A little Lakers-related story about Rudy Tomjanovich, the two-time championship winning head coach with the Houston Rockets who was announced as a Hall of Fame inductee today (thread):
Tomjanovich signed with L.A. in 2004 to replace Phil Jackson. He was paid handsomely - $30 million over 5 years -- but was given a near impossible hand in trying to replace a legend in PJax and coach a team that just traded Shaq while appeasing a fan base that expected rings
He was 56 and coming off of a bout with bladder cancer and the season took its toll. Even though the Lakers were 24-19 -- not bad considering the starting lineup was Kobe, L.O., Caron Butler, Chris Mihm and Chucky Atkins -- Rudy stepped down on Feb. 1st.
LAL played its last nine games without Kobe at that point, as he was out with a severely sprained ankle and the Lakers were treading water in his absence at 5-4
While longtime trusted Phil Jackson assistant (and Syracuse legend) Frank Hamblen stepped in, there was worry about Rudy. "The other day at practice when we saw him, he looked kind of disheveled a little bit and everybody was concerned," Kobe said at the time.
Both sides negotiated a buyout. Rudy was to stay on as a consultant through the 2006-07 season. He ended up staying with the organization in a consultant/scout capacity through 2016-17.
A recovering alcoholic, Rudy was open about his mental health long before it became something the league was open with the way it is today with support and resources for its players and coaches.
“It’s always been the hard road," Rudy T said around the time of his last days coaching. "It hasn’t been like a superhighway where I’m in a limo and I’m going up to the mountain. It’s like I’m in the jungle and I’ve got a machete and I’ve got to find a way through it.”
As a player, Tomjanovich was a bonafide talent. A five-time All-Star who averaged north of 20 ppg four times, his career took a turn in a game against the Lakers, of all teams, in 1977 when he was punched in the face by Kermit Washington.
It was a devastating hit. Author @JFeinsteinBooks wrote an excellent book about the incident, "The Punch," in which he reported that Tomjanovich's skull was fractured in such a way that he could taste his spinal fluid leaking into his mouth. He also had a broken nose and jaw.
The punch came on Dec. 9, 1977. Tomjanovich was done for the season. He was never the same after that, playing three more seasons before retiring at age 32.
He went on to guide Hakeem Olajuwon and Co. to consecutive titles in 1994 & 1995 -- embracing 3-point shooters surrounding his gem in the middle -- and delivering a timeless speech after the win in 1995.
When he finished out his career in pro basketball with the Lakers, he could often be found observing practice with a yellow legal pad in hand, writing down thoughts. He wanted to contribute and be a part of the team, even if he was on the outskirts compared to the head coach.
He would take those notes and compose letters to whomever was coaching the Lakers in that decade-plus he served as a consultant -- sometimes four or five pages long -- signing each one off in perfectly scripted cursive as, "Rudy T."
Certainly a worthy Hall of Famer for his life is basketball and the example he set as a human being. We've seen other coaches in recent seasons take a leave of absence for their health. The game can feel like everything, but you can't do anything without your health.
In 2002, Rudy T. and Kermit Washington found peace 25 years after the incident. "If I want to dwell on hatred and resentment and self-pity and being a victim, it's just self-destructive," Rudy told @Jonathan_Feigen at the time.
"I believe having hatred and resentment is like taking poison and expecting it to hurt the other person. This is the only way to get rid of that poison. I chose to sincerely forgive. This is living it."
- 30 -
- 30 -
