Monthly Archives: January 2012

My Top 15 “Working in Sports” Moments

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Part 3  (5 through 1)

 

5.  Working for the Cavs PR Department in 2002-03, and being able to work with broadcasting legend Joe Tait.  He couldn’t have been any nicer to me on road trips, and went out of his way to take me to breakfast before shoot arounds.  I love the way he called the game and hearing his stories and point of view on life in the NBA was priceless.

 

4.  Volunteering as an usher for the Arizona Diamondbacks during the 2001 Major League Baseball Playoffs.  I worked as a communications manager for the Phoenix Mercury, Phoenix Suns and Arizona Rattlers…and had the opportunity to assist with the Diamondbacks, which Jerry Colangelo also owned at the time.  The excitement and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity continued as I was able to attend several World Series games as a fan.  That particular World Series was emotionally-charged, coming on the heels of the September 11th attacks.  To top it off, the Diamondbacks dramatically defeated the New York Yankees in Game 7.  This made me quite happy, as I’ve never been a fan of the Yankees!  

 

3.  Working as a PR assistant during the 2000 NBA All-Star Game in Oakland, CA.  The whole experience was amazing.  I was working part-time for the Golden State Warriors at the time and it marked one of the only occasions I have ever been truly star-struck…I had the impromptu opportunity to get my photo taken with the one-and-only Michael Jordan.  

 

2.  Taking a trip to the Supai village at the bottom of the Grand Canyon to help Nike and the Phoenix Mercury conduct a basketball skills clinic for the children of the Havasupai Tribe who reside there.  We flew to the bottom of the Grand Canyon in a helicopter, were guests in the village for a few days and hiked to Havasu Falls along with learning more about the tribe, conducting a basketball clinic and growing the game of basketball. 

 

1.  Working with USA Basketball and the USOC to help publicize and coordinate media interviews for women’s basketball legend Dawn Staley, who carried the flag for the U.S. delegation during the Opening Ceremonies of the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.  Dawn was selected by her fellow teammates and became the first basketball player to hold the honor of carrying the flag for the U.S.A.  I truly appreciate the chance I had to work with Dawn and she will always rank as one of my favorite athletes and people of all time.