Confessions of a Basketball Star

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CONFESSIONS OF A BASKETBALL STAR

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November 11th is a special day in America that honors veterans who gave their lives for democracy. But, to this writer it has an additional significance. November 11, 1954 is the day my family moved to West Hartford.

At that time, West Hartford was one of the wealthiest incorporated towns, per household income, in the United States, after Beverly Hills, California and Shaker Heights, Ohio. Connecticut is still the wealthiest state in median family income in the United States. Gotcha! Many of you are thinking, I didn’t know that.

Keep in mind there were and still are a plethora of wealthier areas and communities in America, but not necessarily incorporated towns.

Today, Greenwich, New Canaan, Darien, Ridgefield and Westport, Connecticut surpass West Hartford in wealth, with such illustrious names as Judge Judy, David Letterman, Paul Newman (deceased), Martha Stewart, Regis Philbin, Kennedy/Skakel, Diana Ross, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, Ray Dalio (Hedge Fund-Bridgewater Assoc’s), Frank Gifford – NFL N.Y. Giants (deceased) and others too numerous to mention.

As of the 2010 Census, New Canaan, a bastion of Fairfield County wealth tops the Gold Coast ranking at $220,000 in median family income. West Hartford is 45th at $102,000. But, according to Forbes in 2014 the wealthiest neighborhood in America or richest zip code 06830 with an average income that tops $610, 000 per year is Greenwich’s Golden Triangle.

Although West Hartford’s household income ranking is not as high as it was back in the day, the school system remains one of the best in the United States. This is because of the direction, guidance and professional acumen of such educators as: Dr. Robert Dunn (Hall),

Henry Weyland (Conard), Dr. Karen List (Superintendent), Tom Moore (Conard & Supt.), Dr. Don Slater (Hall), Dr. Peter Cummings (Conard), Julio Duarte (Conard) Dan Zittoun (Hall) and many others.

DUFFY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

This is the environment, at age 12, all of 5’ 5” tall that I entered the 7th grade at Sedgwick Jr. High School. One of the things that I vividly remember is how pretty the girls were such as Nancy Bergenholtz, Betsy Burns, Bunny Hatton, Marie LaPenta, Susan Allen and a bevy of others. I played all sports at Sedgwick: soccer, basketball, baseball and handball. And, in the summer organized Alumni League Baseball.

I also played basketball on the outdoor courts at Duffy where I met the great basketball player Ray Moore (Hall 1956), Fred Williams (Hall 1957) and Jimmy Woods (Kingswood 1958). The first player I saw dribble behind his back with aplomb was not Bob Cousy of the NBA Boston Celtics but none other than my teammate Ray “Slugger” Dunn. Oh, my basketball skills noticeably improved and made me a star on the Sedgwick 9th grade basketball team along with stellar, Paul Eschholz (Kingswood School 1960).

CONARD 1957

Off to Conard High School in the fall of 1957 where I renewed my friendship from an earlier period with Howard Hochman (Physican), Richard Gitlin (Attorney), Nancy Shapiro (Homemaker), Don Blumenthal (College Professor) and a few others. As an interesting aside, Howard Hochman is a skilled surgeon and Richard Gitlin is one of the best international bankruptcy-reorganization attorneys in the United States.

On the junior varsity basketball team as a sophomore I did not play very much. But, I watched outstanding sophomore Ed Driscoll on the varsity from the stands and inquired to a senior student if Ed was better than Ray Moore. His answer was a sharp and immediate: “Not yet!” Now you have some idea how good Ray Moore (Hall 1956) was as a basketball player.

Ray Moore was the career scoring leader in West Hartford and tallied 36 points in one game. Legend has it that he was drunk during that outstanding performance. Legend further has it that an opposing player complained to his coach that he could smell alcohol on Ray’s breath. At this point, Ray had 30 points, so the coach told the player: “Find out what brand Ray Moore was drinking and I will get you some.”

As a sophomore JV player from the stands I watched 6’ 2” Tom Anderson of Bristol H.S. score 33 points in our sparkling brand new gymnasium. He was knocking down 19 feet textbook jump shots all around the perimeter of the key area. It was a great performance that I could only dream about at that point in my career.

I was now determined to be on the varsity in my junior year. So, in the summer of 1958 I played basketball 5 days per week from 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm.

VARSITY BASKETBALL

Up to the varsity in 1958-59 where Ed Driscoll was already the established star, but he welcomed me with open arms and kind words. The first game of the season was Wethersfield at Conard.

Ron Morrisette, a 6’ 2’’ guard, knocked down 30 points with his picture perfect jump shot and the other guard, 6’ 0” John Pincera had 21 points. That is 51 points from the backcourt.

This was the best backcourt tandem of the year. The next game of the season was at Platt H. S. in Meriden where Ed Driscoll set the gym on fire with his 29 points. He made 14 of 20 deep shots from the floor. Shortly thereafter word got out that Conard had a tandem that you just had to see. Driscoll and Johnson packed the gym to standing room only. Mr. Outside and Mr. Inside. Ed was pumping in jumpers from 20 feet and I was shooting from 18 feet and closer and blocking at least 3 shots per game.

