Sneak Preview - Across the Pond - Memories from NCAA Final Four

Across the Pond:
72,000 Crazy Car-Makers Rock Ford Field in Detroit for NCAA Final Four
By Terry Lyons http://www.terrylyons.com

DETROIT – April 7, 2009 – The temperature rose and the sun shined brightly on this springtime Saturday afternoon when college co-eds flocked to the bars and restaurants around Ford Field in downtown Detroit. The vibe in the “Motor City” was just right.

In the days of yesteryear, when the Detroit Pistons were winning NBA titles with the likes of Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Bill Laimbeer, Rick Mahorn and Mark Aguirre on the roster, we used to stay in the northern suburbs of Detroit. The Pistons championship hopes were built in the Pontiac Silverdome in the late 1980s but the championships were realized in the great Palace of Auburn Hills, a good 45-minute car ride north of Detroit’s Metro Airport, way past Telegraph Road.

We stayed at garden apartment villages, places called “The Somerset Inn,” the “Troy Hilton” and a “Guest Quarters.” We were thrilled to watch them build the Troy Marriott and often went to have lunch at the construction site while we cheered-on the workers to hurry the project along with hopes of Marriott points, Marriott Club sandwiches and an eventual jewel of a “Shula’s Steakhouse,” built in time for the Pistons’ most recent championship.

The reason we didn’t stay in downtown Detroit, you ask? It was a disaster.

Downtown Detroit was a complete hellhole. Its best city blocks housed vacant, old burned out building or downtrodden buildings with squatter’s rights. The Midwest economy was booming in the ‘burbs and in places like Chicago and Minneapolis but, in Detroit, the economy was as dismal as I’d ever seen within the United States of America. Unemployment was soaring. The crime factor? Forget it.

One time, we ventured downtown with some friends who had fought in the Viet Nam war and we visited a place called, the “Old Miami,” located in the Cass corridor. We drank some beers – PBRs - if I remember correctly – and played the jukebox with songs like “Ohio” by CSNY and “Unknown Soldier” by The Doors. The bar owner, Danny, told us stories and welcomed us to the bar because we knew one of the most honored patrons, Shelby Strother. If you were friends of Shelby, you were welcome at the “Old Miami.” However, a few years later, 1994, in fact, I told former NBA star Derrick Coleman – a tough, Detroit native – of our adventure to the Cass corridor and the Old Miami. His reaction: “YOU WENT WHERE?”

OLD MIAMI: 3930 Cass, Detroit, Michigan; Tel. +1313.831.3830
The Old Miami is a must see neighborhood dive bar for anyone visiting Detroit. It was established in 1975 as a place for Vietnam Veterans and still sports some very cool military memorabilia on its walls. Amenities that not many neighborhood bars have include a fireplace (Detroit gets down right frigid in the winter), couches, and a backyard. That's right a backyard, complete with porch and a stage where you can catch up and coming live music, mostly from Detroit's punk set; now what more could you want in a dive bar? We'll tell you; nothing.

So, with the NCAA tournament just concluded and the University of North Carolina winning in such an impressive fashion, why – on earth – would I be writing about downtown Detroit and the Viet Nam era bar, called the Old Miami?

Well, it’s to make this point: Detroit is on the way back!

The downtown area sports a brand new (American) football stadium, alongside Comerica Park, the home of Major League Baseball’s Detroit Tigers. There are three or four relatively new hotel complexes and a host of new restaurants, bookstores and lunch places. The GM/Renaissance Center office complex and its surrounding area is as nice as it gets and the Marriott at Renaissance Center hotel housed the main media hotel and thousands of out-of-town visitors at Detroit. Only the NCAA’s vaunted coaches, all who registered with the NABC (National Association of Basketball Coaches), had a bad stay – with a 45+ minute ride north to Windsor, Canada, across the great divide. The NCAA coaches – many who think, “They’re the show,” became the “Bridge and Tunnel” crowd of the NCAAs.

Upon check-in for your media accreditation and the issuing of venue and party credentials, you were graced with a nice letter from Detroit area school children who wrote of their love for their hometown and the hope that a new “Detroit” would bring. The Basketball Hall of Fame and the NCAA combined to refurbish and improve a downtown YMCA basketball court and dedicated it as “Tyler’s Court” in honor of Tyler Ugolyn, a victim of the World Trade Center terror attacks in 2001. NCAA coach Bo Ryan of Wisconsin, conducted a basketball clinic for local youngsters.

