Jack Twyman died. Greatest NBA teammate ever.

[Kibitzer]

For those of you not familiar with Jack Twyman, take a moment to read his obituary. You may never again read such a stirring story of one man's love for another.

Jack was a terrific player, a 30 ppg scorer with the old Cincinnati Royals back in the '50's.

He had a young teammate named Maurice Stokes who was a Karl Malone type talent.

Stokes got injured in a game in 1958. Within a couple days, catastrophe struck. He went into a coma and was paralyzed. He had no close family, no comprensive medical coverage and $9,000 in the bank.

All he had was Jack Twyman, who petitioned to become Stokes's guardian and dedicated himself to making sure that Stokes got the care and companionship he needed for the rest of his life (until he died at age 36).

Can you imagine their conversations? All Stokes could do was blink, so Twyman would sit and call out letters; when he got the "right" one, Stokes would blink. On to another letter, then a word, then a little sentence.

For days, weeks, months, years. Jack was steadfast. Dedicated. Utterly faithful.

Nobody ever had a teammate in the NBA like Maurice Stokes had in Jack Twyman.

Maybe they are teammates once again.

Jack Twyman. R.I.P.

 

[Sargassoc]

Great story. I went onto the Sporting News to read the rest of it. Thanks for reminding us that there's more to life than sports.

 

[VAUConnFan]

I vividly recall images of Jack Twyman pushing Maurice Stokes in his wheelchair; A great story.
A similar story in the NFL involves former Cowboys teammates Ron Springs and Everson Walls; Walls donated one of his kidneys to Springs.

 

[rbny1]

Kibitzer, your description of Stokes as a Karl Malone-type talent is right-on. Stokes played his college ball at St. Francis of Loretta, PA, and was an immediate star in the NBA, winning rookie of the year in 1955-56. I'm confident he would have been an NBA hall-of-famer if his career had not been cut short.

As a teenager, I saw Stokes play during his rookie year in a preseason game against the Celtics at the Hartford Armory. He was muscular and quick, and was a ferocious rebounder who could also pass and score. I remember being very impressed with his play that night and being saddened a few years later when his career suddenly ended. Twyman was a truly amazing person to step forward and care for Stokes.

 

[Icebear]

Given we know Kiah had relatives in the east before coming to UConn I wonder if she might be a distant relative of Mo Stokes.

 

[MilfordHusky]

I recall Twyman playing with Oscar and also recall Stokes and his injury. I'm not sure I had been aware of the connection between Twyman and Stokes. Thanks for posting it.

 

[Aluminny69]

 

[Aluminny69]

 

[Aluminny69]

Formerly the Rochester Royals.

 

[Kibitzer]

Let me add a couple comments about this extraordinary story.

First, I tend to identify more readily than most with both players because they are approximate contemporaries of mine and we all grew up in Pittsburgh.

Second, both Twyman and Stokes were really good players. One season, Wilt Chamberlain led the NBA in scoring (32.2 ppg avg) and Twyman was runner-up (32.1). Stokes scored 30 points in his first NBA game and has been variously compared to Karl Malone (but with more finesse) or Magic Johnson (a little less flair).

Third, a little Divine Intervention, perhaps. Stokes got hurt in the final game of the season, in Minnesota. It was on the plane ride home that he had a seizure. Upon arrival in Cincinnati, he was taken to the hospital and the other players (except Twyman, the only player who lived in Cincinnati year round) dispersed to their homes. So Twyman was the only teammate left in town. And, as history has shown, the best teammate to have on hand.

Finally, this was a different era in the NBA. Discrimination was rampant and life was terribly difficult for black players, especially when playing road games. It was then ('50's) an unwritten rule, for example, that no team would start more than two black players (Red Auerbach changed that one a few years later), and there were no black coaches, let alone TV/radio/media people.

