All Ball Sports: Coach Kerr calls for courage, Coach Hams chooses Lakers, Coach Ramsey chooses Loyola High
by Paul Teetor
In three brief but incredibly powerful minutes, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr captured the tidal wave of anguish, outrage and sorrow that has engulfed much of America, following the latest school massacre in Uvalde, Texas.
The horrific detail about the little girl who reached over to her dead friend for some blood to smear all over herself so the crazed 18-year-old gunman would think she was already dead has broken hearts all over America, and around the world, where other countries wonder what is wrong with a country that allows this kind of domestic terrorism to happen over and over and over again.
In an emotional pregame talk last Tuesday night, Kerr unleashed an outburst so atypical of the normally mild-mannered coach that it leaped off the TV screen and shocked the media who cover him and his team on a daily basis.
Details of the massacre were still coming in when Kerr, in Dallas for game four of the Western Conference Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, faced the media in the pre-game news conference held before every playoff game.
The usual purpose, of course, is to discuss the upcoming game and issues associated with it like player availability and injury updates.
Kerr had just heard early reports of the mass shooting, reports that said 14 children had been murdered – well short of the 19 eventually found dead in the little elementary school, plus two adults.
“I’m not going to talk about basketball…any basketball questions don’t matter,” he began.
“Since we left warm-ups, 14 children were killed 400 miles from here. And a teacher. And in the last 10 days we’ve had elderly Black people killed in a supermarket in Buffalo, we’ve had Asian churchgoers killed in Southern California. And now we have children murdered at school.”
Kerr began tearing up, an act of raw emotion that is usually verboten in the macho world of pro sports.
Then he startled the press by pounding his hands on the table in front of him, three times in rapid succession. He let loose with a shout of frustration and despair – “When are we going to do something?” -t hat could have been the perfect soundtrack for Edvard Munch’s famous painting The Scream.
Whether it was 14 victims or 19 didn’t matter a bit to Kerr. He was fed up that America can’t seem to do anything to stop its epidemic of gun violence, and especially gun violence targeting helpless, little school children.
Kerr, for those who don’t know his personal story, had good cause to be fed up: his father, Malcolm Kerr, was assassinated by gunmen in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1984, when he was serving as the president of American University.
Within minutes of the first wire-service reports of the on-going Texas massacre, both sides of the gun control debate were already making their cases for and against new laws that would prevent an 18-year-old wingnut from going to the local sporting goods store, and buying an AR-15-style assault rifle, along with hundreds of rounds of ammunition, and then heading over to the local elementary school, and killing as many children as he could before police stopped him.
Both sides had warmed up the usual talking points the week before after 10 Black people were murdered by a raging, 18-year-old racist who bought an assault rifle, researched online to find out where the highest percentage of Black people could be found nearby, and then drove 200 miles to kill as many of them as he could.
Kerr cut through all the white noise and political talking points – guns don’t kill people, people kill people, it’s a mental health problem, our thoughts and prayers go out to the victim’s families – with a dose of spontaneous, genuine, unrehearsed emotion.
“I’m tired,” he said. “I’m so tired of getting up here and offering condolences to the devastated families that are out there…. I’m sorry. I’m tired of the moments of silence. Enough!”
Kerr went beyond blaming “the politicians” for the lack of common-sense gun controls. He singled out the Republican senators – like Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell – who have done the most to prevent widely popular measures, such as mandatory universal background checks for gun buyers, “red flag” laws that would prevent the sale of guns to people with a history of legal or mental problems, raising the age of legal gun ownership, and an assault rifle ban.
According to national polling, all of those measures have majority support among Americans, in some cases as much as 80-90 percent. Still nothing gets done in terms of making them a reality.
So Kerr focused on HR 8, a gun-control bill that has been stalled in Congress that can’t even make it to the floor for an up-or-down vote because of Republican obstruction. He pleaded with the Republicans to defy the National Rifle Association and use their legislative power to stop the carnage.
“There’s a reason why they won’t vote on it, to hold on to power,” Kerr said. “So I ask you Mitch McConnell, I ask all of you senators who refuse to do anything about the violence, and school shootings, and supermarket shootings. I ask you: are you going to put your own desire for power ahead of the lives of our children and our elderly and our churchgoers? Because that’s what it looks like. It’s what we do every week.”
He said he’s had it with the predictable cycle of outrage and shock, quickly followed by fading interest in the latest massacre, growing indifference as days and weeks pass, and ultimately legislative inaction.
“I’m fed up. I’ve had enough,” he said. “We’re going to play the game tonight, but I want every person listening to this to think about your own child…. how would you feel if this happened to you today? We can’t get numb to this. We can’t just sit here and just read about it and go, ‘Well, let’s have a moment of silence. Yeah, go Dubs, c’mon Mavs, let’s go!’ That’s what we’re going to do…. and 50 senators in Washington are going to hold us hostage.”
He pounded his fist on the table once more, and abruptly exited before questions could be asked.
“It’s pathetic,” he shouted. “I’ve had enough.”
Within a few hours, the predictable blow back had already started, led by Fox News bloviator Laura “Shut up and dribble” Ingraham.
