NBA - Former Sooner star, NBA player Tisdale dead at 44 This is dedicated to my friend Wayman Tisdale, who was truly a gentle and enlightened giant among us, and a brilliant Jazz musician, and an NBA star, and one of the coolest people I have ever had the privilege of being blown past by on the basketball floor. RIP, to my friend, and my love to his family, this story is a remembrance of a day we once shared together upon the sweetness of this Earth, and a true story of my love for the gift of this man's life, which he shared with us all. If there is anywhere on this planet that could truly be described as heavenly, then the Kona coast, on the island of Hawaii, must be considered as a serious contender for the title, for there can't be too many places Earthbound that are more perfect for the human animal to abide. Back in 1995, I had decided to take my wife and daughter, leave the mainland and go 'Island', having decided that mainstream American life did not agree with my goal of living in a sane society. Like so many disillusioned dreamers before me, I saw living the life of an islander as being idyllic, I was going to fish, and grow great bud, and be able to surf, and still be a good dad and husband, too. Oh, It was a beautiful dream, and for awhile it was going perfectly...but that is only background story, for how I came to be there, at the Kailua-Kona Public Gymnasium, on a Saturday morning, for the 4 hour session of full court pick-up basketball games that took place every Saturday, and faithfully drew every serious streetball enthusiast from the entire west side of the Island of Hawaii. Why? Because on the Island of Hawaii, in 1995, there was only one indoor gym, located in Kailua-Kona, for the entire west side of the Island to use, an area that is actually 2 1/2 times bigger, than the entire state of Rhode Island. So, as you can imagine, the competition to get into these games was fierce...and once on the floor, you wanted to keep winning, just to keep running, since there were no other courts to go to if you lost. It could be a good long wait to get your guys up again, so it was important to get the right bunch of guys together as your 'team', in order to get the best workout. I was playing that day with my friends, who also played with me on a league team at that time, which included on it's roster 3 local college-recruited players, including myself, one of whom was a guy, who was named Jason King, he had played for the University at Hilo, and a big grinning baby faced kid named Angelo, who was terrific, also. I have no idea to this day, if that teammate of mine was actually THE Jason King, but he did always have some tremendously great bud to smoke, and seemed to be living on an unseen life support system, he had no job, but selling bud, apparently. We were going to be waiting for a game or two, to get on the court, so we went outside, to do a quick joint or two for inspiration, and while we were smoking up, another friend of ours from the team showed up, so we now 4 solid players waiting, and as we waited, we shared some incredible bud that Jason King had brought, and got 'highly' ready to run the court. We still needed a fifth, but we hoped we could win no matter who we picked up... But then, just as we started talking about who we'd like to pick up, all of a sudden, a big fancy van pulled up to us in the parking lot...and a very large black man's head, wearing a straw hat and shades, stuck his face out the window and asked us, "Are there any open court games at this gym?" Have you ever gotten a secret wish to come true? We didn't know it yet, but we had just gotten one of ours...and I said to the guy, "Sure, park that rig and you can run with us!", to the surprise of my teammates. The guy flashed a smile so toothy, wide, and bright it sparkled like diamonds, and he gave us a huge thumbs up, and turned his van around to go park. My teammates were busy giving me some serious shit about offering our coveted 5th spot to some random guy we'd never met, but I just laughed and said not to worry, I had a good feeling about it...and as they were chastising me, the van door opened, and out stepped the biggest, broadest shouldered individual, I had ever seen! I have played ball with some big guys before, but this dude had monstrous, massive shoulders, almost 4 feet across, I shit you not! And as I looked up, from his massive body, to his face, I suddenly recognized that huge smile he was flashing! You see, I had recently moved to Kona, from Phoenix Arizona, and being a born and raised Arizonan, and always a basketball fan, I was a huge Phoenix Suns fan...And the man who was extending his hand to me now in greeting, was none other than Center/Power Forward Wayman Tisdale, of the Phoenix Suns! I was beside myself, telling