20th Anniversary of Rick Berry's death.

wiltchamberlain · Post #1 » by **wiltchamberlain** » Fri Aug 14, 2009 7:39 am

http://www.sacbee.com/kings/story/2108483.html

I was just a kid when it happened but I remember it was a major news story at the time. Just curious if others remember, or have any feelings on the subject.

Smills91 · Post #2 » by **Smills91** » Fri Aug 14, 2009 11:22 am

wiltchamberlain wrote:http://www.sacbee.com/kings/story/2108483.html

I was just a kid when it happened but I remember it was a major news story at the time. Just curious if others remember, or have any feelings on the subject.

Same here, I remember the guy ooozing potential, much like a young K-Mart today. It was tragic and really set this franchise back, the way Len Bias set the Celtics franchise back.

sd_kingsfan · Post #3 » by **sd_kingsfan** » Fri Aug 14, 2009 8:46 pm

Very sad. You have to feel for his family, teammates, and friends (and to a much less extent the fans) when someone acts so selfishly. Hope people have learned from this that there are other ways to solve problems, and the damage left behind is unfair to anyone that does care about him.

Post #4 » by **KF10** » Fri Aug 14, 2009 11:22 pm

I was way too young to experience this news. Anyways, it is a sad day for his family, friends, and for his teammates. My condolences for them. From what I read from the article, he seemed to be a great player with tons of potential.

Dustin5566 · Post #5 » by **Dustin5566** » Sat Aug 15, 2009 4:35 am

I was only 6 when this happened and have never seen him play, but it sounds like he could of been a good one. Tragedies are always worse when they could of been avoided.

I remember hearing Jerry Reynolds saying that his suicide was the hardest thing he ever had to deal with in sports.

Post #6 » by **KingInExile** » Sat Aug 15, 2009 5:18 am

Not sure why I didn't see this thread when I started mine earlier. I noticed that SD posted a reply in that one before it was locked...I can only assume it was something respectful, insightful and in the spirit of remembering a young player who's tragically cut his own future short.

As I said in the other thread, when the news broke 20 years ago I was completely shocked. I was very encouraged about the team's future following his rookie season and felt like someone kicked me in the gut when I heard about his suicide. Twenty years later, this story still stands as a reminder of the struggles young players go through when transitioning to the pro level.