaDIo aND TeleVISIoN<br />

HoST, aCToR, SpoRTS TeaM oWNeR, pHIlaNTHRopIST,<br />

“KITCHeN GUY”—CeBalloS IS all THeSe THINGS…aND MoRe.<br />

11


12<br />

In spite of all <strong>Ceballos</strong>’ dreams, being<br />

an NBa player was never one of them when he was<br />

growing up on the island of Maui and later in los<br />

angeles. Music was really his first love. But it turned<br />

out that he was also good at basketball. He was a<br />

strategic player, using his time on the bench to watch<br />

his opponents, gauging the most effective way to deal<br />

with them. If anything, he saw himself as a big NBa<br />

fan. But all that changed in his last year at California<br />

State University, Fullerton when Jerry West, legendary<br />

player-turned-coach and general manager, came to<br />

watch one of their games. Interest in watching his<br />

opponents disappeared as <strong>Ceballos</strong> focused on getting<br />

coach John Sneed to tell him who West was there to<br />

see play. once he learned that West was there to watch<br />

him play, it was a life-changing moment. For the first<br />

time it allowed him to entertain the idea that he might<br />

be one of the NBa’s newest players instead of one of<br />

its biggest fans. and in 1990 that dream came true—he<br />

was drafted by the phoenix Suns in the second round,<br />

the 48th overall pick.<br />

During the Suns’ record-breaking 173-143<br />

win over the Denver Nuggets in November 1990,<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong> scored a game-high 32 points, earning him<br />

the nickname, “The point-a-Minute Man.” He played<br />

for the Suns twice during his 11-year NBa career as<br />

well as the l.a. lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit<br />

pistons, and the Miami Heat. In the 1992-93 year he<br />

led the NBa in field goal percentage (57.6) and in<br />

1992 won the NBa slam-dunk competition at the all-<br />

Star Weekend in orlando with a blindfolded “hocuspocus”<br />

jam that earned him a perfect score of 50. other<br />

career highlights include a career-high 50 points in<br />

December 1994 against the Minnesota Timberwolves<br />

and being awarded the NBa player of the Month that<br />

same month for averaging 27.8 points per game and 9.0<br />

rebounds per game.<br />

1995 was a banner year for <strong>Ceballos</strong>—he scored<br />

25 points in six consecutive games from November<br />

7-15, was named NBa player of the Week for the week<br />

ending November 19 and was chosen for the 1995<br />

NBa all-Star Game as a member of the los angeles<br />

lakers although due to an injury, he wasn’t able to play.<br />

In the 1995-96 season <strong>Ceballos</strong> again led the lakers<br />

with a 21.2 average, racking up the first 50-point game<br />

for the team in over 20 years, and in 1996 was named<br />

Comeback player of the Year. While with the Dallas<br />

Mavericks, he scored his 7,000 career point against the<br />

Timberwolves in March 1998 and played in his 500th<br />

career game in February 1999.<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong> has also done his share of playing overseas.<br />

In 2002 he signed with Israeli team Hapoel Tel aviv,<br />

and shortly thereafter moved to Russia to play for the<br />

BC lokomotiv Mineralnye Vody, finally playing for the


Cedric <strong>Ceballos</strong> #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers<br />

drives to the basket against Clyde Drexler #22<br />

of the Houston Rockets.®1996 NBAE (Photo by<br />

Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)<br />

San Miguel Beermen team, part of the philippine Basketball<br />

association (pBa). But his experiences abroad weren’t<br />

particularly positive. Comparing his experiences there to<br />

how U.S. teams, players and fans go out of their way to<br />

make foreign players feel welcome and comfortable here,<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong> recounted how their foreign counterparts never<br />

went out of their way to make him or any other non-native<br />

players feel welcome—once the game was over, you were on<br />

your own. No surprise then when he came back to the U.S.<br />

and signed in 2004 with the los angeles Stars of the aBa.<br />

In March of 2007 he was signed by the phoenix Flame,<br />

part of the IBl, for its inaugural season. But by the next<br />

month he moved into being assistant coach. It wasn’t long<br />

after his return to the states that <strong>Ceballos</strong> was hired as the<br />

in-arena emcee for the phoenix Suns. again, no particular<br />

surprise—many professional athletes move seamlessly from<br />

playing into some type of announcing or analyzing position<br />

either with a team or a broadcast network. But<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong> was also co-host of the weekly Suns.com<br />

web show, Nothin’ But Net aND he was a morning<br />

radio personality for a rhythm & blues radio<br />

station in phoenix. Clearly, throughout his life<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong>’ multi-dimensional dreams have led to<br />

multi-tasking in the real world. as it turns out,<br />

<strong>Ceballos</strong> wasn’t spending his time over the past 20some<br />

years just playing basketball.<br />

long before he discovered his talents with<br />

a basketball, <strong>Ceballos</strong> entertained people by<br />

spinning long-playing records as a DJ. If you know<br />

that music was his first love and you’ve also heard<br />

his silky-smooth deep voice, then you can see why<br />

he’s involved in the entertainment industry as<br />

well as the world of basketball. It is, as he says, “a<br />

good fit.” over the years his voice and personality<br />

have garnered him radio spots on a number of<br />

stations in phoenix, los angeles and multiple<br />

stations in Dallas. and once he tried radio, the<br />

silver screen also beckoned. During the 1996-<br />

98 timeframe <strong>Ceballos</strong> appeared in 10 movies,<br />

including “Jimi,” “High anxiety,” “Space Jam,”<br />

“Hang Time” and “eddie.” He also worked on the<br />

1994 album, B-Ball’s Best Kept Secret featuring a<br />

number of early 1990s NBa friends and hip-hop<br />

star and former neighborhood pal, Warren G on<br />

the “Flow On” track. He also worked on the track<br />

“Ya Don’t Stop” that featured fellow-NBa all-<br />

Star Dana Barros and rappers Grand puba, Sadat<br />

x, aG, and Diamond D. In 2000 he released his<br />

own rap album titled ‘Nuff Ced, an experience that<br />

makes him look forward to additional producing<br />

opportunities.<br />

a dream to gain ownership experience in the<br />

basketball world prompted <strong>Ceballos</strong> to become<br />

part-owner of the aBa team, the arizona Scorpions<br />

13


Former player Cedric <strong>Ceballos</strong> signs autographs during an appearance at the<br />

