Thank you, Ralph Wiley

The "Basketball for Thought" is a commentary by Kris Gardner.

June 15, 2004

A man who had a big impact on my life died Monday morning: Mr. Ralph Wiley. I never met Ralph; but, he, without a doubt, influenced my life a great deal. He was an inspiration to me. Ralph wrote articles for Sports Illustrated, Premiere, GQ, and National Geographic, and many national newspapers. He provided regular commentary for ESPN's SportsCenter and formerly worked as an NFL analyst for NBC. Ralph died of heart failure at the young age of 52. I had always hoped to meet him; talk with him; and learn from him; unfortunately, I will never get those opportunities. Therefore, I just want to take a few moments to offer my thanks and appreciation for his life and work.

I first saw Ralph on "BET's Budweiser Sports Report" around 1989 or 1990. I enjoyed the show because it featured sports writers who "looked like me" participate in fun, intelligent, back and forth debates about sports, in particular, and society in general. The show aired each Saturday and was hosted by Charlie Neal and featured Ralph, and Bryan Burwell discussing topics with other guests. I'll never forget Ralph saying about the 1990 NBA Finals: "You can see the fear in Terry Porter's eyes. Isiah (Thomas) can score on him whenever he wants." As a fan of the Detroit Pistons, those words were music to my ears. Ralph was one of the few writers in America to pick the Pistons to defeat the Lakers in the 2004 NBA Finals; so, some things never change -- his words are still music to my ears.

While I may not have always agreed with Ralph's comments, his comments always made me think which I truly appreciated. Ralph was not afraid to discuss race because he believed what I believe: talking about race does not make you a racist. Dialogue is an important part of becoming more aware as a person.

Beginning in 1990, Ralph also made regular appearances on ESPN's "Sports Reporters"; and, in the beginning, he was typically the only writer "who looked like me" on the show. Ralph never held his tongue. He always listened to the comments of his fellow colleagues; but, he always had a sharp, thought provoking response to whatever was said. One of my favorite parts of "Sports Reporters" was the one minute segment allotted to each writer at the end of the show to allow the writers to talk about something specifically on his mind. That one minute was designed for a man like Ralph Wiley. I can still see Ralph sitting in his chair; fingers touching in the shape of a steeple; and telling the viewers what was on his mind. Ralph told you "how it was, the way he saw it".

One of his comments has stayed with me to this day. One Sunday, the panel was discussing heroes and the youth of the players in the NBA. As he stared into the television camera, Ralph's soliloquy ended like this: "While there's nothing wrong with young people having heroes who wear Nikes, my heroes wear wingtips."

I've enjoyed reading comments from some of Ralph's colleagues remembering their time with him; and, one, in particular struck me. Here's an excerpt from what John Marvel wrote:

"What are you doing reading this?" Ralph asked. "You like jazz?"

"Love it," I replied.

"What's your favorite Miles' record?"

"Sketches of Spain."

"Yeah, you like jazz," he crackled with approval. "That was the right answer."

Sorry, Ralph, I have to disagree. The right answer is "Kind of Blue".

Unfortunately for me, I won't get the opportunity to debate with Ralph which one of us is correct.