It was as if I was saying”Get that weak stuff out of here” or “Thou Shalt Not Enter the Lane.” I use to snuff opposing players jump shots like spit on a birthday candle. Let’s not forget Billy Julavits with his quickness and playmaking and Don Coppen who could really shoot and drive to the basket. Bottom line, if you were between ages 13 & 20, the place to be on a Friday night at 8:00 pm was in the Conard gymnasium. You will hear a cacophony of cheers, dribbles and squeaking sneakers. And, you will see a great jump shooter (Driscoll) and a sky walker (Johnson) together with Mike Nyquist, Julavits, Coppen, Hornbruch, Burke, Blumenthal and Fiske. And, how about those pretty cheerleaders Betsy Burns, Linda Nielson, Nancy Bergenholtz (all Sedgwick cheerleaders) to name a few. You would also get to see parents, alumni, teachers, sports writers, raccoon coats and short skirts.

JIMMY JOHNSON

COACHES

Things worthwhile generally don’t just happen. Good luck is what is left over after intelligence and effort have combined. Now if you are wondering how I became a basketball star the answer is easy. It is a universal answer that embraces all sports and professions. It is based on the same principle or answer by a drunk wrapped around a street light post to an inquiry by a neatly dressed young gentleman carrying a cello: “How do I get to Carnegie Hall?” – Practice, Practice, Practice. Moreover, I had a personal coach in addition to a team coach. Ed Rosmarin was my personal coach who instructed me not to bring the ball down on offensive rebounds because opposing players will be able to tie me up or steal the ball.

He instructed me to use my superior jumping ability and tap the ball with one hand into the basket at the apex of my jump. Timing is the key here. You must be able to anticipate when and where the ball will bounce off the rim. I mastered this offensive move that caused opposing coaches to shake their heads in disbelief to see my extended hand at or above the rim. Larry Stewart was my team coach and in my senior year I was elected captain of the team where he guided me with discipline and leadership qualities.

Ed Rosmarin passed into basketball heaven on Oct. 9, 2013. He was a First Team All- City basketball player at Erasmus Hall H.S. in Brooklyn, New York. So what. Here’s what – Brooklyn is the largest borough in New York City with 3 million people and over 75 high schools. New York City at that time had approximately 150 high schools. All-City is tantamount to All–Universe.

Can you imagine the skill level required to be selected to the First Team? Here are a few NYC basketball immortals in that era and beyond: Sid Tannenbaum (Thomas Jefferson), Jerry Fleishman (Erasmus), Dolph Schayes (DeWitt Clinton), Bob Cousy (Andrew Jackson), Doug Moe (Erasmus), Julie Cohen (Erasmus), Billy Cunningham (Erasmus) Happy Hairston (Erasmus), Charles “Sparky” Donovan (Erasmus) Connie Hawkins (Boys), Roger Brown (Wingate) & Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lew Alcindor- Power Memorial Acad.), Nate “Tiny” Archibald (DeWitt Clinton), Bernard King (Alexander Hamilton), Kenny Anderson (Archbishop Malloy). For you hip-hop readers who are not familiar with these names you better look them up on www.Google.com

After World War II, Rosmarin enters Central Connecticut State University in New Britain and continues with his All-Star performances. His teammate is Bill Dietrick who later coached for 29 years at CCSU where the gymnasium now bears his name.

BEST PLAYER

The best player that I ever faced or guarded in high school in my senior year was 6’ 2” Jimmy Lawrence of Hall H.S. Jimmy was a forward with a textbook jump shot and could put the ball on the floor and drive to the basket. See the photo and write up below. He had a magnificent shooting touch and was very deceptive on his drive to the basket. How good was Jimmy? He fouled me out in the 4th quarter. This was the first and only time in my 2 year varsity career that I fouled out of a game. Keep in mind that I was the premier CCIL defensive player in the decade of the 1950’s and 1960’s, both vertical and horizontal quickness – but not against Jimmy Lawrence on that one enchanted evening. I wish I had a video because it was a great performance – one on one. At the end of the season Jimmy was selected to the All-CCIL Team along with Ed Driscoll and yours truly. In 1960-61 Jimmy’s senior year he broke Ed Driscoll’s career scoring record and averaged 21.7 points per game and was Hall’s top rebounder.

JIMMY LAWRENCE

For those of you who remember Jimmy Lawrence, in addition to basketball we had something else in common. We both were driving around town in late model convertibles – Jimmy in a Dodge and me in a Ford. Today, you can find Jimmy Lawrence living in one of those affluent towns in Fairfield County mentioned earlier in this article. And, if you miss him there you might be able to catch him in his winter home in Florida or on the golf course with Ed Driscoll.

James A. Johnson is an accomplished Trial Lawyer and an active member of the Massachusetts, Michigan, Texas and Federal Court Bars. Jim concentrates on serious personal injury, entertainment & sports law and insurance coverage. He can be reached at www.JamesAJohnsonEsq.com or by E-Mail: [email protected]