The mental boost to the city was immeasurable, but the vast economic impact was plentiful.

"It is estimated that the projected economic impact of the Final Four on the city of Detroit and the local economy during the four days of the NCAA tournament has been between $30 and $50 million," said Detroit Mayor Ken Cockrel Jr. "That is definitely a much needed shot in the arm and certainly comes at the right time."

Cockrel said there were only minor incidents to report.
"In fact, at the Big Dance and Hoop City, there were no incidents," he added.

"Detroit's a great city, it's rebuilding and we had a lot of fun here," said visitor Mark Balley to the local media.

"Wherever we've gone we've been treated well," said North Carolina fan Emmett Hunt. "It seems like Detroit is a very friendly city ... and I want to come back."

The feeling was mutual from a group assembled at the Detroit Athletic Club to announce the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2009. I was fortunate enough to gain a serious working gig, assisting the H of Fame with their media set-up and future planning for the (VERY) special induction ceremony to take place this coming September 10-12, 2009 in Springfield, Mass. The class, which includes NCAA women’s basketball coaching great Vivian Stringer of Rutgers, Utah Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan, Utah Jazz point guard John Stockton, the NBA’s all-time leader is assists and steals, along with “The Admiral,” David Robinson, one of the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players of All-Time and a two-time NBA champion and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist. Then, of course, the Class of 2009 headliner is the one and only Michael Jeffrey Jordan. (MJ needs no statistical reminders).

So, what was the bottom line?

The city of Detroit is on the way back. The US of A is on the way back. You could feel the vibe all the way from Telegraph Road and 8-mile Road. From Jay Wright, the great Villanova Coach who reminds some of us of a certain new POTUS, named Barack Obama to Tom Izzo – the understated but true-genius coach of the Michigan State Spartans to Roy Williams, the good old boy from Carolina who led an impressive UNC Tar Heel team to a much deserved national championship. They all had one shining moment in Detroit and the eyes of the basketball world caught a great glimpse and will return to be sure they pump some more energy into Motown.

See:
http://www.sept11thmemorial.com/last_name.asp?Letter=U

Terry Lyons, Contributor
A former communications and media executive at the NBA, Terry has behind-the-scenes knowledge that few others could boast. His vast experience, contacts list and knowledge of the game make him a star asset to 24/7's writing team.

For more information on Terry Lyons, see:
Terry Lyons: http://www.terrylyons.com

Ramble On ... Get some Sleep

Good Night and Good Luck... the 2929 production that Mark Cuban thought would be his ticket to the stage at the Academy Awards.

With the pressure of the 'little things in life' like your family well-being, your personal and business financial foundation, home, mortgage, savings, family savings and elder care, the future of your job and the economy and a few other small issues all in crisis, it's not surprising that some people stay up at night and think about it.

Here's a little insight, courtesy of my hometown paper, The great Boston Globe and its Boston.com online destination:

Good night? Good luck.
As the economy sinks, insomnia increases and America searches for a good night's sleep
By Judy Foreman

Chris Dalto is an affable fellow, a happily married father of two and a lawyer-turned-financial planner. Normally, he sleeps like a baby.

But last fall, when Lehman Brothers tanked and the stock market fell apart, Dalto began waking up at 3 a.m. "You take on the clients' stress, which made it impossible to get back to sleep," he says. He would spend the wee hours fretting and checking on the already-open Asian markets. Then, come 6 a.m., it was off to work again.

Even in normal times, an estimated 40 million Americans have trouble sleeping, according to the National Institutes of Health. Sleep troubles are more prevalent now because of the economy, some psychologists and psychiatrists say. A third of all Americans are losing sleep worrying about money, according to a poll done last fall and released last week by the National Sleep Foundation, a nonprofit research organization.

Uncertainty - and especially the fear of job loss - are precisely the kind of worries that makes for sleepless nights, says Carol Kauffman a McLean Hospital psychologist. "A hypothetical emergency is often harder to deal with, and can cause more insomnia, than an actual one," she says; the worst place to be is "in limbo, waiting for the other shoe to drop, and there's a millipede up there raining shoes."

So what are the stressed out masses supposed to do to get some sleep? Sleeping pills, once frowned upon by doctors, are now increasingly prescribed if non-drug treatments don't help.

