Lietuva: The "Other Dream Team" Enjoys World Premiere

Lithuanian Dreams Come True

By TERRY LYONS
Column in DigitalSportsDesk.com


You've heard of Red Square, right?

If you were around in 1992, you might've heard the rallying cry of the '92 Lithuanian Olympic team, "Better Dead than Red." Surely, if you were an avid sports fan, you remember the team of vagabonds parading into the Olympics in their Grateful Dead-funded tie-dye T-shirts in the most memorable medal ceremony of all-time, held after the USA thrilled the world and accepted their gold medals.

Actually, to those in attendance in Barcelona, the bronze medalists, aka "The Other Dream Team," stole the show. They were the headliners in a post Cold War, Berlin Wall, coming out party that Olympic Games TV anchorman Jim Lampley called, "one of the cosmic turning points of the 20th century."

Thankfully, the moment in time, the important movement in world history is captured on film. Just like their United States counterparts, often called the "greatest team ever assembled," the Lithuanian dreamers have a documentary film of their own and, to many, it's a more interesting and compelling story.  At a recent premiere in New York city, all of the lucky attendees, including the Consul General of the Republic of Lithuania in New York, Mr. Valdemaras Sarapinas and his wife, Mrs. Vytė Sarapinienė, had similar thoughts as they beamed with pride after the private screening of the documentary film “The Other Dream Team." Dozens of media members applauded Mr. Marius Markevičius producer/director of the film, who flew back to his native America from the film's world premiere in Vilnius. He, along with 1992 bronze medalist Arturas Karnisovas, a multi-time European player of the year, former US collegiate star and Final Four participant with Seton Hall University, were joined by NBA officials, past and present, United Nations dignitaries and film critics at the event.

In case you haven't heard of the roaring success of the film, it's a documentary that garnered significant praise at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Simply put, the "Other Dream Team" is the amazing story of the 1992 Lithuanian Olympic basketball team, a group of trail blazing athletes who won the bronze at the Barcelona Olympics and left an indelible mark on the history books while becoming the highest grossing documentary film in Lithuanian history after only two weeks in theaters. The film topped the charts among indie films in the USA over its first weekend on screens in just two cities, New York and Los Angeles.  This week, the "Other Dream Team" premieres in Washington DC, Philadelphia, San Diego and Orange County, California before it goes to dozens of cities nationwide.

Led by the impressive and aggressive skills of guard Sarunas Marciulionis and the legendary Hall of Fame center Arvydas Sabonis, along with many other familiar names, the '92 team helped inspire their country's break from the shackles of Soviet rule and Communism. Many of the Lithuanian players - including four of the starting five -  led the (former) USSR to a gold medal, and victory over the USA, at the '88 Seoul Olympics, But, only four years later, after the fall of the Soviet Union, the Lithuanian hoopsters emerged as symbols of freedom and democracy, literally willing newly-independent Lithuania to the medal stand in Barcelona after an emotional victory over the former USSR, who competed as the "Unified" team. The film documents the Lithuanians' experiences behind the Iron Curtain.

Throughout their ordeal, Lithuania's basketball stars always shared a common goal—to utilize their athletic gifts to help their nation bloom. The '92 Lithuanian team won fans around the world for its hard-nosed play, and also with its amazing connection with the Grateful Dead.

Band leader Jerry Garcia, inspired by the team's message of freedom and coaxed by the late Larry "RamRod" Shurtliff who was the "heart and soul" of the band, provided a hefty dose of financial assistance and authorized a distinctive tie-dye warm-up for their friends, complete with the Dead's symbolic icon skeleton, creatively drawn dunking a basketball. My buddy, the late, great "Ramrod" had often watched Marciulionis at Golden State Warriors games and was a regular at the All-Star Game and NBA Finals, riding shotgun alongside the great Bill Walton, Basketball Hall of Famer and self-proclaimed "Deadhead."

In addition to the obvious endorsement of Walton and the remaining band members of the Dead, the film has been championed by some of the greatest names in professional basketball, all who appear in the film.

