Post by Free Agent Fan on Aug 23, 2007 15:04:05 GMT -5
www.nytimes.com/2007/08/23/sports/basketball/23griffin.html?ref=basketball
Comeback Chance for Griffin Ends in Fiery Crash
By HOWARD BECK
Published: August 23, 2007
The last time Keith Jones saw him, Eddie Griffin was smiling, upbeat and chatty. They met by chance last spring, at a Houston restaurant, and it seemed to Jones, a Rockets vice president, that Griffin — the troubled former Rockets forward — was optimistic.
Eddie Griffin played one season at Seton Hall and was 19 when he entered the N.B.A. in 2001.
“He looked really bright-eyed,” Jones said.
Rudy Tomjanovich recalls a similar encounter, in a much different environment. It was about four years ago, and Tomjanovich, the former Rockets coach, was visiting Griffin at a Houston rehabilitation center for alcohol abuse.
“He was just all smiles,” Tomjanovich said.
To those who cared about him, Griffin was the sort of troubled soul who always seemed to be on the cusp of turning his life around, if only he could stay on the right path.
For reasons that are not yet known, the 25-year-old Griffin drove his sport utility vehicle into the side of a moving train early last Friday morning. According to the Houston police, Griffin ignored a warning signal and drove through the railroad arm. Fire consumed the vehicle and Griffin died at the scene. Investigators needed dental records to identify the body.
The Harris County Medical Examiner has not yet determined the cause of death, or whether drugs or alcohol may have been a factor in the crash.
Alcohol abuse was always present in Griffin’s brief and jagged N.B.A. career. Several people who knew him believe depression and a difficult personal life also played roles in his difficulties. Griffin spent time with the Houston Rockets, the Nets and the Minnesota Timberwolves over the last six years, but legal issues and personal problems caused each team to cut him loose. The Timberwolves waived Griffin in March, 19 months after signing him to a three-year, $8.1 million contract.
“Eddie had a lot of demons,” Kevin McHale, the Timberwolves vice president, said in a conference call Wednesday evening. “I was just praying that he would conquer them and rise above it all.”
That was the prevailing sentiment among former coaches, teammates and executives who came to know Griffin. Despite a series of off-court incidents — including an assault conviction in 2003, a number of league suspensions for substance abuse and a drunken-driving accident last year — Griffin was universally praised as a generous and supportive teammate and a good person.
During his darker moments, he could be distant and sullen, but never mean. He was a fixture at the Timberwolves’ community service events and was “really good one-on-one with kids,” said Mike Cristaldi, the team’s director of public relations.
Mark Madsen, a veteran forward with the Timberwolves, said: “Eddie Griffin had a wonderful heart. Eddie definitely went through some tough times. I think most of us viewed Eddie as someone who was coming out of those tough times and moving into a more stable place. We were really happy to see that happening.”
A rangy 6 feet 10 inches, Griffin played one season at Seton Hall before declaring for the 2001 draft. The Nets selected him with the seventh pick, then traded him to the Rockets for three first-round selections, including Richard Jefferson.
The Rockets viewed Griffin — a skilled rebounder and shot-blocker — as a long-term fixture in the frontcourt. But they suspended him in October 2003 because of a number of unexcused absences and a missed flight. During the suspension, Griffin was accused of beating a woman and shooting at her as she drove away from his Houston home. The Rockets waived Griffin two months later.
The Nets signed Griffin in January 2004 but cut him a month later, after Griffin was charged with violating his probation and checked into a center for alcohol abuse.
Jeff Van Gundy, who briefly coached Griffin in Houston, said, “He had some depression issues while he was here and it prevented him from doing his job well.”
Wary of restarting his career under the N.B.A. microscope, Griffin had asked his agent, Jeff Wernick, to find him an opportunity overseas. Wernick had an offer from a Serbian team but never got the chance to present it to him.
Wernick spoke with Griffin last week and said he “was in good spirits, looking forward to trying to reestablish himself.” Griffin leaves a 3-year-old daughter, Amaree, who lives in Houston with her mother.
Contrary to Griffin’s public image, Wernick described him as warm and caring — “a very misunderstood and complex person” who never got over the death of his older brother in 2001.
Griffin was just 19 when he entered the N.B.A. Van Gundy recalled a conversation in which Griffin told him, “I never should have left college,” but that he did so to support his family. “I think he even knew he wasn’t ready for the N.B.A. life,” Van Gundy said.
“Eddie was a good-hearted guy,” McHale said. “I had no idea how much I was pulling for him until I got the news yesterday, and how horrible I felt. It really bothered me so much that his fight was over.”