Stress management, meditation, exercise, nighttime habits more conducive to sleep, and, of course, talk therapy, should be tried first, says psychologist Cynthia Dorsey, director of behavioral sleep medicine at the Sleep Health Centers, a for-profit network of sleep disorder clinics

But for those who need more - and many do; doctors wrote more than 56 million prescriptions in 2008, according to IMS Health, a healthcare information company - sleeping pills are an acceptable alternative.

What changed? For one thing, it's clearer that extended use of some sleeping pills can be safe. Until relatively recently, doctors advised patients to take sleeping pills for no more than two weeks, partly out of the "concern that nightly use of sleeping pills would lead to 'tolerance' - the need to increase doses to get the desired effect," says Dr. John Winkelman, medical director of the Sleep Health Center affiliated with Brigham and Women's Hospital.

But then a study, funded by the makers of Lunesta, showed that the sleeping pill was just as effective at six months as at day one, suggesting that people did not become tolerant, and thus would not be inclined to boost their dosage. The US Food and Drug Administration approved Lunesta in 2004 for long-term use. Ambien CR and Rozerem are also now approved for long-term use, although there is less data on whether patients develop tolerance to these drugs.

The other change was in attitude. There is now "more acceptance of the fact that sleep disorders are very disturbing to the individual who has them," says Winkelman. Thus, the medical community sees more value in correcting the problem, which can harm both mental and physical health, says Winkelman, a consultant to several companies that make sleeping pills.

A new study from Carnegie Mellon University illustrates the health risk of insomnia. It links poor sleep "efficiency" (the percentage of time in bed actually asleep) and shorter duration of sleep to a higher risk of coming down with a cold. People who slept fewer than 7 hours were 3 times more likely to get sick than people, equally exposed to the cold virus, who slept 8 hours or more.

Still, many people view sleeping pills with suspicion. A common worry is that stopping sleeping pills use will cause withdrawal symptoms, including worse sleep. This can happen, but is often preventable if a person tapers off a drug gradually, rather than stopping abruptly.

People also worry that sleeping pills will make them do strange things in the middle of the night. Bizarre side effects are rare, but people on Ambien have reported cooking, eating, talking on the phone, even having sex - with no memory of such things the next day.

Still others fear that sleeping pills will make them groggy the next day, which can occur if the dose is too high or taken too late into the night.

On the plus side, having a sleeping pill handy may help - even if you don't take it, says Kauffman, the McLean Hospital psychologist. Much of the problem in insomnia is not worrying about a real fear - such as losing a job - but is the "secondary anxiety" about losing sleep. Just knowing you can take a sleeping pill if you really need it can allay this secondary fear.

As for Chris Dalto - the sleep-deprived accountant worried about his clients, me among them - he never turned to sleeping pills. Nor did he seek therapy or change his sleep habits.

What he did do was to figure out what he could, and what he could not, control. The larger economy, clearly, was out of his hands. So he focused intently on managing his clients' portfolios - more bonds, fewer stocks - to reduce the inevitable losses of a bad market. It worked.

"Gradually," he says, "I started to string together two, three, four normal nights' sleep. Now, I'm sleeping like a baby."

***

Welcome to our Shores...

I always disliked the words "Foreign Athletes." I think it was Ted Turner's influence that made me realize the word "Foreign" had a negative connotation to it. Foreign to "Who? Foreign to "What?"

To that end, you always noticed the NBA just happended to avoid the word at all cost as well.. Hmm? Wonder why?
I cringed when I heard someone say "Foreign born" NBA players, or even wrose, "foreigners."

We used "International Players in the NBA" or "NBA Players from Around the World" in all of our communication.

This week, a story from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services announced new policies for international athletes competing in the USA's top professional sports leagues. Check it out:

WASHINGTON -- U.S. immigration officials have agreed to let foreign athletes extend their careers here beyond a 10-year limit if the athletes leave the country first.

The change came in a new policy memo issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, following months of lobbying by sports leagues and lawyers for foreign athletes. The memo, obtained Monday by The Associated Press, also came after the AP made inquiries to the agency about the limit.

The leagues and lawyers had been complaining that CIS recently began enforcing the 10-year limit, endangering the U.S. careers of foreign athletes. CIS officials countered that they've enforced the limit for years, which is based on a 1990 immigration law.

