Do you remember the name Lenny Bias? The talented
College basketball player who had the world in front of him waiting
for him to conquer it. He was drafted with the second over all pick
in the draft - he was selected to play with the select - the Boston
Celtics and Larry Bird. Who better to learn from then the masters?
Len Bias drifted off the night of the draft knowing the world was
his, it seemed like a dream, a dream from which he never awoke. It
seems that Basketballs weren’t the only thing he was good at
shooting up. That night he shot up one too many. His career and life
over before it started.
The names of Kids and young men that “could have been”, that “SHOULD
have been” is a long one. Roy Tarpley, Chris Washburn, Isiah Rider,
Travis Spivey, Leon Smith, all hampered their potential and traded
their careers for vices. The list is growing and always adds some
very talented players to it. Unfortunately that list is going to
grow, unfortunately it may grow faster then we want it to,
unfortunately the next one on the list may be Deshawn Stevenson.
On June 19, 2001 a warrant for arrest was issued for Deshawn
Stevenson. The charge, Unlawful sex with a minor. In California law
A minor is under 18 and less then 3 years younger then the accused.
Allegedly the crime took place on or about June 6th. and involved
Stevenson and a high school teammate.
Allegedly is the key word in this story. Deshawn, has yet to
comment. The Utah Jazz have also deferred comments until more is
known. Stevenson did not grow up in the best of neighborhoods and it
goes without saying that if your friend congratulates you for being
drafted with an uppercut and pile on - who needs enemies? They say
money is the root of all evil, and when a 20-year-old has close to a
million in a bank account that someday easily will have 100 million
more- well, things change. Attitudes change, people change,
expectations change, and if a story is believable - the truth will
change too. At this point of time we don’t know if the accusation is
fact or fraud. At this point we don’t know what went down. We do
know this, if Deshawn wants to take the world in his hands - like he
is capable, he needs to let go of the past. He needs to make a clean
break into the world that wants his talent and not his money. It’s
not fair to blame Deshawn at this point, at this point it’s not fair
to blame the girl. We have to blame the situation and wish Deshawn
had never put himself there in the first place.
Basketball fans everywhere hope the accusation is false. Lets hope
for the love of the game, lets hope for the decency of mankind, that
Deshawn did not commit a crime. Lets hope lessons will be learned by
Deshawn and the other aspiring basketball superstars out there. Lets
hope the list doesn’t grow that fast. Lets hope that in 2 months
from now Deshawn is locked up at Karl Malone’s Ranch in Arkansas
instead of Locked up in a cell, but then again maybe prison would be
easier.
Good luck Deshawn. You are going to need it, where ever you end up.
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