Dee Brown!?!?!

What’s it like to meet one of athletes you looked up to as a child? I grew up in Vermont rooting for the Boston Celtics in the 1990s after the “big three” of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish retired and there wasn’t a lot to root for as the team struggled. Dee Brown was one of the only reasons to like the Celtics. He won the 1991 Slam Dunk Contest as a rookie when he famously pumped up his Reeboks before covering his eyes with his forearm and dunking the ball “no look”. He went on to play twelve seasons in the NBA with the Celtics, Raptors and Magic, averaging just over eleven points per game.

I had the distinct honor of introducing a bio of Dee to my classmates. I had a huge grin on my face, though I was definitely nervous (and I don’t get nervous). When I researched Dee to present the bio, I was extremely impressed with the diversity of his background: player, coach of two WNBA teams (Orlando Miracle and San Antonio Silver Stars), NBA front office experience with the Magic, on-air TV personality with ESPN after winning the show “Dream Job”, ESPN radio personality from 12-3 everyday, and owner/operator of Edge Training Facility.

As a lifetime Celtics fan and someone who people have called a “sports encyclopedia," I thought that I knew everything there was to know about Dee Brown... Boy was I wrong. Dee Brown stressed to us that basketball never defined who he was as a person; he was just gifted at it and used basketball as a tool to pursue all his other interests. Dee has two degrees from Jacksonville University in math and computer science. He owned several dot-com companies during the 90s and claims to be one of the first two NBA players (along with Spurs great David Robinson) to have the first monochrome, 15-pound Apple laptop in the '90s.

Dee also stressed the importance of having a value system above everything else. He spoke of an incident when he was in Boston for the first time after the NBA draft. Dee was tackled to the ground by police who suspected him of robbing a bank, despite the fact he was at the post office a block away. As Dee said, “What kind of dumb criminal goes to the post office across the street from the bank he just robbed?!” This was Dee Brown’s first impression of Boston, the city that would be his home for seven years. He could have been bitter, he could have sued, he could have blamed the world, but he didn’t because he didn’t believe it would help the situation. Instead Dee spun it positively and sought out the director of our program, Dr. Lapchick, who was at Northeastern University at the time. They have been great friends ever since.

It’s been a week since Dee Brown spoke to us and I still have that huge grin on my face. I thought that I knew everything there was to know about Dee Brown... Boy was I wrong.

Eric

Ladies and Gentleman, the Former President (of FCA), Jon Adams...

Hello everyone, my name is Jonathan Adams. I have the tough act of following Eric and Nathan, but I will do my best. I am originally from a small town called Fruitland Park, Florida (If you know where that is, I would be seriously impressed). I moved to Orlando to attend UCF for my undergrad. I got my degree in Business Management with a minor concentration in sport business management.

I have had the privilege of having a variety of experiences over the past 5 years. I have worked the past four seasons with the Orlando Magic as part of the game night arena operations staff. I also currently work with Dr. Keith Harrison doing research on social responsibility.

When UCF Athletics first started their sales department, I had a position stationed at the Orlando Regional Chamber of Commerce where I sold businesses UCF football season tickets. I also worked a year at a local inner city YMCA, which was a great experience. I had the privilege of working three years as a teacher’s assistant with Dr. Fritz Polite, who was a former professor here at the DeVos Program. I was involved with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes all four of my years of undergrad, serving as president my final year.

I can truly say I feel so at home at the DeVos Program. The faculty are great, and I cannot say enough about how much I have enjoyed all of my classmates. I think we truly have a special group (but I suppose I’m partial).

Hopefully, on good days you will be able to take something away from my blog. I’d love to hear from you if you have any questions or comments. In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King’s Day that just passed, I’d like to leave you with this quote from his autobiography. “Human beings with all their faults and strengths constitute the mechanism of social movement. They must take their mistakes and learn from them, make more mistakes and learn anew. They must taste defeat as well as success, and discover how to live with each.”

Much love…good game,

Jonathan