Twyman was white and Stokes was black, making their special relationship all the more remarkable in that time in American history. And Jack Twyman, who dedicated twelve years to Stokes (and would have given even more had Stokes not died at age 36), shrugged it off by saying, "That's what friends are for."

As I said (not an original assessment) in the OP, nobody ever had an NBA teammate like Stokes had in Twyman.

 

[grizz36]

<snip>

Second, both Twyman and Stokes were really good players. One season, Wilt Chamberlain led the NBA in scoring (32.2 ppg avg) and Twyman was runner-up (32.1). Stokes scored 30 points in his first NBA game and has been variously compared to Karl Malone (but with more finesse) or Magic Johnson (a little less flair).

<snip>
.

Just an additional comment on your great posts and your comparisons of Stokes to Karl Malone, Kib. After seeing him almost single-handedly demolish the Celtics on two occasions, I always thought of Maurice Stokes in terms of an even greater all around player, Elgin Baylor. He looked destined to become one of the all time greats. Just a bit of prejudice on my part that had to be stated. Hope you don't mind.

 

[MilfordHusky]

In that pic, Stokes looks like Elgin Baylor, Len Bias, and Superman rolled into one.

 

[wallman]

Amazing story and what an incredible man.

 

[Aluminny69]

From Wiki:

On March 12, 1958 in the last game of the 1957–58 NBA season, in Minneapolis, Stokes drove to the basket, drew contact and fell to the floor, hit his head, and was knocked unconscious. He was revived with smelling salts and returned to the game. Three days later, after a 12-point, 15-rebound performance in an opening-round playoff game at Detroit against the Pistons, Stokes became ill on the team's flight back to Cincinnati; "I feel like I'm going to die," he told a teammate. Stokes reported feeling ill during the flight back to Cincinnati; he later suffered a seizure, fell into a coma and was left permanently paralyzed. In the end, he was diagnosed with "post-traumatic encephalopathy, a brain injury that damaged his motor control center."[2]

The tragedy greatly shook the team: Stokes, a tremendous talent who could play center, forward and guard, was second in the NBA in rebounds and third in assists in 1957-58, a feat only Wilt Chamberlain has matched for a full season. Without their best player, the Royals nearly folded; they only recovered with the selection of Oscar Robertson two years later.

During the years that followed, Stokes was supported by his lifelong friend and teammate Jack Twyman, who became his legal guardian in order to help with medical bills.

Twyman helped Stokes after his stroke by organizing an exhibition doubleheader in 1958 that raised $10,000 to help pay Stokes' expenses. That game became an annual tradition, spearheaded by Milton Kutsher[2] and held at the Kutsher's Hotel in Monticello, New York or at their camp, the Kutsher's Sports Academy. It was simply called The Maurice Stokes Game and included many of the NBA players.[3] The annual event was later changed from a basketball game to the Maurice Stokes/Wilt Chamberlain Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament,[4][5] per NBA and insurance company restrictions regarding the athletes.[6] Stokes's life and injury and relationship with former Royals teammate Twyman all are depicted in the 1973 National General Pictures film Maurie.

The Stokes Athletics Center on the campus of the Saint Francis University is named in honor of him.

 

[Kibitzer]

The article in Wiki brings up a fact that I had not been aware of, that Stokes miraculously did play in a game after his life-altering injury. Further research revealed (to me) that Stokes indeed (NY Times obit) "had a paralyzing brain injury in the final regular-season game of the 1958 season. . . . On March 12, 1958, the Royals were playing their season finale, against the Minneapolis Lakers. Stokes. . . was knocked out. He continued to play. Three days later, Stokes. . . went into a coma." Not mentioned in the NY Times was the playoff game in Detroit that took place during that three day period. And although Stokes had family in Pennsylvania, he had to remain in Cincinnati to be eligible for worker's compensation, and that is where Twyman stepped in, became Stokes's guardian and. . . . the rest is history.

 

[Waquoit]

The Stokes story is why I never liked the NBA culture of "hard fouls". It could easily happen again.