Comeback Chance for Griffin Ends in Fiery Crash
By HOWARD BECK
Published: August 23, 2007
The last time Keith Jones saw him, Eddie Griffin was smiling, upbeat and chatty. They met by chance last spring, at a Houston restaurant, and it seemed to Jones, a Rockets vice president, that Griffin — the troubled former Rockets forward — was optimistic.
Eddie Griffin played one season at Seton Hall and was 19 when he entered the N.B.A. in 2001.
“He looked really bright-eyed,” Jones said.
Rudy Tomjanovich recalls a similar encounter, in a much different environment. It was about four years ago, and Tomjanovich, the former Rockets coach, was visiting Griffin at a Houston rehabilitation center for alcohol abuse.
“He was just all smiles,” Tomjanovich said.
To those who cared about him, Griffin was the sort of troubled soul who always seemed to be on the cusp of turning his life around, if only he could stay on the right path.
For reasons that are not yet known, the 25-year-old Griffin drove his sport utility vehicle into the side of a moving train early last Friday morning. According to the Houston police, Griffin ignored a warning signal and drove through the railroad arm. Fire consumed the vehicle and Griffin died at the scene. Investigators needed dental records to identify the body.
The Harris County Medical Examiner has not yet determined the cause of death, or whether drugs or alcohol may have been a factor in the crash.
Alcohol abuse was always present in Griffin’s brief and jagged N.B.A. career. Several people who knew him believe depression and a difficult personal life also played roles in his difficulties. Griffin spent time with the Houston Rockets, the Nets and the Minnesota Timberwolves over the last six years, but legal issues and personal problems caused each team to cut him loose. The Timberwolves waived Griffin in March, 19 months after signing him to a three-year, $8.1 million contract.
“Eddie had a lot of demons,” Kevin McHale, the Timberwolves vice president, said in a conference call Wednesday evening. “I was just praying that he would conquer them and rise above it all.”
That was the prevailing sentiment among former coaches, teammates and executives who came to know Griffin. Despite a series of off-court incidents — including an assault conviction in 2003, a number of league suspensions for substance abuse and a drunken-driving accident last year — Griffin was universally praised as a generous and supportive teammate and a good person.
During his darker moments, he could be distant and sullen, but never mean. He was a fixture at the Timberwolves’ community service events and was “really good one-on-one with kids,” said Mike Cristaldi, the team’s director of public relations.
Mark Madsen, a veteran forward with the Timberwolves, said: “Eddie Griffin had a wonderful heart. Eddie definitely went through some tough times. I think most of us viewed Eddie as someone who was coming out of those tough times and moving into a more stable place. We were really happy to see that happening.”
A rangy 6 feet 10 inches, Griffin played one season at Seton Hall before declaring for the 2001 draft. The Nets selected him with the seventh pick, then traded him to the Rockets for three first-round selections, including Richard Jefferson.
The Rockets viewed Griffin — a skilled rebounder and shot-blocker — as a long-term fixture in the frontcourt. But they suspended him in October 2003 because of a number of unexcused absences and a missed flight. During the suspension, Griffin was accused of beating a woman and shooting at her as she drove away from his Houston home. The Rockets waived Griffin two months later.
The Nets signed Griffin in January 2004 but cut him a month later, after Griffin was charged with violating his probation and checked into a center for alcohol abuse.
Jeff Van Gundy, who briefly coached Griffin in Houston, said, “He had some depression issues while he was here and it prevented him from doing his job well.”
Wary of restarting his career under the N.B.A. microscope, Griffin had asked his agent, Jeff Wernick, to find him an opportunity overseas. Wernick had an offer from a Serbian team but never got the chance to present it to him.
Wernick spoke with Griffin last week and said he “was in good spirits, looking forward to trying to reestablish himself.” Griffin leaves a 3-year-old daughter, Amaree, who lives in Houston with her mother.
Contrary to Griffin’s public image, Wernick described him as warm and caring — “a very misunderstood and complex person” who never got over the death of his older brother in 2001.
Griffin was just 19 when he entered the N.B.A. Van Gundy recalled a conversation in which Griffin told him, “I never should have left college,” but that he did so to support his family. “I think he even knew he wasn’t ready for the N.B.A. life,” Van Gundy said.
“Eddie was a good-hearted guy,” McHale said. “I had no idea how much I was pulling for him until I got the news yesterday, and how horrible I felt. It really bothered me so much that his fight was over.”
