By Ben Rohrbach
Translated by kyxx101
Reviewer: Jabariiverson
Editor: Jabari
Word count: 2048 words
Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
"Every NBA player has a big brother." Kevin Garnett once said something like this that has always been in my mind. Sam Mitchell is Garnett's big brother, and Garnett is Lajan Rondo's big brother. This is a cycle of NBA. You'd be hard-pressed to find an NBA player whose career wasn't based on the influence of big brother in his rookie season, and the players who went on to become Big Brother passed on that experience. This article will tell their story.
Isaiah Thomas is a Hall of Famer who has been named an All-Star 12 times in a 13-year career and led the Detroit Pistons to two consecutive titles in 1989 and 1990. During the playoffs, Thomas, who is now a guest commentator on NBA TV, took the time to share this story about Big Brother with us.
Who is your big brother? How is this relationship established?
Thomas: I have two big brothers — Phil Hubbard and Greg Kelser. These are two big brothers who really help and take care of me. They made sure I trained on time, knew where I was going, showed me around, and told me how to protect my body and take care of myself. They were crucial to me just starting out in the NBA.
Because Kelser was a teammate of Magic Johnson, I played with him in the summer, and I knew him well before the season started. And coincidentally, I ended up staying with him very close. Hubbard and I also met the summer I was chosen, so luckily I got to know these two big brothers early. They took care of me more or less and helped me in almost everything. From waking up in the morning until going to bed at night, I was either with one of them or both with them.
What on-court experience have you learned from them?
Thomas: Fortunately for me, all three of us are from the Master of Victory — Kelsey is from Michigan State University, Hubbard is from the University of Michigan, and I'm from Indiana University. We all play in the Big Ten Leagues, so as soon as we get to the NBA, we're ready to win, and we know how to prepare to win because we all have a good coach in college. They may feel a little more relaxed about that, because they never have to worry about whether I'm ready to play, I'll always be ready.
[At Indiana University, Isaiah Thomas played two seasons under Coach Bobby Knight and won the 1981 NCAA Championship.] ]
Have you ever been treated like a rookie?
Thomas: My task is to clean the locker room before and after training. I had to put all my towels away and vacuum the floor clean, and on the road I had to give Hubbard and Kelser newspapers and coffee, or donuts, in the morning. At the same time, I helped our trainer, Mike Abudno, carry the videotape. That's what I'm going to do this rookie season.
What was your "Welcome to the NBA" moment like?
Thomas: I think it was the time when I walked up to the opener. We played against the Milwaukee Bucks. Quinn Buckner was one of my idols at the time, and he was unstoppable in Thornridge High School, winning the state championship in Illinois, as well as at Indiana University, and also winning the national championship. His career was successful. So, when my first game was against him and his Bucks, I thought, "Okay bro, that's too fierce. "We played well in that game and won. This should be my "Welcome to the NBA" moment. I walked up and Quinn Buckner was standing there, and it felt like it was like making a movie.
[Thomas had 31 points and 11 assists, Buckner 17 points and eight assists, and the Pistons won 118-113.] ]
What was your "I'm just going to play on this team" moment?
Thomas: I've never looked at myself in isolation like this, and I've been thinking about "how are you going to build this team and win the championship?" That's my only goal, my only idea. From high school to college, my team has been winning, so I never think about myself, but how to challenge and beat strong teams together.
Have you ever been the big brother of any player and taken care of them? If anything, who?
Thomas: Every rookie on the team and every guy who comes in, and there are rookies on other teams, I'm going to help coach them along the way. Whether it's John Sally, Dennis Rodman, Michael Williams, Phoenix Denbo, Joe Dumas... I'm their big brother. I teach them everything I've learned and spend a lot of time eating, training, chatting, mentoring, and showing them how to do it.
Why do you take the players who coach the league so important?
Thomas: Because that's how I was taught. I've seen this kind of teaching many years before I entered the league, whether it's Bill Russell inviting Wilt Chamberlain to dinner at home before the game, or Magic Johnson and I growing up together as friends. That's who we are, that's what we do. I was trained not only to learn from these experiences, but also to pass them on as much as possible. That's my role, and maybe that's why I've been elected president of the players' union for so many years. That's how we do things.
[Thomas served as president of the NBA Players' Union from 1988-94.] ]
What kind of transformation did you make from Big Brother to coaching?
Thomas: You can communicate with a player, but from a coach's point of view, you have to communicate with the player at a specific time, according to the skill level and communication level of the player. When you've been involved in a sport yourself, you'll understand the emotional state of the player and how to say the right thing at the right time, because the best way to learn is to immerse yourself in it. I turned to coaching after being personally involved in the sport, so from a communication point of view, I will be able to find a suitable way to pass on the message that needs to be delivered to the players at that time.
Of all the things your big brother taught you, is there anything that has been with you beyond the basketball level?
Thomas: I find their kindness and their generosity with their time invaluable to me. No one asked them to give generously their time to guide me, but they were very willing to give their time to me selflessly, and not only that, they were very kind to me. It is precisely because of what they have done to me that I have tried to pass on this attitude forward – not only to give my time, but also to be kind.