Foreign athletes participate in pro sports such as baseball, basketball, hockey and golf.

***

Here's the list of the endangered species, according to 24/7 Wall Street and printed courtesy of the Boston Herald. The list is AKA the top ten newspapers most likely to go out of business or switch to 100% digital distribution via online:

The Top 10 papers in danger, according to 24/7 Wall St., include (in order):

1.) The Philadelphia Daily News, the smaller of two jointly operated papers.

2.) The Minneapolis Star Tribune, which has filed for Chapter 11 protection.

3.) The Miami Herald, hurt by the state’s severe real estate collapse.

4.) The Detroit News, the smaller of two papers in the Motor City.

5.) The Boston Globe.

6.) The San Francisco Chronicle, a deadline for closing has been set.

7.) The Chicago Sun-Times, the smaller of two city newspapers.

8.) The New York Daily News, which could see losses in the millions.

9.) The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, facing stiff competition in the Dallas market.

10.) The Cleveland Plain Dealer, located in one of the nation’s toughest markets.

***

Here's to you, Mr. Robinson ...

Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press wrote a fitting tribute to Detroit's Will Robinson, one of the very best. Robinson passed away this past week at the great age of 96. During our years working in Detroit, Robinson was one of the class acts and real gentlemen. He is a pro's pro.

***

"Icon" is a word used liberally these days to describe an individual's contributions, but it isn't a stretch when talking of Will Robinson's impact.

Robinson died at age 96, leaving an enduring legacy that extends beyond becoming the first black Division I men's basketball coach in 1970.

His legacy is also seen in the lives of hundreds of young men, who got an opportunity at a college education because Robinson equally balanced lessons of basketball with instructions about life.

He began a 26-year career in Detroit's high schools in 1944, coaching the football and basketball teams at Miller before moving on to Cass Tech and Pershing.

Robinson also spent 28 seasons as a scout with the Pistons and 22 years as a part-time scout for the Lions.

The man we all adoringly called "Coach" always told me he considered himself a teacher more than anything else. He believed what he did was a calling, more than an occupation, because he thought there was nothing more important than having the opportunity to mold a young man's character.

Robinson produced some great players, but he spoke with even stronger pride about those becoming the first in their families to earn a college degree, using sports as a springboard for more tangible achievements.

"It's a difficult day for me," former Pistons general manager Jack McCloskey said Monday about his dear friend's passing. "He's among the top echelon of all the great basketball minds that ever existed. But it was always more than just basketball with Will. He was just as interested in a person's character. That's what made him a very valuable part of our organization."

Robinson was a Pistons scout when McCloskey became general manager in 1979. He became McCloskey's "second eyes" when evaluating talent.

"He was so competitive, and I loved that about him," McCloskey said.

He recalled a story about a college tournament both attended in Hawaii. The evening's games were over and the pair walked to a nearby restaurant. But McCloskey noticed Robinson seemed preoccupied.

Robinson had noticed one of the tournament's players was walking ahead of them.

"He chided the kid for not competing hard enough," McCloskey said. "And what's interesting is that the kid stood there and listened to every word Will told him. He didn't just dismiss him as some old guy. Everybody that knew Will or knew of him respected him. And you've got to earn that. He worked hard and went through plenty to get that respect."

Robinson coached what's considered one of the greatest high school teams in Michigan history at Pershing in 1967, a basketball team that included Ralph Simpson and Spencer Haywood.

"He taught me to be a man, not just a basketball player," Haywood said. "That was his greatest gift."

He became Isiah Thomas' mentor when the Pistons drafted him in 1981. He easily related to players more than 60 years his junior because of his open and occasionally brutal candor.

"He was frank, fair and straightforward," said Pistons vice president of basketball operations Scott Perry, a Robinson confidant. "That's what you want in a coach, but that's also what you want in a trusted adviser. That's why everybody sought his counsel."

The tributes poured in Monday from everywhere when word of Robinson's passing broke. Those who never even met him spoke of his trailblazing acts and how they laid the foundation for future opportunities.

The full extent of Robinson's legacy will be on display later this week, when the many he touched will honor his life at Saturday's funeral. It will not only be a Who's Who of Detroit basketball but also a historical timeline of basketball's evolution in this country over the last 60 years.

Contact DREW SHARP at 313-223-4055 or dsharp@freepress.com.