Adidas Experience at Jam Session during NBA All Star Weekend in Orlando,<br />

Florida. ®2012 NBAE. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/NBAE via Getty Images)<br />

14<br />

in 2011. “after talking to and learning from [then Suns<br />

president and Ceo] Rick Welts, he encouraged me<br />

by saying that I should go and learn and get as much<br />

knowledge as I could,” said <strong>Ceballos</strong>. Until he was<br />

struck by a series of small heart attacks in November<br />

of that year, he was also playing for the Scorpions.<br />

Fortunately, he was in overall good shape,<br />

having just lost 30 pounds getting back<br />

to playing weight. However, following<br />

an angioplasty where two stents<br />

were inserted into his blocked<br />

arteries, he knew that while<br />

he’d be good for a pickup<br />

game or two, his semipro<br />

playing days were over.<br />

Talking about his occasional<br />

weight problem, <strong>Ceballos</strong> says<br />

he’s a “kitchen guy.” after years<br />

of being on the road and eating<br />

out, he loves to cook and would at<br />

some point like to host a television<br />

cooking show. Based on his dream-toreality<br />

track record, perhaps we should all<br />

get ready for the latest cooking show with Chef<br />

Ced!<br />

So what’s new in his life right now? Two things—the<br />

first is his new charity, Hoop2Heal Foundation<br />

(H2H). <strong>Ceballos</strong> connects well with people of all ages,<br />

especially children. as a devoted father himself, he sees<br />

how expensive it’s become for parents to get and keep<br />

Former NBA players Cedric <strong>Ceballos</strong> and Darryl Dawkins<br />

are interviewed at Jam Session during All Star Weekend<br />

2012 in Orlando, Florida. ©2012 NBAE (Photo by Jack<br />

Arent/NBAE via Getty Images)<br />

their children involved in sports. according to <strong>Ceballos</strong>,<br />

his foundation “benefits kids who have had sports<br />

injuries and need surgery and can’t afford treatment.”<br />

The interesting thing is its different structure—it’s the<br />

children, not the parents, who have to pay to keep the<br />

kids in sports. and the way kids do that is through<br />

education and hard work—doing research,<br />

writing a paper or taking a test. With a<br />

big heart and a belief that “freely ye<br />

give; freely ye receive,” he held<br />

his first foundation fundraiser<br />

in april at a local bowling<br />

alley. Called “Super Bowl<br />

Sunday,” the event brought<br />

out current and retired sports<br />

greats from both the arizona<br />

Cardinals NFl team and the<br />

phoenix Suns, including larry<br />

Fitzgerald, Steve Nash, Kurt<br />

Warner, Charles Barkley, and Grant<br />

Hill. They teamed up with <strong>Ceballos</strong><br />

to raise money for the foundation in<br />

a bowling tournament as well as giving out<br />

autographs and having their pictures taken with<br />

the fans.<br />

Clearly, <strong>Ceballos</strong> knows himself well. If you really<br />

need only one word to describe him, his own choice<br />

of dreamer couldn’t be more on target. However,<br />

all things considered, adding just one more word—<br />

extraordinaire—seems totally appropriate.