It was fascinating to watch how the gun lobby, and Fox News, and other right-wing media outlets handled their coverage of the Texas school massacre. When it became glaringly obvious over the next two days that this time could be different in terms of public revulsion leading to real change, they began to focus on the bungled law enforcement response in the first hours of the rampage.
But even as Fox News hosts were blasting Kerr for stepping out of his lane, they were also using the public anger over police mistakes to distract from the larger issue of gun control.
At first it looked like Kerr was going to stand alone in terms of prominent athletic figures taking a public stance for gun control. But then Kerr got emotional support from an unexpected source.
A day after Kerr’s outburst, San Francisco Giants Manager Gabe Kapler said he would stay off the field during the playing of the national anthem to protest the legislative gridlock that has enabled many of these massacres.
“Every time I place my hand over my heart and remove my hat, I’m participating in a self-congratulatory glorification of the only country where these mass shootings take place,” Kapler said. “I don’t plan on coming out for the anthem going forward until I feel better about the direction of our country. That’ll be the step. I don’t expect it to move the needle necessarily. It’s just something I feel strongly enough about to take that step.”
Amen, brother!
Lakers Coaching candidates: And then there was one
LeBron James got the new Head Coach he wanted: Darvin Ham.
That makes Ham, who had never before been a head coach on any level, a major winner.
But does it make the Lakers a winner?
Does it make the Lakers a playoff team?
Does it make the Lakers a championship contender?
The answers, in short order: maybe not, probably not and definitely, positively not.
So why was Ham chosen after an “extensive search process,” according to Lakers insiders.
Well, for several reasons.
First and foremost, because of the three finalists leaked to the media last week – Milwaukee Assistant Coach Ham, Golden State Assistant Coach Kenny Atkinson, and former Portland Head Coach Terry Stotts. Ham was the clear choice of LeBron, the star player, and shadow general manager of the team.
Equally important, he fits the emerging prototype of a modern successful coach: a former NBA player who can relate to his players and their problems, command their respect in the locker room and motivate them to perform to their maximum capabilities.
He has a proven track record as an assistant coach who makes players better. After a 7-year playing career as a journeyman power forward who had to scratch and claw his way into the league, and outworked everyone else to stay, he started his coaching career 10 years ago as a player development coach with the Lakers. Over the last decade he has worked his way up through the ranks with several teams to get this golden opportunity.
“So damn EXCITED !!!!!!” tweeted LeBron after hearing the news late Friday afternoon. “Congrats and welcome Coach DHam!!”
Now all Ham has to do is find a time machine to transport LeBron back to 2015, change Russell Westbrook’s style of play from selfish to selfless, and force Anthony Davis to get in the best shape of his life so he can prevent the inevitable minor injuries all players suffer from turning into major injuries that keep him out of action for long periods of time.
Unless he can pull off all three of those miracles, reaching a 4-year deal with the Lakers Thursday night may very well turn out to be the highlight of his Lakers career.
Remember, it was less than three years ago that Coach Frank Vogel guided LeBron and the Lakers to an NBA title. He was fired in May and blamed for all the troubles caused by an incompetent front office.
The same fate very likely awaits Ham.
It’s just a question of when, not if Ham is fired and the cycle starts all over again.
As long as owner Jeannie Buss and her management team of Rob Pelinka, Linda Rambis and Kurt Rambis are running the Lake Show, it’s going to be a horror show.
Mira Costa baseball coach Keith Ramsey is going home
Mira Costa Baseball Coach Keith Ramsey turned the Mustangs into a Bay League powerhouse over the last six years. He did such a great job that one of Costa’s arch-rivals, Loyola High School, has hired him away.
Loyola High School of Los Angeles, the oldest continually operated educational institution in Southern California, announced Friday that it had tapped an alumnus, Keith Ramsey ’98, to run its baseball program.
“Coach Ramsey’s record at Mira Costa speaks for itself, winning the Bay League title five out of six years and elevating the program from Division 3 to Division 1. Not only does he bring his high school coaching experience to our program, but he also brings the skill set from playing over 10 years of professional baseball,” said Athletic Director Chris O’Donnell ’88. “We are very fortunate to have him lead Loyola’s baseball program.”
At Loyola, the Los Angeles native was a baseball letterman, Team MVP and First Team All American. He then attended the University of Florida (UF), and as a pitcher, earned second team all SEC and UF Pitcher of the Year. Coach Ramsey proceeded to play 11 years of professional baseball, reaching AAA, the highest Minor League Baseball level. He was a two-time All Star and three-time champion in the minor leagues. In addition, he played winter baseball professionally in the Dominican Republic, Taiwan and Italy.
“I couldn’t think of a better opportunity than to be back home at Loyola and be able to impact these young men. It’s important for our athletes to believe there is something special in them and to believe in the power of we,” said Coach Ramsey. “The biggest thing I’d like to bring to the program is a baseball community that plays for each other, and has the right experience we want for our young men. [Departing] Coach Sean Buller did a great job this year and had a terrific season. I want to build on the program to where we’re competing for CIF Division 1 titles at some point, and help build one of the nicest baseball facilities in Southern California.”
Contact: teetor.paul@gmail.com. Follow: @paulteetor. ER