Kayte Christensen: Conflicting Reports Surround Brandon Roy Shooting
Multiple reports broke Wednesday that former 6-year NBA veteran Brandon Roy was shot outside his grandmother's home in Southern California while shielding children from gunfire.
The 3-time All-Star is the boys basketball coach at Nathan Hale High School in Seattle, Washington where he was named the 2017 Naismith Coach of the Year after leading them to a perfect 29-0 record in his first season after the team finished the 2016 season at 3-18.
Thursday morning a story broke that the victim of the shooting was not former NBA player Brandon Roy based on statements made by a member of his high school basketball team.
This story just gets weirder by the hour. I spoke with USA Today's Sam Amick Thursday morning seeking clarification on the conflicting reports. It was Amick who confirmed the initial report originally reported by Seattle's KING television station.
As the news around this continues to develop, Sam Amick will be joining Sports 1140 KHTK's The Drive Friday May 5th at 8:05 with an update on this bizarre story.
Aside from the details of this unfortunate story hearing Brandon Roy's name mentioned in the media for the first time since 2012 struck a cord with me.
Roy was one of those players in his time with the Portland Trailblazers that had the making of a superstar but was robbed of his prime by a gruesome knee injury that resulted in 6 different operations and his eventual early retirement from basketball in 2011. He spent a year out of the game before trying to come back in 2012-13 but ended up playing in just 5 games for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The former NBA Rookie of the Year's career stats weren't obnoxiously good; he ended averaging just under 19-points a game shooting 50% from the field and 35% from beyond the arch.
Roy had smooth handles, a sick ankle-breaking cross over, and the ability to put pressure on the defense off the bounce, in the paint, from mid-range and deep. He was a complete package.
Injuries robbed him of what I believe would've been a superstar caliber Hall of Fame career. The story of this incident in Southern California, regardless of what the facts turn out to be, just served as a reminder that Brandon Roy was just scratching the surface. Not only did the knee injuries rob him of his career, they robbed us of the joy of witnessing it.