Staying agiLe<br />

by JasoN riley, direCTor oF sporTs perForMaNCe<br />

Agility is a fundamental key to<br />

being a successful basketball<br />

player. It encompasses the<br />

ability to accelerate, decelerate<br />

and change direction while maintaining proper balance<br />

and posture. It can be described as multi-directional<br />

quickness.<br />

Coaches and athletes used to believe that athletes’<br />

speed and agility were determined by their genetic<br />

make-up. Coaches now understand that speed and agility<br />

are skills— skills that can be taught.<br />

When developing effective agility drills for basketball,<br />

fundamentals are universal: apply greater force into the<br />

ground, apply it in less time and in the proper direction<br />

while maintaining the center of mass over the base<br />

of support. When determining the most important<br />

movement skills in the game, the shuffle, cross-over step<br />

and acceleration rank at the top of the list. proficiency<br />

at creating positive angles, keeping the center of mass<br />

low and developing a powerful first step are critical to<br />

becoming a better offensive and defensive player.<br />

To maximize speed and agility, a systematic approach<br />

must be applied for developing movement mechanics.<br />

athletes should progress from slower, more deliberate<br />

actions requiring conscious thought to more dynamic,<br />

reactive movements. emphasis should constantly<br />

be placed on body and joint positioning, allowing<br />

movements to become more coordinated and efficient.<br />

an athlete must learn to synchronize recruitment<br />

patterns in each individual muscle as well as recruit the<br />

proper firing sequence of multiple muscle groups.<br />

Jason Riley, Director of Sports Performance at The<br />

Athletes Compound. jriley@elementznutrition.com<br />

ExamplE training drill<br />

SEt-up<br />

2 cones placed between center court<br />

and top of 3-point line.<br />

drill 1<br />

Have athlete shuffle between 2 cones,<br />

changing direction once his outside<br />

foot reaches the cone.<br />

drill 2<br />

Same as above but add resistance via<br />

bungee cord or resistance belt.<br />

drill 3<br />

Take bungee off and see if athlete can<br />

perform at game speed.<br />

drill 4<br />

Have athlete react to an external<br />

stimulus and see if he can maintain<br />

movement proficiency with reaction<br />

(i.e. point in direction you want him<br />

to go, change direction with whistle,<br />

change direction of ball drops, etc…).<br />

If players can’t maintain proper form<br />

during any drill, go back and perform<br />

the previous drills with emphasis on<br />

technique. Each step is an opportunity<br />

to create new neuromuscular patterns,<br />

engraining them into their movement<br />

repertoire. By creating movement<br />

proficiency, athletes improve their first<br />

step quickness and power capabilities,<br />

preserving their energy throughout<br />

the game as well as warding off injury.<br />

15


16<br />

BAskEtBAll 101<br />

dave<br />

CoWeNs by<br />

Dave Cowens helped found the NBRpa<br />

alongside archie Clark, Dave Bing, Dave<br />

DeBusschere and oscar Robertson in 1992.<br />

Just the year before, Cowens had earned<br />

a berth in the Basketball Hall of Fame because of his<br />

tenacity and work ethic as a mainstay of the Boston Celtics<br />

in the 1970s, leading the team to NBa Championships<br />

in 1974 and 1976. an unlikely hero in a sport dominated<br />

by men of greater size and natural ability, the redhaired<br />

lefthander relied on hustle and heart to achieve<br />

NBa greatness. His determination helped to resurrect<br />

a Celtics dynasty presumed dead after the departure<br />

of legend Bill Russell. Cowens ultimately joined his<br />

venerated predecessor in the Hall of Fame.<br />

Still active in the NBRpa, Cowens recently visited<br />

with NBRpa Senior Director of Communications paul<br />

Corliss to discuss a myriad of issues pertaining to the<br />

NBRpa and retired NBa players.<br />

How did you get involved as a founder of the NBRPA<br />

in 1992?<br />

I heard about [forming a retired players association]<br />

from oscar Robertson in the very beginning. I was at<br />

the Hall of Fame ceremonies in 1991 and when I got<br />

off the stage after being inducted, oscar was in the<br />

audience and approached me. He asked if I would<br />

like to get involved with forming a retired players<br />

association and when oscar asked you to do something,<br />

you said yes. So that’s how I got involved. There was an<br />

effort to form a retired players association in the 1980s<br />

but for some reason, that effort was not successful. So<br />

forming the NBRpa wasn’t an original idea, but its time<br />

had come with the right people involved—oscar, Dave<br />

Bing, Dave DeBusschere and archie Clark. I was really<br />

honored that I was asked to be involved with them in<br />

something like this. The others leagues had retired<br />

players associations, so we figured that we should too<br />

and we should try to do a really good job at it.<br />

We wanted to form a big enough group so we could<br />

work on some group licensing arrangements with the<br />

a CandidQ&aabout<br />

the nbrPa<br />

with one of its<br />

founding members<br />

paul Corliss<br />

Dave Cowens of the Boston Celtics makes a move to the basket<br />

against Tom Boerwinkle of the Chicago Bulls. ©1975 NBAE (Photo<br />

by Dick Raphael NBAE via Getty Images)<br />

NBa or other partners. We would charge a nominal fee<br />

to get in and hopefully provide some group benefits,<br />

continue the brotherhood so people could continue<br />

to network, and maybe be able to provide some<br />

group health insurance. our motives were pure and<br />

no one was trying to gain an advantage. No one was<br />

getting anything special—we were just trying to form<br />

something for the good of all concerned.<br />

The NBRPA is now in its 20th year. How would you<br />

assess it today?<br />

I think it’s evolving in the right direction and I<br />

think our leadership and staff today is as good as it has<br />

been. The biggest action item should be to grow the<br />

association and get more members. Get more people<br />

involved and that will take the organization to different<br />

places—you’ll have different people with different<br />

ideas and contacts. The more members we get makes<br />

us stronger in our relationship with the NBa and<br />

NBpa. It would be nice if we could have a trifecta with<br />

the NBa, the current players and the retired players all<br />

working together on things that are good for everybody.<br />

eventually the guys that are playing today are going<br />

to be retired and they should want to be a part of our<br />

organization and to support it.


Dave Cowens #18 of the Boston Celtics grabs a rebound against<br />

the Buffalo Braves during the 1972 NBA Game at Boston Garden<br />

in Boston, Mass. ©2002 NBAE Jim Cummins/NBAE/Getty Images<br />

As you know, the NBRPA has a relationship with the<br />

NBA in which there is a Group Licensing Agreement<br />

(GLA) where the league awards our members with<br />

licensing monies. What are your thoughts on this<br />

program and the relationship with the NBA?<br />

What we have is a great partner in the NBa—<br />

they’re as good as anybody in the world at putting<br />

deals together. Their strength is forming partnerships<br />

with different corporations or creating licensing deals,<br />

and they’re doing it worldwide. It’s a blessing that we<br />

have them and that they’re able to do that with us. We<br />

get a million dollars a year to pay our overhead and<br />

set up shop, and then we get appearance monies and<br />

royalties from the NBa for uniform sales, video games<br />

and other stuff that uses our likenesses.<br />

For us to think that we can do as good a job on our<br />

own of finding people that want to partner with us<br />

is kind of ludicrous, really. We need to work as good<br />

an agreement as we possibly can with the NBa—and<br />

we are in line for an increased deal after several years<br />

operating under the current Gla—and then we need<br />

to be proud partners with them. I think a lot of guys<br />

think the NBa is holding us down, holding us back and<br />

we can be bigger. I just think we’re blessed to have this<br />

relationship with the NBa, one of the world’s leaders<br />

in business and licensing. look at how the legends<br />

Brunch has turned out…it was a small get together<br />

when it started out and now it’s on TV where you<br />

get to see the NBa and its legends as part of all-Star<br />

Weekend. It’s pretty cool, really, the way the whole<br />

thing has grown. We have such a great partnership<br />

with the NBa and I know of lots of retired players<br />

organizations in other sports that don’t have such a<br />

harmonious relationship with their parent league.<br />

Dave Cowens (C) of the Boston Celtics poses with the Larry O’Brien Trophy and<br />

the Southwest Airlines Slam Dunk One crew at Logan International Airport in<br />

