He Came As a Shadow

I came as a shadow,

I stand now a light;

The depth of my darkness

Transfigures your night. 

-"Nocturne Varial"

Lewis Grandison Alexander

I first became a fan of the Georgetown Hoyas and Coach John Thompson when the original Big East Conference was formed in the late 1970's.  My allegiance to Coach Thompson's program was forged when they inexplicably squandered a double-digit lead against Lute Olsen in the second half of the 1980 East Regional Final and lost a chance to play in the Final Four.  He and his kids were crushed.  Crushed but not devastated.  Defeated but not broken.  

Patrick Ewing's arrival on the Georgetown campus produced not only a golden era of Hoya basketball but, also, a golden era of Big East basketball.  During his four years at Georgetown, Patrick Ewing played for the national title three times, winning one.  In 1985, when Easy Ed Pinckney and the Villanova Wildcats upset Georgetown to win the title, the Wildcats and the Hoyas were joined in the Final Four by the St. John's Redmen.  

John Thompson died in 2020.  Shortly before he died, he finished his autobiography, written with Jesse Washington, which was released in mid-December.  I cannot recommend it strongly enough.  John Thompson was an extraordinary basketball coach.  He was, however, much more than that.  He was an educator, a mentor, a role model, and a hero.  

He was a remarkable man...

...and the world is a better place for the time he spent in it.  

-AK