| Radii |
02-08-2015 12:02 PM |
Dean Smith was such a major part of my childhood. My 14 year old cat, named Dean, is sitting next to me while I'm making this post.
Quote:
There’s one story that — to me — defines him. I’ve told it in the past, but it bears re-telling. In 1981, Smith very grudgingly agreed to cooperate with me on a profile for this newspaper. He kept insisting I should write about his players, but I said I had written about them. I wanted to write about him. He finally agreed.
One of the people I interviewed for the story was Rev. Robert Seymour, who had been Smith’s pastor at the Binkley Baptist Church since 1958, when he first arrived in Chapel Hill. Seymour told me a story about how upset Smith was to learn that Chapel Hill’s restaurants were still segregated. He and Seymour came up with an idea: Smith would walk into a restaurant with a black member of the church.
“You have to remember,” Reverend Seymour said. “Back then, he wasn’t Dean Smith. He was an assistant coach. Nothing more.”
Smith agreed and went to a restaurant where management knew him. He and his companion sat down and were served. That was the beginning of desegregation in Chapel Hill.
When I circled back to Smith and asked him to tell me more about that night, he shot me an angry look. “Who told you about that?” he asked.
“Reverend Seymour,” I said.
“I wish he hadn’t done that.”
“Why? You should be proud of doing something like that.”
He leaned forward in his chair and in a very quiet voice said something I’ve never forgotten: “You should never be proud of doing what’s right. You should just do what’s right.”
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From an article last year: Memories of Dean Smith linger, even as his memory sadly fails him - The Washington Post
Not ashamed to admit I've been crying for the last half hour after seeing this and starting to look up stories. Growing up in the Raleigh area in the 80s, I was one of those kids to whom the sport of college basketball mattered WAY too much. The group of friends I hung out with in elementary and middle school talked basketball every day in the lunch room. We played basketball at every opportunity during gym/recess. We were way, way too invested in this. Whenever we were given our own choice of subject for writing assignments in school I'd find a way to write about UNC, or Dean Smith, or college basketball in general depending on the requirements. Great coach, great man. Especially cruel that he suffered from dementia in the end. Every story you read about him today will probably touch on the fact that he remembered the names of everyone who ever played for him, down to every walk on, every team manager, etc. So sad.
Front Office Football Central - View Single Post - I don't normally cry when a celebrity dies, but if _____ does, I will
Yup... |