Boston, Mass. ©2010 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)<br />

What do you get out of the NBRPA?<br />

BAskEtBAll 101<br />

For me, I like the fellowship and the ability to<br />

network and stay in touch with former players that<br />

I competed with and against. We had an NBRpa<br />

conference call the other day and I heard from so<br />

many guys I hadn’t talked to in years. I was like, “Man,<br />

I’m glad they’re still alive and doing well.” It’s neat to<br />

hear from them and to network through the NBRpa.<br />

What are the biggest issues for today’s NBRPA?<br />

as I mentioned earlier, it’s important we grow<br />

membership to have a larger voice. We now have<br />

chapters in the NBRpa and I think chapters are<br />

important because that keeps things local. The<br />

chapters can do different things—put on local events,<br />

hold meetings—and continue to build and strengthen<br />

the brotherhood.<br />

Health insurance would also be great. It would<br />

be nice to have that ability to fall back on a group<br />

insurance plan that is affordable for guys—it’s<br />

challenging to do that when your membership is older.<br />

overall, we just need to strengthen our ability to help<br />

guys who have fallen upon tough times.<br />

What are you up to today?<br />

I’m semi-retired. Since I stopped working for<br />

Detroit as an assistant coach, I’ve been spending six<br />

months of the year in the New england area, in Maine,<br />

and six months in Fort lauderdale. I’ve been trying<br />

to learn how to play golf, taking up that challenge and<br />

doing a little bit of travelling. I do various speaking<br />

engagements and have been running basketball camps<br />

for 40 years and am now partnered with the Celtics<br />

summer camp program.<br />

17


18<br />

Center<br />

What Color is my World?<br />

What Color is my World?, the latest book by<br />

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld, is a<br />

cleverly-told children’s story about the contributions<br />

of African-American inventors. From the refrigerated<br />

trucks that make today’s supermarkets possible, to<br />

creating synthesized cortisone from soy to relieve pain,<br />

to improvements in open-heart surgery, to the fun of<br />

the Super Soaker, this book is written for readers in the<br />

8-to-12-year age range, telling the stories of a number<br />

of brilliant African-American scientists.<br />

Against all odds, the 15 men and one woman<br />

showcased in the book shared a common desire to<br />

make people’s lives better. As a result, many of the<br />

things we take for granted in our lives today are<br />

either the direct or indirect product of their inventive,<br />

humanitarian efforts. Yet based on their race or<br />

gender, their contributions have gone unrecognized<br />

for years. Abdul-Jabbar, a New York Times best-selling<br />

author, is out to right such wrongs.<br />

Abdul-Jabbar has written seven books, all<br />

highlighting various contributions of African-<br />

Americans. This, his second book with co-author<br />

Raymond Obstfeld, reflects their shared passion for<br />

history as a vehicle of change for social, cultural and<br />

ethnic diversity. Built around a story that’s both funny<br />

MAGIc JOhNsON’s tv<br />

chANNEl READy tO<br />

lAUNch<br />

Ervin “Magic” Johnson’s new television channel<br />

focusing on an African-American audience has named<br />

a new general manager in preparation for its launch<br />

on June 30. Named Aspire, the channel will offer a<br />

24-hour mix of inspirational, family-friendly movies,<br />

comedy, music and more to 11-million homes in the<br />

Atlanta area.<br />

and contemporary, high-spirited twins get a lesson in<br />

Black History from a mysterious and knowledgeable<br />

handyman. The uniquely-designed book supports the<br />

main story with foldout flaps containing profiles of<br />

the inventors and fast facts about their inventions, all<br />

highlighting the ingenuity and perseverance of these<br />

mostly unknown and unsung heroic men and woman.