"Freedom," exclaimed Walton. "Let's go!"

After premieres in NYC and LA, the "Other Dream Team" open in theaters across the country this week. For information, please visit the Facebook page for the film at: https://www.facebook.com/otherdreamteam?ref=ts    or visit the official site of the film at:  http://otherdreamteam.thefilmarcade.com

See the official movie trailer, posted as a DigitalSportsDesk salute to "The Other Dream Team"

Quick's Take on Big Bill ..

I missed this column the day it came out, but thought it important to do a cut and paste job on it today:

By JASON QUICK, OregonLive.com

Bringing a heart deep with regret, Bill Walton returned to Portland on Friday for the first time since he can remember.

Ostensibly, his return was for a banquet tour – this weekend he is receiving the Governor's Gold award, making a speech for Special Olympics and attending a fundraiser for the Trail Blazers.

But when his plane descended through the Willamette Valley on Friday, Walton said he discovered tears streaming down his cheeks, and he knew this trip was so much more than awards and encouraging speeches.

It was his time to heal old wounds. And a signal that his life was once again changing.

Walton -- one of the NBA's biggest personalities, first as a player and later as a broadcaster -- has been in seclusion for much of the past 2 1/2 years because of a severe back injury. He's able to travel again because of successful surgery.

But the wounds he discussed Friday are older, going back to his ugly departure from the Blazers in 1979, two years after he led the team to its only NBA championship.

Walton left after demanding to be traded, and while accusing the team of pressuring him to play through what had become repeated foot and ankle injuries. He also sued the team physician, Dr. Robert Cook, and one of his closest friends, trainer Ron Culp, over the quality of treatment and care by the Blazers medical staff.

"I'm here to try and make amends for the mistakes and errors of the past," Walton, 56, said during a 40-minute press conference. "I regret that I wasn't a better person. A better player. I regret that I got hurt. I regret the circumstances in which I left the Portland Trail Blazers family. I just wish I could do a lot of things over, but I can't.

"So I'm here to apologize, to try and make amends, and to try and start over and make it better."

Throughout the day he was emotional, crying as the plane touched down, and then weeping in his meeting with Blazers staffers. And there were times in his address to the media when he stopped talking to compose himself. Much of that emotion is because his ravaged body has once again been rebuilt.

Debilitated for the past two and a half years with severe back pain that stripped him both of his high-profile position as a national television broadcaster, and his ability to live a normal life, Walton is back on his feet after a spinal fusion in February.

He said he spent much of the past two years lying on the floor of his home in San Diego, reduced to a "pitiful ball of flesh" that was unable to walk, talk, sit, stand, or sleep.

"I went from thinking I was going to die, to wanting to die, to being afraid I was going to live, to now seeing rainbows, Calliopes, clowns, and dreams of a better tomorrow," Walton said, his once famous shaggy, red hair grayed and combed back. "Not only am I proud to be here today, I am unbelievably lucky to be here today."

Blazers ambassador Bill Schonely, who was the team’s broadcaster when Walton played and has remained friends with him, was at the staff meeting.

“He was very, very emotional,” Schonely said. “He apologized for the things he did in the past. You know, he’s 56 now, and we all grow up. But I know he is sincere. And he was close to death, and that tends to make you think about things. Now that he’s making a comeback, I think he thought there’s nothing he could do but apologize.”

The back surgery was his 36th orthopedic operation of his life. He says he has two fused ankles, 11 bolts throughout his body and knees, hands and wrists that don't work – symbolic and telling of a 14-year NBA career in which he had only one offseason when he didn't have at least one surgery. Throughout his career, he missed 762 games because of injury, the equivalent of nine seasons.

But when he was healthy enough to play for the Blazers, there was never anybody better or more interesting.

He was politically active, environmentally aware and outspoken on both accounts. He was a vegetarian and became a devout follower of the "Grateful Dead" whom he met in 1974 at Portland's Paramount Theater. He later said it was "an experience that changed my life."

