Old Memories are Good Memories - Moves and Basketballs

Dusting off the cobwebs and reigniting the neural pathways is necessary to keep the brain functioning. So, as I do occasionally, I slip from being "In the Moment" to remembering events from long ago.

Because my family moved regularly, I'm able to pinpoint dates fairly accurately since I know the grades I was attending in school in different locations, like Cincinnati, Ohio - Walnut Creek, California - - Seal Beach, California - Long Beach, California - Pleasant Hill, California - Dayton, Ohio - Sasebo, Japan - Arlington, Virginia - West Springfield, Virginia - Walnut Creek, California - and I'm through high school. Whew! There are four additional in-town homes on this list, too.

Then Concord, CA, back to Walnut Creek, then Antioch, CA - Turlock, CA - South Lake Tahoe, CA where crazy things happen), Las Vegas, NV - Concord again, Sparks, NV, Reno, NV, Sparks, NV, and that's about halfway. What the hell was I doing?

Lots of Memories and Reasons for the Moves

My father was in the military, so we moved at least every three years. Sometimes, it was every other year. Once, it was twice a year. Bummer. I was shy, and making new friends was tough!

Fortunately, I had sports to fall back on. I tried everything and was lucky to find a few favorites I played in high school and college. Whoops, it took three colleges and two more to get a degree!

Basketball was my favorite sport, but I also loved cross country. Perhaps because it seemed so easy, just running, but mostly because I met some terrific people. In cross country, the first was Will Anthony, with whom I had gone to kindergarten and first grade at Murwood Elementary. We got reacquainted when we were juniors at Las Lomas High School in Walnut Creek, CA and he was a great running partner with a fine sense of humor.

The other was Cathy Way, a talented and dedicated runner who was also bright and beautiful. We dated our senior year and beyond, and she went to UC Davis while I stayed behind and attended Diablo Valley College and Los Medanos College to play basketball. Talk about a turnover! In six months, I knew I'd chosen the wrong path, but life rarely offers do-overs, and we all live and learn.

Playing Basketball with Stars

We all grow up thinking we are the center of attention, the stars, but I'm a minor player in the game of life. Fortunately, I've been extremely lucky. I have four amazing daughters and a wonderful wife, and I get to live in Hawaii; proving you don't have to be a star to have a great life.

I did rub shoulders with some terrific basketball players over the years. In high school, one of the best players in the league was Jeff Tamelier at Acalanes in Lafayette. He was one tough player to guard and averaged 18 points a game. I shaved a few points off his total when we played, but not much. Last I heard, Jeff was President of House of Hansen Productions, LLC, after spending many years as a professional musician, playing with Lydia Pense and Cold Blood, before joining Starship and touring worldwide. 

I also played against Stan Van Gundy, the future NBA head coach. He, too, averaged about 18 points per game in our high school league. Me shutting him down meant I held him to 15 points. He was good.

At Los Medanos College in Pittsburg, California, under Coach Rich Bothelo, I played alongside several excellent players, including Joe Del Bene, a future basketball coach at Ygnacio Valley High School (his alma mater) and Clayton Valley High. He was the consummate team player, a great passer, and a ball handler who played tough defense.

We had a couple of other strong players, whom I must admit I'm drawing a blank at naming, but it was a pleasure playing with everyone. Billy, a wiry forward, was often a sounding board as we discussed defenses since we weren't the stars, but we were always happy to contribute our points and rebounds.

The true star of the Los Medanos team was Lester Conner. He was a thin, angular player with excellent court vision. He started as the first guard off the bench, rotated into a high forward spot, and took a starting guard position. That was impressive since there were four or five talented guards to choose from. Conner's court sense allowed him to hit open players with great passes and easily score in double digits. As the season wore on and the Mustangs climbed the win column, the team became California State's #7 ranked junior college. 

By the end of the year, the team had won 24 games, even though its roster was reduced to just eight players. Conner's scoring reached a 25-point-per-game average. The Mustang's success fueled a drive for Bothelo's coaching and he took the head coach position at Chabot College. He also took Del Bene and Conner with him. The next year, Chabot won 32 games, and the 6'4 Conner was a co-recipient of the California Junior College Player of the Year honors. 

A great teammate and player, Conner was Pac-Ten Player of the Year at Oregon State and a first-round draft pick of the Golden State Warriors of the NBA where he played 13 seasons.

Like all aging athletes, my talent and success may be amplified by flawed memories, but I enjoyed every minute of the sports I played over the years, and I'm lucky to have had the opportunity.

Coach Bothelo had great success and was inducted into the California Community Colleges Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1995. He was a tough, but my favorite memories aren't from the games; they are from his practice methods, including ways to keep the ball moving from player to player for minutes at a time without turnovers or loss of possession (even in games), and managing to get every player on the team to make 10 consecutive free throws, for which we were all treated to a steak dinner once everyone achieved the feat. 

I have great respect for coaches and teachers. Without them, where would any of us be?

Thanks for reading - Al W Moe