RIP Reggie Lewis (21 years ago; 11/21/65 - 07/27/93)

[Parliament10]

Reggie was on his way to being something really special. Here’s this talented guy who had never done anything wrong, who did so much for the city of Boston, and the next thing you know, he’s gone. – Michael Jordan

“He was on his way,” said Bird. “He was a gamer. He just came to play. That was it.”

RIP Reggie Lewis (21 years later)
by David Astramskas

http://ballislife.com/rip-reggie-lewis-21-years-later/

21 year ago today, the NBA lost a future great when 27 year old Boston Celtic Reggie Lewis collapsed and died. People tend to overrate the potential of players and loosely throw around the term “hall-of-fame potential” but think about this stat via ESPN.

By the time he died, he was one of six players who, from 1988-93, posted at least 7,500 points, 1,500 rebounds, 1,000 assists and 500 steals. The other five — Charles Barkley, Clyde Drexler, Michael Jordan, Karl Malone and Chris Mullin — are all Hall of Famers

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ni7t4swtdYw#t=13[/youtube]

[Captain_Caveman]

What a suck that was.

[ShermansShoes]

Still got my Celtics Pride tribute issue to him safely tucked away. Rest in peace #35, your are missed...

[SuperDeluxe]

Is the only player in Celtics history to have 100 rebounds, 100 assists, 100 steals and 100 blocked shots in a season - 1991-92 (394 rebounds, 185 assists, 125 steals and 105 blocks)

(http://www.nba.com/celtics/history/RetiredNumbers.html)

I've been a Celtics fan since 1991 and Reggie was my first favourite player. R.I.P.

[Ed Pinkney]

He is the reason I became a Celtics fan.

[gocelts]

I remember stitching a black patch on my highschool jersey that next year.....damn that was 21 years ago....

Another understated setback for this franchise not just because of his unfortunate death....but the league made his salary count against the cap at that time....not that it mattered because no one was even close to competing with the bulls but losing Reggie was the rock bottom point for me as a fan for the Cs and NBA.

[31to6]

worst thing.

[DelMonte West]

I remember ABC News ran a special after his death devoted to him and dearly wish I could see it again. There was a highlight video of him they made set to the song "Dreams" by Van Halen which was one of the most stirring things I've ever seen; incredibly powerful and moving. If anyone can find it online somehow, please share it here or send me a PM. Reggie was so damn talented yet as unassuming as they come. He definitely was not a case of someone becoming overrated due to an early death; if anything, not enough people realize how athletic and skilled a basketball player he was.

[2Mas]

Damn he looks like he was a monster.

Wish I was around then to see him play. How crazy unfortunate for the C's between him & Bias. Just crazy ****.

RIP.

[brackdan70]

great guy and a great player. was just starting to really look like something special. he averaged 28 a game in the 92 playoffs.
he only played part of one game in 93 playoffs...got injured right. I can't remember. 17 points in 13 minutes in that game though...I remember feeling like he was about to dominate. (edit_just read he left with dizziness and shortness of breath..I had forgotten that)
he had a great first step and ability to stop on a dime and pull up in 8-12 range. solid defender, amazing on the offensive side, great in transition..just a solid all around game.
RIP

[KGboss]

Still makes me angry and sad.

[allenjerome]

First saw Reggie play at Northeastern. Clearly a man amongst boys, in terms of talent (in spite of his slight frame).

Was working at the Prudential Center around the time he passed. Took the short walk over to Matthews Arena for the funeral service. The line snaked up and down St. Botolph two or three times. Sad time indeed..........

[occelticsfan24]

I was 9 or 10 when I really started to follow sports obsessively. Unfortunately that was around 1988-89, the tail end of the Bird era. And although Bird still gave me a few memorable moments (playoff game against Indiana), it was guys like Dee Brown and Reggie Lewis that defined my childhood memories of the C's. Reggie Lewis was the reason those early 90's teams were even relevant, and he was such a joy to watch play. I even attended a Clippers/Celtics game I think in 88 at the old LA sports arena and got Reggie's autograph (which i still have!) I do definitely remember that last game when he fell, and then I remember McHale trying to put the team on his shoulders the rest of the series against Charlotte (I think he even had a 30 point game that came straight out of 1985). Unfortunately that was the start of a very dark period for the C's.

Thanks for the memories Reggie!