On the court, he was one of the most skilled and cerebral big men of all time, an incredible passer, deft shot-blocker and efficient scorer who blended power and grace.

But just before his rookie season, he had knee surgery. Then during his rookie season he missed 47 of the 82 games because of foot ailments. In his second season, he broke his ankle and missed 31 games. Even in the championship season he hurt his ankle, missing 17 games.

But the last straw was the 1977-1978 season, the year after the championship. The Blazers were rolling with a league-best 50-10 record when a slew of players went down with injuries, including Walton. He returned for the playoffs, but broke his foot in the second game of the first series against Seattle. The Blazers lost, and Walton decided he wanted out of Portland.

"I wasn't alone," Walton wrote in his autobiography, "Nothing But Net." "I think the Portland fans and media also wanted me out."

Today, Walton only remembers the good things. He remembers coach Jack Ramsay "made me the best player I ever was." He remembers Maurice Lucas as "the greatest Trail Blazer of them all." And, of course, he remembers the fans, whom he calls "Blazermaniacs."

But those memories are tainted with regret. He said the fans' support pushed him to heights he said he couldn't reach by himself, but he seldom returned the favor. He was too injured and also too wary of opening himself up to the public.

"The love they gave me was something I could not return," Walton said. "And that's something that will forever be a stain, a stigma, on my soul. I can't wash it off."

He hopes for a closer connection to the Blazers in the coming years. He closely follows the current team, saying "they have the talent" to win it all, and he says he is a big fan of center Greg Oden, who he says "is capable of being a historic-level figure."

He also aims to get back into broadcasting.

But until he leaves on Sunday evening, he is set on reconnecting to the past. He said he would spend much of Friday afternoon driving to his old haunts – Nature's Food and Tool, Wallace Park, Multnomah Athletic Club for a quick soak in the Jacuzzi. And he would visit the old Paramount Theater, where he first met the "Grateful Dead".

"I'm just so happy that I can dream about better tomorrows," Walton said. "You talk about a long strange trip..."

St. John's to celebrate 100 Years of basketball ...

According to wiki answers on the internet - as of the beginning of the 2007-2008 season, Kentucky is the all-time winningest team in NCAA Division I Men's Basketball with 1,948 victories. The top 5 programs are:
1 - Kentucky - 1,948
2 - North Carolina - 1,914
3 - Kansas - 1,906
4 - Duke - 1,818
5 - St. John's - 1,705

Can you believe it?

I doubled checked the NCAA record book which wasn't updated from the 2006 season and they listed: (with my own addition of adding the 2006-07 wins)

1. Kentucky - 1,926 + 22 = 1,948
2. UNC - 1,883 + 31 = 1,914
3. Kansas - 1,873 + 33 = 1,906
4. Duke - 1,796 + 22 = 1,818
5. Syracuse - 1,680 + 24 = 1,704
6. Temple - 1,656 + 12 = 1,668
7. St. John's - 1,643 + 16 = 1,659

I could not find the discrepancy so I chose to list both 'records.' But, the main point is the fact St. John's is still among the all-time top college basketball programs despite the ax-job that former Coach Mike Jarvis did on the storied program.

UCLA with a 30-win season last year and a #1 ranking this year deserve special mention, if it is only to pay tribute to the great John Wooden, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then Lew Alcindor) and the one and only Bill Walton, among many others.

UCLA, according to my unofficial W & L's will head into the '07-08 campaign with 1,616 wins but they are undoubtedly the greatest college basketball program in history.

Back to the Johnnie's. The school recently announced that they will pay tribute to their 100 years of men's college basketball history with special symposiums, pictorial tribute books and a special web site to be launched this fall.

I hope they pay tribute by winning more than five games in the BIG EAST on the way to a 20-win season, but that is wishful thinking for a fan that grew up with St. John's basketball in NYC from the 1960s to 70's and 80's (when I graduated) and Big East championships and Final 4 appearances were a realistic goal set each October.