Court<br />

It’s NOW DR. O’NEAl!<br />

Congratulations to Shaquille O’Neal for recently<br />

earning his Ph.D. in Leadership and Education<br />

with a specialization in Human Resource<br />

Development from Barry University in Miami<br />

Shores, Fla. He has more than fulfilled a promise he<br />

made to his parents when he left LSU early to become<br />

the No. 1 overall pick by the Orlando Magic in 1992.<br />

Promising to finish his undergraduate degree, he fulfilled<br />

that during his playing career with the Magic,<br />

L.A. Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers<br />

and Boston Celtics.<br />

In addition to keeping his promise to his parents,<br />

O’Neal revealed to ABC News that he also wanted to<br />

continue his education and challenge himself. So has<br />

he finally finished his education? No, it seems that this<br />

fun-loving athlete, whose thesis was on the value of<br />

humor in leadership, is now looking at law school.<br />

Thanks for continuing to be a positive role model.<br />

INNOvAtIvE NBRPA/tUlANE lAW<br />

schOOl PARtNERshIP lAUNchED<br />

First announced at the All-Star Game in February,<br />

NBRPA members are eligible for a groundbreaking<br />

benefit. A recently-developed partnership<br />

with Tulane Sports Law Program (TSLP)<br />

enables NBRPA members to gain valuable legal guidance<br />

while Tulane law students gain needed experience<br />

with real world issues in sports law—a win-win<br />

for all concerned.<br />

TSLP students will research a variety of legal, economic<br />

and social issues that impact retired NBA, ABA<br />

and Harlem Globetrotters players.Players can submit<br />

questions to TSLP directly to be researched and analyzed<br />

by Tulane law students. Topics for their legal research<br />

focus on the intellectual property rights of athletes,<br />

tax issues, contract law, worker’s compensation<br />

and a variety of other topics that are part of the TSLP<br />

curriculum.<br />

Shaquille O’Neal gives a thumb’s up after receiving his Ph.D. in<br />

Leadership and Education with a specialization in Human Resource<br />

Development from Barry University in Miami Shores, Fla.<br />

NBRPA members in good standing may access the<br />

Tulane Sports Law Program in the programs section of<br />

LegendsofBasketball.com website at:<br />

www.legendsofbasketball.com/alumnis/programs/<br />

19


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22<br />

WE MADE thIs GAME<br />

Thurl<br />

Bailey<br />

PersistenCe Pays off<br />

The phrase, persistence pays off, must have<br />

been created just for Thurl Bailey. While<br />

some coaches recognize talent early on and<br />

nurture it, Bailey reveals that he was “cut<br />

twice in junior high in both seventh and eighth grade”<br />

basketball. But he persisted and went on to play junior<br />

varsity basketball as a 10th grader and in his words,<br />

finally “began to blossom” toward the end of his junior<br />

season at Bladensburg High School in Bladensburg,<br />

Md.<br />

The eventual NBRpa legend emerged as the<br />

leading scorer for one of the most beloved college<br />

national championship teams in history, went on to<br />

serve as team captain for the Utah Jazz while scoring<br />

double-digits, and finally closed a storied career in<br />

Greece and Italy. Today, in between spending quality<br />

time with his family, Bailey remains a hoops sage,<br />

keeping his hand in the game as a member of the<br />

NBRpa Board of Directors and working as a Jazz<br />

broadcaster.<br />

“I don’t miss playing, I miss the camaraderie in<br />

the locker room,” said Bailey, now 50 and enjoying<br />

life with wife Sindi and his children. “I enjoy talking<br />

basketball, I enjoy analyzing basketball. every player<br />

that made it to the NBa has a connection and is part of<br />

a brotherhood—even if we didn’t play together, we feel<br />

that connection.”<br />

Standing 6-foot-11, Bailey, who averaged nearly<br />

13 points per game in his 13-season NBa career, still<br />

looks like a basketball hero. While he idolized Julius<br />

erving as a boy, he says he was more into student<br />

government and music , playing both the trombone<br />

and tuba. and his continued interest in music led to<br />

a successful post-NBa recording career as a vocalist.<br />

However, his growing high school success in basketball<br />

let to scholarship offers from several prominent east<br />

Coast programs. But Bailey, whose parents were both<br />

North Carolinians, had a special connection to the<br />

basketball program at North Carolina State.<br />

“I sold raffle tickets to attend a basketball camp<br />

at North Carolina State [while in high school] and I<br />

think the coaching staff saw potential in me and kept<br />

tabs on me, said the ever-persistent Bailey, who built<br />

a bond with then-NC State coach Norm Sloan and his<br />

assistant, ed Biedenbach. “I never forgot that and my<br />

folks never forgot that.”<br />

Bailey signed on with Sloan’s Wolfpack as a high<br />

school senior and played for the leader of NC State’s<br />

1974 national championship squad during his freshman<br />

season of 1979-80. But when Sloan moved on to coach<br />

Florida, Bailey’s life would be forever changed with the<br />

hire of former Iona coach Jim Valvano.<br />

With Bailey leading the way alongside fellow-<br />

Maryland natives Dereck Whittenburg and Sidney<br />