[Fidel Sarcasmo]

he was Jim Calhoun's first big time player when Calhoun coached NorthEastern. I was a little kid when the Celtics won the whole thing in 86. That's when I caught Celtics Fever. Bird was losing steam after that, I didn't get to see his best days, but Bird was still immortal in the late 80's early 90's and Reggie was my first big time Celtics Crush, cause I started grasping the game when he started taking over games ala Larry Bird. He was really really good. N I'm not one to exaggerate ever. He was really freakin good. Him n Len Bias passing was just a black cloud. It was shell shock.

[Turgon]

There is no doubt I my mind that if we had Len Bias and Reggie Lewis playing their normal careers on the Celtics, we would have at least one or two more banners in the rafters. The 90s wouldn't have sucked nearly as much as they did for us.

On top of that, the league just decided to screw us. Typical.

Granted, one of them would have to adapt to other position.

[The_Ghost_of_JB]

My all time favorite Celtic player. I remember when it was announced. I was watching TV in the living room with my dad. All of a sudden there was breaking news. Chet Curtis and Natalie Jacobson (two legendary Boston news anchors) come on the screen and announced the news that Reggle Lewis collapsed and died.

We we stunned and I almost started to cry. Lewis was well on his way to becoming an all time great celtic, and just like that was over.

I love what Bill Simmons wrote years ago.

http://proxy.espn.go.com/espn/page2/sto ... ons/030725

Reggie was one of the true good guys. Handed out Thanksgiving turkeys in Roxbury before anyone else in Boston even thought of the idea. Always played with a smile on his face. Even when he argued with referees, his heart was never really in it -- he was just too nice of a guy. In the early-'90s, as the league devolved towards trash-talking and chest-thumping, Reggie stood out like a sore thumb: no tattoos, no agenda, no chirping, nothing. Just a guy who could score at will.

My favorite thing was watching him on fast breaks: the way he cruised down the court, his elbows stuck to his sides, then he would kick it into another gear. Suddenly, he was gathering a pass and exploding towards the basket, and you waited for this ferocious dunk that would bring the house down ... only to watch him place the ball through the basket with two hands, like a guy shutting a window. And he would jog back upcourt with a sheepish grin. Too cool.

He always raised his game when it mattered, like the '92 playoffs, when he averaged nearly 28 a game, or any of his spirited matchups against Reggie Miller and MJ. Like most great scorers, Reg had one unstoppable move -- his pull-up jumper, released from the top of his head, his elbows right in the defender's face. Nobody could handle it. After Jordan's first retirement in '93, Reggie could have become the best remaining 2-guard in the league. Think about it: Drexler was getting old, Miller didn't have the same all-around game, and Richmond didn't have the playoff resume.

We never found out.

Reggie Lewis
Once again the Celtics were robbed of a precious link to their future.
When Reggie died of heart failure that same summer, it was like one of those "Where were you when Kennedy got shot?" moments for me. I was stopping in front of the Boston Chicken in Allston to pick up some chicken soup. Suddenly WEEI came in with a news flash -- Reggie had collapsed (second time in three months) and things looked really bad. And I just sat there in my car for the next hour, listening to all the reports, finally coming to grips with the fact that Reggie was gone. I was numb. I didn't even know him ... but I felt like I did.

Every Boston fan felt that way. And I'm not mentioning everything that happened after his death, because none of it matters now. Let the man rest in peace. On Sunday night, I'm flipping on ESPN Classic and watching Game 3 of the Cleveland series from '92, when Reggie was torching Craig Ehlo, when the Garden was chanting his name, when nobody on the Cavs could stop him. He played college ball at Northeastern, he replaced Larry as Celtics captain ... he belonged to Boston.

And I still miss him. Even now.

[pac213up]

I climbed Mt Washington that day and we left a little rock tribute for #35.

[Blacksword]

Still ranks as one of the worst days of my life, 21 years later. I can't believe I was so busy yesterday I forgot it was the anniversary! I remembered last year at the 20th year mark, that's for sure.

What can be said that hasn't already? Lewis was my first, and most formative, sports hero, having been a little too young to "grow up" with Bird since I was only 9 when they won it in '86. When he died it broke my heart, and still hurts to think about all these years later. A true tragedy for a city, for basketball itself, and for the world...we lost a great player, but more than that, a greater person that day. RIP Reggie, you are missed.

[The_Ghost_of_JB]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxO8koWxZMQ

I remember watching this game.

[truth18]

Reggie will always be dribbling through our family's grand, green Garden.

But its still hard not to miss him.