January 19, 2000
Page B2
(Clje ^lo rtla n ò ffibaeruer
■ a
Hometown mourns Hornet Phills Johnson
retires,
Wannstedt
named
Dolphins
coach
A ssociated P ress
BY P atrick D ennis /A ssociated P ress
Kendall Phills, left, widow o f Charlotte Hornets' Bobby Phills, and Dwayne Phills, Bobby’s brother, embrace
next to a photo o f Phills during his funeral at the F.G. Clark Activity Center Sunday, Jan. 16, 2000, on the
campus o f Southern University in Baton Rouge, La. Phills was killed Wednesday morning. Jan. 12.
A ssoc iated P ress
B obby Ray Phills III perched on his
uncle D w ayne P hills’ shoulder, a
C harlotte H ornets jersey w ith the
num ber 13 on it hanging loosely on
his tiny body as he looked dow n into
his father’s coffin.
T he 3-year-old son o f the H ornets
g u ard , w ho d ied in a c a r crash
W ednesday, leaned forw ard, raised
his right hand and w aved a final
goodbye as D w ayne slipped a Bible
into his older b ro th er’s coffin.
“H e ’salive. H e’s alive w ith me. H e’s
alive w ith his friends and fam ily,”
D w ayne Phills said. T eam m ates and
friends said goodbye to Phills, w ho
w as killed w hen he lost control o f his
car w hile speeding. Police said he
m ight have been drag racing with
team m ate D avid W esley at the time.
T he H ornets, the Cleveland Cavaliers
and M ilw aukee Bucks w ere honorary
pallbearers at P h ills’ funeral Sunday
in his hom etow n.
“H e w as w hat life w as all about,” said
S an A n to n io ’s A v e ry Jo h n so n ,
P h i l l s ’ te a m m a te a t S o u th e rn
Uni versity. “This is a time to remember
all the great things about him. W e’re
all going to m iss him .”
Phills w as killed instantly W ednesday
m orning w hen he lost control o f his
speed in g P orsche and it crashed
head-on into another vehicle. The 30-
year-old player left behind a w ife and
tw o children, 3 and 1.
“I have a lot o f good m em ories,”
W esley said, his voice shaking. “O ur
friendship w as alw ays there. I’ll miss
him all the time. The only bad memory
1 h av e is th e ac cid en t. It’s the
to u g h e stth in g l’veevergonethrough
because w e all love Bobby.”
P hills’ wife, Kendall, gave a m ostly
upbeat speech about her husband,
though she had one regret about the
m orning Phills died. “ 1 didn’t tell him
I love him ,” she said. But she said o f
the m an she met w hen she was 14-
years-old, it w as one o f the few tim es
in their m arriage she hadn’t. “I was
lucky to have him as my husband, my
protector, the captain o f my ship, my
eternal soul m ate,” she said. “Until
w e meet again Bobby, I’ll always love
y o u .”
The celebrities were far outnum bered
b y h u n d r e d s o f p e o p le w h o
rem em bered Phills grow ing up in
Baton Rouge, going to school with
th e m a t S o u th e rn U n iv e r s ity
L a b o r a to ry S c h o o l o r m a k in g
spectacular plays in the arena w here
his coffin stood at midcourt.
“ I alw ays called it the B obby Phills
Show. N ow this is the last Bobby
Phills Show. And this is the place it
should be,” said Jewel Jefferson, 73,
who once led cheers for Phills during
his college career.
State S enator C leo Fields read a
p r o c la m a tio n a n d a le tte r o f
c o n d o le n c e from th e g o v ern o r.
S o u th ern U n iv e rsity C h a n ce llo r
Edw ard R. Jackson announced that
the school will retire P hills’ number.
S aying “th is tim e it’s final and
fo re v er,” Jim m y Jo h n so n to d ay
announced his retirement, leaving the
coaching jo b o f the M iami D olphins
to assistant Dave W annstedt.
Johnson’s decision com es one day
after the D olphins suffered the worst
loss in A FC postseason history, a 62-
7 defeat to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“This tim e its final and forever. I’m
retiring from coaching,” Johnson said
at a new s conference this afternoon.
“I’ve had m y tim e in the sun, in the
spotlight. N ow I want som e tim e with
my family.”
Johnson decided to retire as coach
and general manager last January after
a 38-3 loss to D enver in the divisional
playoffs, but changed his m ind after
meeting w ith Dolphins ow ner W ayne
Huizenga. This tim e, the 56-year-old
coach said he is com m itted to the
decision.