lowe, Valvano built momentum at NC State and<br />

looked poised for a breakout season in 1982-83, his<br />

third year in Raleigh. But with Ralph Sampson still at<br />

Virginia and the dynamic duo of Michael Jordan and<br />

Sam perkins leading defending national champion<br />

North Carolina, the aCC was an absolute bear of a<br />

conference.<br />

led by Bailey’s 16.7 points per game, the Wolfpack<br />

entered the aCC Tournament with a 17-10 record,<br />

firmly perched on the NCaa Tournament bubble.<br />

But NC State rose to the occasion and knocked off<br />

North Carolina and Virginia—ranked No. 5 and No.<br />

2, respectively—en route to winning the aCC and<br />

punching a ticket to the Big Dance. Valvano, however,<br />

had loftier goals and wasn’t afraid to share them with<br />

Bailey and his teammates.<br />

“We weren’t really on anyone’s [NCaa] radar but<br />

Coach V was a great leader, Bailey said. “When he


Thurl Bailey of the Utah Jazz dribbles the ball in the post during<br />

an NBA game at The Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1989.<br />

(Photo by Jim Gund/Getty Images)<br />

talked about winning the national championship, we<br />

thought he was crazy. But Coach V was just masterful<br />

in getting us to sacrifice a little bit, and game-aftergame,<br />

something unexpected happened. We ended up<br />

in albuquerque [for the NCaa Final] playing against<br />

one of the greatest college basketball teams ever<br />

assembled.”<br />

The Wolfpack of Bailey and Valvano made history<br />

at the pit in albuquerque on april 4, 1983 against the<br />

top-seeded phi Slamma Jamma Houston Cougars of<br />

Hakeem olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. Basketball fans<br />

know the fairytale ending well:<br />

❵ With time expiring and the score tied at 52,<br />

❵ Lorenzo Charles leaps in the air, grabs<br />

❵ Valvano joyfully sprints down the court, arms<br />

Whittenburg attemps to win the game with a<br />

long-range jumper but shoots a high-arching<br />

air ball.<br />

Whittenburg’s shot and slams it home—giving<br />

NC State a 54-52 win as the buzzer sounds.<br />

flailing in celebration.<br />

Bailey, who led the Wolfpack with 15 points in that<br />

iconic NCaa Championship game, said he carries<br />

lessons from the magical 1983 tournament run with<br />

him every day in life. “once you experience the journey<br />

of becoming a champion, there is an application to<br />

everything you do,” he said. “You approach challenges<br />

WE MADE thIs GAME<br />

with a half-full approach instead of half-empty. We took<br />

a lot of risks and believed in each other…these were<br />

life-long lessons.”<br />

on the strength of his great tournament and career<br />

in Raleigh, Bailey was drafted No. 7 overall by the<br />

Utah Jazz. He was solid from the get-go, averaging 12.4<br />

points as a rookie in 1983-84. playing alongside all-<br />

Star teammates John Stockton and Karl Malone, the<br />

Jazz emerged as a force in the late 1980s with Bailey<br />

blazing a trail as a go-to Sixth Man by averaging almost<br />

19 points a game from 1984 to 1990.<br />

“I had a great run [in the NBa],” Bailey said. “When<br />

you play with arguably the greatest point guard and<br />

power forward in the game—when you run the break<br />

[with Stockton and Malone]—it’s a dream come true.”<br />

The Jazz never quite got over the championship<br />

hump during Bailey’s initial run in Utah and he was<br />

eventually traded to Minnesota where he played three<br />

seasons with the Timberwolves of the early 1990s.<br />

Bailey’s career wound down overseas from 1994 to 1998<br />

in Greece and Italy before he finished his playing days<br />

with one last stint in Utah during the 1998-99 season.<br />

Bailey lost Valvano—who died of cancer in 1993—<br />

along the way. But while the loss of a man he called a<br />

“father-figure” was crushing, Bailey points to the legacy<br />

Valvano has left behind in cancer research that impacts<br />

people to this day.<br />

also along the way, in his march through basketball,<br />

Bailey met his soul mate—a former basketball player<br />

from Utah Valley State named Sindi Southwick.<br />

The two married in 1994 and have three children<br />

in addition to three children from Bailey’s previous<br />

marriage. “I have a wonderful family,” Bailey said.<br />

“Fatherhood is not something that perfect men do, but<br />

I enjoy being a father and its challenges.”<br />

Indeed, no man is perfect. But Bailey’s life after<br />

basketball certainly seems happy and comfortable.<br />

living in picturesque Utah, Bailey has family, music,<br />

faith (he converted to Mormonism several years ago)<br />

and—with his involvement in the NBRpa and Jazz<br />

broadcasts—basketball. asked about his life today,<br />

the reflective Bailey sums up things in simple terms:<br />

“In life today, I am enjoying the experiences and<br />

opportunities brought to me through my pro basketball<br />

career.”<br />

For Thurl Bailey, life is all about the destination<br />

that came as a result of his persistence in pursuing his<br />

basketball journey.<br />

23


24<br />

lEGENDs hElPING OUt<br />

it’S Beter to give …<br />

A large number of former and current NBA players have created their own foundations that<br />

serve and support causes and communities. The following is a brief list of such charities.<br />

