By Any Means Necessary...

The calm before the storm

Rip and AG. in Coatesville, PA

"Rejoice O young man in thy youth..."

Ecclesiastes

Thirteen years ago I was really concerned about Nike Air Force 1 sneakers and the various colors I could acquire via my shopping downtown Brooklyn. I focused on basketball...both playing and watching the game that I fell in love with around the same time I was infatuated with Hip Hop music.

From boys to men

Its remarkable how I have matured, yet remained the kid at heart, as I have incorporated my love of sports and sneakers into a one of a kind journalism career. NEVER in a million years would I have imagined that those days and nights spent playing on courts until the lights went out would pay off in the way of my becoming a respected member of the media. The thing that my mind’s eye couldn’t see was the professional career of Kobe Bryant and Richard Hamilton.

Growing up in Philadelphia it was obvious that Rasheed Wallace was going to play in the NBA. He starred at the legendary Simon Gratz H.S. and had a promising future at the University of North Carolina. Besides he is from North Philadelphia and as my uncle always says, if you can grow up here, then you can live anywhere. I didn’t know Wallace, or Hamilton, but I did know Kobe and his family, and yes while he was born in Philly, he moved overseas, and when he came back, he resided in the outskirts of the city. Needless to say, when it comes to Southeastern Pennsylvania the only thing that mattered in basketball, was what is known as “the PUB”, which is the Philadelphia Public League. Two people shattered that line of thinking and it was the two most feared guards in the entire state, Richard “Rip” Hamilton, and Kobe Bean Bryant.

I didn’t meet Rip until 2001 at the NBA Store in New York City. I was on my lunch break as I would tend to venture into the NBA themed store to window shop. One day Hamilton was there and he was with a mutual friend. After an introduction, we talked about “home”...his Coatesville, to my Philly. I have not only admired him for his all around versatile game, but also his ability to put his hometown on the map and represent where he is from, when most would turn their back on a town of 11,000.

Fast forward to the present day and the more things change the more they stay the same, as I recently had an opportunity to catch up with Rip Hamilton at his annual Rip City event in the little industrial town of Coatesville, PA.

Here is the score on our courtside conversation:

You love your hometown so much. Can you explain what that is all about?

"This is where I'm from and the kids come out [to my annual event] they all have a good time...the community helps me out...with security, all the security is pretty much home grown, and everybody just helps everybody and its a good thing. When I think of Coatesville...I think of family...I mean my whole family is here. My mom, my dad, my grandmom, my grandpop, all my aunts, uncles, friends, everything. Coatesville is loyalty, and hard work. That's what inspires me to keep on going on the basketball court. I know where I come from, I know what it means to struggle, and when you know that...you try everything possible to never get back to that situation, but to keep rising to the occasion. I love my town and I love my city. I have it tattooed on my stomach and on my arm. Its more than basketball for me. I'm the one that made it out, but I want to be the stepping stone for everybody else. I want everybody else to look at me and say if Rip did it, I can do it. I hung out at the same places that they hung out, so me coming around all the time, lets them know that I'm just like them."

Talk about your friendship and rivalry with Kobe Bryant:

"We played on the same AAU team...we've been roommates on AAU trips, roommates at the McDonald's game, and Magic Johnson Roundball Classic. We played against each other since the 10th grade...we were the number one, and number two best players in the state, so we have always had that rivalry. I remember this article in the Daily Local and it said, if you don't come and watch these two kids play now...the next time you will see them play you'll be paying $100 a ticket! And that's crazy, because as a kid you're like...what do they see? I'm just trying to get to college, and they were right. And then I had the opportunity to play against him in the Finals, and to win, it felt good to me...because he beat me [in high school]. When I was in college I told him, I was about to come to the league and stuff like that, and I just won a national championship...and I was like man you can have that high school championship, that don't mean nothing...I have a college [championship]. And he was like 'you know what Rip...by the end of this year I'm going to have me a championship. I'm like 'yeah right, but I'm up on you...so when he was winning those championships he was like 'yeah, now what, now what, so when we had an opportunity to play him in the Finals...it was the best thing ever because now I got a chance to throw one in his face and actually to beat him at that high level...it was the best thing about it."

When you played for the Washington Wizards, you met Senator Obama:

"Actually my uncle Wes knew him. So when I was out there playing, he said that the Senator would come over the house and eat, and hang out after a game. So he came over and we talked, and watched TV, talked about basketball...and Wes was like 'that's going to be the first black President...and I was like 'for real? So then I was like okay...and then I was watching TV when he was running, and I was like 'he looks familiar but it didn't register yet, and then one of my guys Henry he was like remember when he came to the house...he is going to be the next President."

You played for UCONN and as of last season your team has the most players in the league:

"We still have the most guys! We're a fraternity, we have the best group of guys!"