all of my teammates about him, since some of them were not as familiar with his accomplishments, and sharing the news, that we now had an NBA all star on our pick-up squad!!! I couldn't believe it, that none of these guys had heard of him, he was an Olympian, for chrissakes, winning a Gold Medal for the USA, and an all star, and the Suns had just made a deep run into the playoffs, he was playing alongside Charles Barkley, and Kevin Johnson, but in Hawaii, it seems there were mostly Lakers fans...and so suddenly, I was his new buddy, because I was wearing a Suns workout jersey, too. I am a Bass Guitarist, and Wayman was quite locally famous in Phoenix, as a Jazz bassist, so we got on the subject, and talked bass, and Jazz music, and he offered me one of his latest CD releases for letting him on the team! What a guy, he's giving me favors for letting him run with us! Well, two of my fellow players were also musicians, and the whole bunch of us started talking, and as we finished up our joints and went into the gym, talking like old friends, and the guys on the team we were about to play, looked up and saw us come back inside...well, to say they must have 'shit bricks' is an understatement. How would you feel, looking at this wall of a man, coming to guard you? Wayman's armspan was 87" wide! He was 6'10" and weighed around 265 lbs., and he still had a vertical leap of 37"! It would be like having three men on you at all times! So, to make it seem more fair, Wayman announced he was going to shoot only OUTSIDE the 3 point line, saying that he would only rebound or defend in the paint. We said, Ok, big guy, and let the good times roll...this superman was handicapping himself, in order not to embarrass anyone too badly! That's the confidence, born of the inner knowledge, that he could probably have beaten all 5 of these guys by himself, but magnanimously, he was going to let us into the game too. Have you ever driven a Lamborghini? Ever flown above the sound barrier? Have you ever ridden the perfect wave, on the North Shore? Because those are some very, very, powerful things, and so was this man, Wayman Tisdale. On this first day I got to run with him, I felt I had witnessed a living god, a creature so absolutely attuned to his team, and purpose that he was able to act in manners that seemed almost matrix-like. He tossed a perfect alley-oop to me on the second trip down the floor, and I slammed it harder than I thought I ever could, I was flying so high on the smoke of Hawaii's finest, and being fed cherries picked off by basketball god's. The next time down the floor, he's dropping a three pointer from about 10 feet BEHIND the circle! Then he swats a lay-up, straight down the floor, to Jason King, who throws down a perfect reverse 360, and the guys on the other team start just laughing, because they can see how this is going to go. I was in ecstasy, running the floor, with my friends, for easy buckets and massive wins, for the next 2 hours, until I finally dropped from exhaustion, and incurable cottonmouth.. Wayman wasn't even breathing heavy, really. It was like he was on a different level, so far above us, that we could only amuse him, but never seriously challenge him. The next time we played, I was on his opposition, and I had to guard him! I have been up against tough competition before, but this was like trying to stop Big Ben from ringing...good luck, pal, and watch out for getting your own bell rung! He came to the Kona gym frequently after that, and we shared many happy hours of scoring meaningless points, bouncing balls off walls, and enjoying the free exchange of bass guitar theory, almost daily, for the next few weeks, while his family and he enjoyed their Kona condo rental during the NBA off season, summer of '95. Then one day, he was simply gone from the Island, just as it always goes over there. The visitors come, they stay awhile, then leave us, usually without getting to say good-bye to us. And then one day, I too was gone from the island, for as it later turned out, I was not meant to be an islander after all, just another 'howlie' getting his kicks in paradise, another simple renter of the time we've shared with the ones we've met, wherever we are. I am so glad I got to share a sweat, and an opinion, with this giant lover of life, this beautiful blessing of Earth's face, and I hope his next pick is being set by the true Big Man himself, so he can drive the lane forever, in the great pick-up game in the sky. In Hawaii, we don't say good-bye, but Aloha, which is also how we live. It means, literally, hello, good-bye, and everything in between, so I send this greeting, to the energy he brought, in honor of the energy we all share. Aloha, Wayman Tisdale. We will see you, in the sunset, over Kailua bay, forever.