Los Angeles Lakers and NBA Legend A.C. Green.<br />

©2008 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images)<br />

A.c. GREEN yOUth fOUNDAtION serves both<br />

youth and the communities in which they live by<br />

providing information about sexual abstinence and<br />

social issues that concern our young people and<br />

educating them to make responsible choices to<br />

prepare them for their future.<br />

www.acgreen.com<br />

AlONZO MOURNING chARItIEs, INc.<br />

(“AMC”) benefits organizations that aid in the<br />

development of at-risk children and families,<br />

including those who have been abused,<br />

abandoned, and/or neglected. It is the goal of<br />

the AMC to improve the quality of life, enhance<br />

educational and economic opportunities for all<br />

minorities based on the precepts of respect for<br />

family, education, spirituality, justice and integrity.<br />

facebook.com/people/Alonzo-Mourning-<br />

Charities/1043828844<br />

chRIs DUDlEy fOUNDAtION empowers<br />

and inspires all young people with diabetes to<br />

live active and dream big. Through high quality<br />

camps and educational programs, collaborative<br />

healthcare, and networks of support, all children<br />

and young adults with diabetes will live healthier,<br />

more active and fulfilling lives.<br />

www.chrisdudley.org<br />

DEtlEf schREMPf fOUNDAtION is primarily a<br />

special event organization, raising nearly all monies<br />

through organized sporting events, celebrity<br />

dinners, gala auctions, golf tournaments, etc.<br />

www.detlef.com<br />

DIkEMBE MUtOMBO fOUNDAtION attempts<br />

to eradicate many childhood diseases that have<br />

virtually disappeared in developed countries while<br />

those diseases are still life threatening to children<br />

in the Congo every day.<br />

www.dmf.org<br />

thE JOhN stARks fOUNDAtION provides<br />

financial assistance for disadvantaged youth<br />

in the form of academic scholarships and selfenhancement<br />

through educational and recreational<br />

development programs.<br />

www.johnstarks.org<br />

thE MAGIc JOhNsON fOUNDAtION supports<br />

community-based organizations and developing<br />

programs that serve the health, educational<br />

and social needs of those residing in inner-city<br />

communities. In addition, the Foundation has<br />

made a strong commitment to raise awareness<br />

about several health and social concerns that<br />

threaten under-served communities.<br />

www.magicjohnson.org<br />

thE RAshEED A. WAllAcE fOUNDAtION<br />

promotes programs that enhance the quality of life<br />

for all people, and assists in the recreational and<br />

educational development of youth in Philadelphia,<br />

Penn., Portland, Ore., Durham, N.C. and other<br />

selected communities.<br />

www.rawallacefoundation.com<br />

thE tIM DUNcAN fOUNDAtION funds<br />

nonprofit organizations in the areas of education,<br />

youth sports and recreation, and health awareness<br />

and research in South Texas, U.S. Virgin Islands,<br />

and in North Carolina.<br />

www.slamduncan.com


etter or easier?by <strong>CedriC</strong> <strong>Ceballos</strong><br />

Do great players make other players<br />

better or do they make their jobs<br />

easier? This writer says they make other<br />

players’ jobs easier. There are only a<br />

few players in the NBa who have made other players<br />

better. By that I mean if you put that same player on<br />

a different team, does he play the same way? Does he<br />

compete the same way, score the same way, achieve<br />

at the same level? I say no. Do you agree or disagree?<br />

We’ll be exploring questions like this every week on<br />

Rebound Radio with Cedric <strong>Ceballos</strong>.<br />

a prime example—Steve Nash. He made Shawn<br />

Marion, amar’e Stoudemire and Raja Bell great. I<br />

played for phoenix and watched them closely. all three<br />

of them, as soon as they left Steve Nash’s umbrella,<br />

their games went down. Not to say they aren’t good<br />

players or won’t be great players, not to say Steve Nash<br />

made them great. I believe he just made their jobs<br />

easier.<br />

How about Magic Johnson? Magic played with a<br />

great lakers team with Kareem, Worthy, Byron Scott,<br />

Michael Cooper, Kurt Rambis—all of them great<br />

players who moved on to other teams and were still<br />

great players. Now switch to the lakers team that<br />

Magic took to the finals, including Tony Smith, elden<br />

Campbell, and Sam perkins. Magic elevated them,<br />

made them better.<br />

Shaquille o’Neal was a great player who made your<br />

job easier because he demanded double teams and<br />

attention. The best players will guard Kobe Bryant,<br />

paul pierce and leBron James but you have to make<br />

your other players better. You have to demand that<br />

they come to work every day; demand that they train<br />

mentally and physically to take themselves to the next<br />

level.<br />

Rebound Radio<br />

Cedric <strong>Ceballos</strong>, Host of Rebound Radio<br />

Michael Jordon made other players better, like<br />

Scottie pippen and Steve Kerr; Dennis Rodman,<br />

obviously a champion himself, was in a whole new<br />

echelon with Michael.<br />

larry Byrd, Boston Celtics Hall of Famer—he<br />

made others compete at his level and kept them there.<br />

Most players who played with Steve, Magic, Shaq,<br />

Michael and larry continued to be great. So the ageold<br />

question—does this great player make others better<br />

or make their jobs easier? Some think it makes them<br />

better but I think it makes their jobs a lot easier.<br />

Cedric <strong>Ceballos</strong> is a former professional basketball<br />

player and NBA All-Star. He is currently featured each<br />

week on Rebound Radio featuring Cedric <strong>Ceballos</strong>.<br />

25


26<br />

Whether you are choosing a financial advisor,<br />

financial planner, accountant, attorney or<br />

insurance agent, there are some simple<br />

steps you can take to ensure that the person you select<br />

is the right one for you.<br />

Referral—Get the name of an advisor from<br />

someone you know and trust. That’s the first step but<br />

don’t stop there. Do some checking on your own.<br />

Just like the process of interviews and background<br />

checks you went through before you were drafted as a<br />

professional athlete, you need to do the same thing by<br />

looking into the background of the advisors with whom<br />

you work. The Internet is a great place to start. In most<br />

cases you will be able to verify education, employment<br />

history and any complaints that may be on an advisor’s<br />

record:<br />

$ Financial Advisors—go to www.finra.org<br />

$ Certified Financial Planners (CFP©)—go to<br />

www.cfp.net<br />

$ Certified Public Accountants (CPA)—go to<br />

www.aicpa.org<br />

$ Attorneys—each state has a State Bar<br />

Association which will have information on<br />

attorneys admitted to practice in that state.<br />

$ Insurance Agents—each state has a<br />

Department of Insurance which will have<br />

information on agents licensed to sell<br />

insurance in that state.<br />

There are also professional background checks<br />

that will provide a wealth of knowledge regarding a<br />

potential advisor. Quality advisors will also have a wide<br />

range of clients that include Ceo’s, executives and<br />

other high net-worth individuals.<br />

as a professional athlete you face unique challenges<br />

in managing your personal finances, both during and<br />

after your athletic career. ask your advisors to which<br />

Wealth<br />

Choosing an<br />

adVisor<br />

professional organizations they belong and what they<br />

do to stay on top of the strategies they need to know in<br />

order to help their clients who are athletes.<br />

Start small—don’t give all your money to one<br />

advisor and don’t put all your money into one<br />

investment or business opportunity. See how these<br />

relationships work out before you put in more of your<br />

hard earned money.<br />

Keep your eye on the ball—make sure you review<br />

what your advisors and business partners are doing as<br />

often as possible.<br />

The SFaa is a professional organization whose<br />

members include financial advisors, financial planners,<br />

accountants, attorneys and insurance agents. The<br />

mission of the SFaa is to provide its members with<br />

educational opportunities and a forum for the exchange<br />

of best practices. our goal is to help our amateur,<br />

professional and retired professional athletes reach<br />

their financial objectives and to become educated<br />

participants in the process.<br />

Board members of the SFaa have over 150 years of<br />

collective experience serving athlete clients and other<br />

members of the “Sports & entertainment” community.<br />

SFaa members share that wealth of experience and<br />

knowledge to better serve their clients. SFaa is also<br />

actively working with leagues, unions, universities and<br />

athletic organizations to advance programs to raise<br />

levels of financial literacy within the athlete community.<br />

If you are interested in contacting the SFaa,<br />

becoming a member of the SFaa, need a speaker at<br />

an event or are looking for a financial advisor, please<br />

contact us at www.sportsfinancial.org or 602-820-2220.