“Itw as lO O percentJim m y’sdecision
to retire,” H uizenga said. “ W e’re
disappointed to see him go. At the
sam e tim e, I’m enthused and excited
that D ave W annstedt w ill becom e
the head coach.”
W annstedt, w ho w as hired as an
a s s is ta n t la s t J a n u a r y to e a s e
Jo h n so n ’s w orkload, w as given a
three-year contract as the successor.
Johnson, w ho also served as the
te am ’s general m anager, w ill rem ain
with the D olphins in a limited role, but
does not w ant the responsibility o f
day-to-day operations.
“I will do w hatever they w ant m e to do
in assisting, w hether that b e in free
agency, personnel, the cap, the draft,”
he said. “T he only thing I d id n ’t w ant
is to be here on a day-to-day basis.”
Professional Bull
Rider Ross
Coleman o f
Molalla, Ore.,
will jo in the top
45 bull riders in
the world
competing fo r
part o f $6.2
million in prize
money against
the w orld’s
toughest bulls on
Saturday at 8
p.m. at
Portland's Rose
Garden.
by
A ndy W atson /P roees -
sional
km hd f°r
Barber & Beauty Salon
305 NE Wygant
Portland, OR 97211
(503) 288-6530
American Serena Williams
celebrates her win over
Australian Amanda
Grahame at the Australian
Open Tennis Championships
in Melbourne Tuesday, Jan.
18, 2000.
U.S. O pencham pion Serena W illiams
fum bled through m istim ing, w ild
s h o o tin g an d fo o t fau lts b efo re
surviving her A ustralian O pen first-
round m atch 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 against
261 s t-ra n k e d A m a n d a G ra h am e
today.
W illiam s, seeded third, needed tw o
hours to beat the A ustralian w ild
card entry, playing in her first G rand
S la m to u rn a m e n t an d en jo y in g
th undering support from a hom e
crow d o f nearly 14,000.
“ It w as ju st out o f control,” said
W illiams, who committed 55 unforced
e rro rs— 23 in the second se t— in her
first m atch in three months.
T he m atch w as interrupted for 35
m inutes by rain, in the m idst o f a
s e v e n -d e u c e g a m e as G ra h a m e
scored her second break o f the second
set to take a 4-1 lead. Play resum ed
after the stadium ro o f was closed.
io ]
Stylist Karen Dixon
Barber
Tracy Horsley
In Celebration of
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
3.
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Purchase any Basket Meal and receive a
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Fame from page 1
m oney. He also stated that the people o f color w ho have
been on the board only served for relatively short term s.
So the problem is both in recruitm ent and retention. Tim
M cG uire also stated that the public is neither w ell aw are
nor inform ed ab o u t O regon Sports H all o f Fam e,
specifically the nom inating process, m em bership, or its
sensitivity to people ofcolor. M cG uire stated that the Hall
o f Fam e prom otes a num ber o f program s to reach young
people in the com m unity another aspect o fth eir activity
o f w hich the com m unity at large is unaware.
Janice Carter, interim m anaging director for the O regon
Sports Hall o f Fam e and its m useum , stated Mr. S pencer
had been recently nom inated as a potential inductee for
the Hall o f Fame. She stated that, although Mr. Renfro had
w ritten several letters regarding the nom ination, he had
failed to follow through with necessary papeiw ork needed
to facilitate the nom ination.
She said the process entailed a sports resum e and other
docum entation in order to be considered for induction.
She said a person must be nom inated by a m em ber.
(M em bershipcosts$25 per year) She, too, readily admitted
i°ve °f jazz
89.1
TMAJ’s
Serena Williams survives first round
A ssociated P ress
B ell R iders , I nc .
that the O regon Sports Hall o f Fam e was both w hite and
m ale dom inated. She also said that the organization is
looking at change and w ays to attract a m ore diverse
representation.
Both M cG uire and Janet said that there are numerous
people o f color including, but not limited to Mack Robinson
(track), M argaret Johnson Bailes (track), A hm ad Rahshad
(football), and num erous others presently in the Hall.
O bviously, there is disparity o f perception here, However,
the opportunity for dialogue and resolution appears to be
available.
O n the face value, the m erit o f a M ulticultural Sports Hall
o f Fam e seem s to be valid and have merit. If the leadership
o f the O regon Sports Hall o f Fam e is genuine in its stated
position, it is incum bent on w om en and people o f color to
get involved and m ake a difference in the process, rather
than criticize the institution before engaging it or researching
the facts. At any rate, both parties agree that there is a need
to recognize accom plishm ents o fb o th w omen and people
o fc o lo r in the endeavor o f sports. T he m atter is how to
pursue fair and ju st acknow ledgm ent o f this goal.
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