Kirk Minihane

www.weei.com/columnists/kirk-minihane

Kirk Minihane thinks "Slap Shot" is -- without argument -- the best sports movie ever made and is also convinced the 1985-86 Celtics would have finished with a record of 78-4 if they had cared about the regular season. He has been a columnist at WEEI.com since 2009 and is the co-host of "Sports Saturday" on WEEI.

Sunday, January 29th

Gerry Lancaster

(www.nbabluesthedarkside.com)

On November 11, 1970, Gerry Allen Lancaster Jr. was born to Diane Hall and Gerry Lancaster Sr. The eldest of three children, he and his siblings were raised by their mother and her family. Up until the age of nine, he grew up in a low-income, high-rise apartment in the inner city of New London, Connecticut. When his mother moved their family out of the Crystal Avenue projects, he experienced a culture a bit different from what he was used to in his early childhood years. However, he found participating in YMCA basketball programs helpful in keeping a balance with his old and new lifestyle. Although he had an interest in other sports during his childhood, he was encouraged to play basketball by family members who have played the game throughout their lives. An emphasis was put on his natural talent as well as his height. By the time he went to high school, he had received just about every award you could possibly achieve at that level. Living in an area that was statistically low for black males to graduate high school, he did in 1989 and was offered several college basketball scholarships.
  The following year, he attended Champlain Junior College in Burlington, Vermont. During his two years at Champlain, his basketball team went to the national tournament twice. After earning an associate’s degree in social science, he attended James Madison University (JMU) located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, with a full scholarship. Gerry left JMU early to pursue a career in basketball in the European league. He played four years before a knee injury ended his career. Upon his return to Connecticut, he went to work for a childhood friend who was then playing basketball in the NBA. As his personal assistant for eleven years, and having been exposed to the life of a professional athlete personally, he witnessed unfortunate situations as a result of poor decision making. These experiences, if shared with others, might help them make better choices in their own lives.

  The writing of NBA Blues was necessary to share these experiences, although he wanted to focus his attention on children that shared a similar life as his. As the founder of The Raise Our Selves Effectively (ROSE) Organization, he wants to provide our younger generation with the proper tools they need to be successful in whatever they dream of becoming. Whether it’s to become a professional athlete or a successful member of society, he wants to help them understand that they have the ability to achieve their goals. Through the programs that the ROSE offers, they can develop a strong mind, body, and soul that will enable them to not only achieve their goals but to protect and appreciate what they have accomplished.
  When Gerry is not focused on work, he enjoys physical fitness activities, reading self-help and inner-peace books, and spending time with his three children.

  The writing of NBA Blues was necessary to share these experiences, although he wanted to focus his attention on children that shared a similar life as his. As the founder of The Raise Our Selves Effectively (ROSE) Organization, he wants to provide our younger generation with the proper tools they need to be successful in whatever they dream of becoming. Whether it’s to become a professional athlet...e or a successful member of society, he wants to help them understand that they have the ability to achieve their goals. Through the programs that the ROSE offers, they can develop a strong mind, body, and soul that will enable them to not only achieve their goals but to protect and appreciate what they have accomplished.

  As an urban contemporary narrative told in a compelling and engaging voice, NBA Blues serves as a guidebook for young professional athletes and their families caught up in the bittersweet taste of fame and blinded by the helter-skelter moments of success. Written in an educational and entertaining manner, readers will come across the story of a real baller, who is an Olympic Gold Medal Winner and ...four-time NBA All-Star player with earnings of more than a hundred million dollars. His story is told through the words of his friend, the author, Gerry Allen Lancaster. Sharply written and deftly entertaining, NBA Blues illustrates the story of a man with humble beginnings and who, later on, skyrocketed to great heights of fame and down the slippery slope of drugs, promiscuity and financial ruin.