28<br />

<strong>Luxury</strong><br />

<strong>Luxury</strong>-AIr<br />

www.luxury-air.com<br />

after 9/11 Marsh Hollenberg<br />

recognized that commercial flying<br />

had forever changed. Taking<br />

all he’d learned from a 20-year<br />

career running his own ad agency,<br />

Hollenberg and his wife started<br />

luxury-air. Using a private charter<br />

brings back personalized attention<br />

and eliminates stress, confusion and<br />

hours of lost time for early check-ins.<br />

perhaps the best part of flying a<br />

charter is that you can forget security screenings. When<br />

you fly with luxury-air, there is no security check. You<br />

are driven onto the tarmac right to your plane where<br />

your pilot picks up your bags and gets them stored. and<br />

your pet gets the same personal treatment, even being<br />

allowed to roam free in the cabin if it’s well behaved.<br />

IntrepId power BoAts<br />

www.intrepidboats.com<br />

Intrepid power Boats has been delivering on its<br />

promises of leadership and innovation in performance,<br />

comfort and safety since its first boat was launched in<br />

1983, according to Intrepid’s president Ken Clinton,<br />

who has been with the company for the past 21 years.<br />

He and business partner Mark Beaver are devoted<br />

to producing and selling a high-end luxury product.<br />

Combined with that is their excellence in customer<br />

service that continues long after the sale.<br />

Since the company doesn’t have a dealer network,<br />

the relationship is directly between Intrepid and the<br />

customer, meaning that they can customize a boat to<br />

meet individual needs and desires. They hand deliver<br />

their vessels all over the world, helping each new<br />

owner get comfortable with his or her boat. Some<br />

of their U.S. customers include Scottie pippen, Jeff<br />

Gordon and Gloria estefan as well as customers in such<br />

far-flung places as egypt and Kuwait.<br />

Lifestyles<br />

Using a private charter is expensive but the charter<br />

experience is worth it, according to Hollenberg.<br />

luxury-air buys only the best food and liquor and<br />

provides distinctive individualized service and<br />

additional benefits so you reach your destination<br />

relaxed and refreshed. When you’re ready for your next<br />

trip, give luxury-air a call. (760) 289-6751


soLutIons reAL estAte<br />

www.solutionsrealestate.com<br />

Whether you already live in arizona and are looking<br />

to move up to a spectacular luxury home with all the<br />

bells and whistles or if you are relocating to the state,<br />

consider Zenja Darabnia for all your real estate needs.<br />

as owner of Solutions Real estate, a company focusing<br />

on high-end luxury homes in the beautiful phoenix<br />

metropolitan area, Darabnia focuses on customer<br />

service combined with kindness.<br />

Moving to ariz. just three weeks after her first visit<br />

there, she left the snowy cold of the northeast for the<br />

Valley of the Sun’s year-round outdoor lifestyle. In<br />

addition to being an accredited Buyer’s Representative<br />

CorneLIs HoLLAnder desIgns, InC.<br />

www.cornelishollander.com<br />

Founded in 1984, Cornelis Hollander Designs,<br />

Inc. is a full-service jewelry design company located<br />

in Scottsdale, ariz. Distributed throughout the U.S.<br />

and internationally, all Cornelis’ jewelry designs are<br />

manufactured in his Scottsdale studio. Highly-skilled<br />

craftsmen work with him to produce the finest quality<br />

jewelry and Cornelis also provides custom designs.<br />

Customers often bring him their own special gemstones,<br />

diamonds or old jewelry to upgrade to a modern<br />

designer look. Cornelius is happy to consult with these<br />

clients to discuss creating their dream piece of jewelry.<br />

BrunswICk BILLIArds<br />

www.brunswickbilliards.com<br />

If you’re a pool player, your wait for the latest best<br />

piece of equipment has just been announced. The<br />

newest addition to the Brunswick Billiards line of<br />

products is the VelVeT ® Series Cue Collection. each<br />

cue features piloted joint two-piece construction that<br />

is expertly weighted and balanced for smooth play and<br />

brilliant shots. Now available for sale at select retail<br />

locations nationwide, the VelVeT ® series collection<br />

includes eight distinct styles ranging in price from<br />

$59.99—$149.99.<br />

specializing in high-end relocations, she also<br />

concentrates on luxury second home/vacation home<br />

buyers. So if you’re looking for a golf course location<br />

with all the amenities as a first home or a vacation get<br />

away in phoenix, Zenja has your solution!<br />

old-world training and<br />

experience, combined with<br />

state-of-the-art innovations,<br />

make Cornelius Hollander<br />

a jewelry designer of<br />

distinction. His passion for<br />

beauty, his dedication to<br />

excellence and his unique<br />

vision promise a future<br />

filled with elegant and<br />

wearable art in motion.<br />

Brunswick Billiards is a world leader in the design<br />

of billiards tables, game room furnishings and billiards<br />

equipment. You can visit BrunswickBilliards.com, or<br />

become a pool fan on Facebook at:<br />

Facebook.com/BrunswickBilliards.<br />

29


30<br />

hOOP DREAMs<br />

dr. diCK barNeTT<br />

the opaque Brand: duel Personality<br />

Who are you? Who are you really? In the<br />

opaque shadows of professional sports, like<br />

all human development, there is the public<br />

persona and hidden reality of who we really are once<br />

the invisible door closes. This duel track of human experiences,<br />

tested and shaped by nature and nurture, commands<br />

a living style suited to individual taste.<br />

In the public theater we are exposed to the light and<br />

sunshine of games, competition, performances, media<br />

coverage, public statements on-the-record, perceived<br />

living arrangements, commercials, personal profiles,<br />

and exposés–all demanding testimonials to the open and<br />

revealing existence of the action hero. Concomitantly,<br />

one is closeted behind the invisible closed door. Who<br />

are you…really? Does the personality house a valued<br />

community asset? Can you really be a rapist and abuse<br />

women? are you a sterling role model? are you a drug<br />

addict and dealer? or a sensitive individual who devotes<br />

time and resources to help the homeless and lost? Is<br />

your private life antithetical to your public image? Does<br />

goLf CourSe Living<br />

by bryCe CarTer<br />

<strong>Luxury</strong> living can take many forms—from the beach<br />

lifestyle with the sound of waves crashing against the<br />

shore to the high-rise penthouse in the center of the<br />

city. But for a former athlete, the epitome of luxury<br />

can often be found in golf course living.<br />

Palm Desert, California<br />

When it comes to being the king of living on the<br />

green there are many options. The first one that comes<br />

to mind is the palm Springs area. palm Desert, just 90<br />

minutes from los angles, is famous for year-round golfing.<br />

and part of that fame is due to a plethora of gorgeous<br />

golf course homes. luxury real estate professionals<br />

like Terri and Guy Munselle of Coldwell Banker<br />

previews help guide homebuyers through the process of<br />

finding the ultimate home in palm Desert chic. “palm<br />

Desert is fabulous. Where else can you golf year-round?<br />

Not many places?” says long-time palm Desert resident<br />

Mark ellisburg. luxury golf course homes, like those<br />

in Indian Canyon Country Club, range up to $2 million<br />

or more.<br />

Phoenix, arizona<br />

Very few cities offer as much in luxury golf course<br />

living as does phoenix and the surrounding valley. Real<br />

estate pro Zenja Darabnia of Solutions Real estate<br />

knows golf course homes. Whether you like center-city<br />

your environment include<br />

spousal abuse?<br />

These questions<br />

often go unanswered<br />

and more likely they<br />

go unquestioned and<br />

unknown, lingering<br />

as personality traits of<br />

untouched psychological<br />

conundrums. So, in<br />

the clandestine arena<br />

of dissecting the<br />

vicissitudes of personality<br />

malfunction, the accepted<br />

Dr. Richard Barnett, Ph.D.<br />

behavior and public<br />

person is all we know. The individual that resides in the<br />

opaque sanctuary of the unknown remains hidden until<br />

behavior reveals one’s true self. That is the mantra of<br />

human development in the unpredictable athletic world<br />

and the athletes who comprise it.<br />

living, like phoenix’s arizona Biltmore, or the more suburban<br />

feel of Desert Mountain, phoenix offers many<br />

choices. “Buying on the golf course is a great way to enjoy<br />

an active lifestyle,” says Scottsdale broker Brenda<br />

Breit of The empowered Team. “You can wake up and<br />

get in nine holes before breakfast.” luxury golf course<br />

homes in areas like Desert Highlands or Troon can<br />

reach upwards of $5 million or more.<br />

naPles, floriDa<br />

For true golf caché, many look to South Florida. I visited<br />

Greg Gorman’s website, www.teamparadise.com,<br />

and researched high end communities such as pelican<br />

Marsh and Grey oaks, where price tags reach near $5<br />

million. “South Florida really does give you the best climate<br />

to golf, not to mention the opportunity to jump into<br />

the water to cool off after,” says resident Marsha Bryant.


Yacht-class comfort<br />

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innovation, and performance – our revolutionary outboard sport yachts being a<br />

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speedboat thrills with yacht-class accommodations, enhanced by the quiet,<br />

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