J-Speaks: Texans Win One Their Founder

On Monday night, the National Football League (NFL) American Football Conference South Division leading Houston Texans won their eighth consecutive game over the rival Tennessee Titans. This after losing their first three contest to open the 2018 season. The win had a lot more meaning because the most important person in franchise history, who also gave back in a major way to the community was no longer with them. 

On Friday Texans owner Robert C. McNair passed away at the age of 81. He is survived by his wife Janice, and their four children Cal, Cary, Ruth, and Melissa.  

Mr. McNair was diagnosed with skin cancer in 1994 and battled it quietly for 20 years. He had been receiving treatment for various forms of cancer over since then but had withdrawn from the team’s operations in the last months of his life and his son Cal, the Texans’ chairman and chief operation officer had been handling the day-to-day operations and is expected to inherit the team. 

In their 34-17 win versus the Titans (5-6) on ESPN’s Monday Night Football, the Texans (8-3) in honor of their founder wore a “RCM” decal on the back of their helmets. 

On this night, the Texans, who trailed 10-0 in the first quarter set a single-game franchise record with 282 rushing yards, with 162 of them coming from halfback Lamar Miller, which included a 97-yard run in the second quarter. It not only represented the longest scoring run in franchise history, it was the longest run in the league since a 97-yard run Miller had with the Miami Dolphins in Week 8 of the 2014 season. Miller is the only player in league history with two rushing scores of 95-plus yards in his career, according to per NFL Research data. 

That 97-yard score came on the heels of a 4^th and 1 defensive stand by All-Pro defensive lineman J.J. Watt and the Texans defense.

“That’s all he wanted was the win. That’s all he wanted for Houston was a winner,” Watt said to ESPN’s Lisa Salters about the meaning of the Texans win on Monday night. “That’s all he wanted for us every week was a winner and tonight that was for him. So, were glad we can get one in his stadium, in his building and I believe he was watching. So, that one was for you, Mr. McNair.”

Texans quarterback DeShaun Watson also had a solid performance going 19 for 24 passing for 210 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. He also had 70 yards on the ground.

“The McNair family is special to us,” the second-year QB said. “This night—and every game, really—is for the McNair family. I know he’s watching over us, and we’re going to make sure that we make him proud.”  

Before the Texans tilt versus the Titans, the team honored Mr. McNair with a video tribute and performance of “Amazing Grace.” 

After the win, head coach Bill O’Brien gave Cal the game ball in honor of his dad saying of the moment in the team’s locker room, “We had a great man who owned this team, who founded this team. Bob McNair passed away, and that game right there is Houston Texans football right there. And that was for Bob McNair.” 

The respect that Mr. McNair not only came from the entire Texans organization from the players, coaches, and employees but the entire NFL. 

In the days leading up to the game on Monday night, Texans players and coaches shared stories to the ESPN Monday Night Football crew of commentators Joe Tessitore, Jason Witten, and Salters about the love Mr. McNair had for the Texans franchise, the players, coaches, employees and above all the city of Houston. 

That connection began in 1960 when the man who was born on Jan. 1, 1937 in Tampa, FL, grew up in Forest City, NC moved to Houston, TX the same year the then Houston Oilers, now the Titans began playing. 

Mr. McNair used the $700 in his pocket to become a season ticket holder. After he made enough money through the success in the energy business via his company Cogen Technologies, which he sold to Enron and CalPERS in 1999 to feed his two main loves of football and philanthropy. 

That dream of being involved in football began in 1998 when Mr. McNair former Houston NFL Holdings to bring NFL football back to the city of Houston after the Oilers left to become the Titans in 1996. 

Mr. McNair and his group were successful as on Oct. 6, 1999 the NFL announced that the city of Houston was going to be rewarded with the 32^nd NFL franchise. The Texans began their inaugural season three years later, with a new stadium that was first named Reliant Stadium and is now NRG Stadium. 

NRG Stadium besides being home to the Texans has hosted Super Bowl XXXVIII, won by the New England Patriots 32-29 against the Carolina Panthers on Feb. 1, 2004 and Super Bowl LI, a 34-28 by those same Patriots against the Atlanta Falcons on Feb. 5, 2017. 

In their nearly two decades as a franchise, the Texans under McNair won four AFC South titles and made four playoff appearances. 

To put into context how important the Texans were to Mr. McNair, Watt said to Salters that he came to practice every single day that he could and made his players as mentioned earlier feel like they were a part of a family, something his son Cal said to the players on Monday night after their victory versus the Titans. 

“He loved you guys,” he said. “He’s loved being around you, coming to practice, coming to games, being around you as much as he did. And he is watching from above. So, thank you guys.”

Coach O’Brien said that since McNair passing, the team has talked about him a lot in their locker room and his impact on the city that they represent. 

That impact was not made via his business ventures and bringing back football to the city he and his family have called home for many years but through his philanthropy. 

The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation has donated more than $500 million to various charities and causes like Texans Volunteer Care Day; the United Way of Greater Houston ($743,000) on 12/22/2013; Lymphoma Research Foundation ($100,000.00) on 10/09/2014 and $100,000,000.00 to the Baylor College Medicine in Houston, which help to create the Texas Medical Center. 

To put into context the kind of philanthropist Mr. McNair was in giving back to Houston, Watt said to Salters over the weekend that every single charity event the Texans’ founder attended at the conclusion of it, whatever dollar amount that was raised he would match it. 

As Watt put it to Salters about Mr. McNair, “He gave a lot of money to a lot of people.” 

Over the weekend, the Houston Texans said goodbye to the founder and leader of their franchise that brought football back to the city they play for. He was an owner who was hands on in a good way where he made everyone that was involved matter and that they were an important part of what took place on the field, in the stands, at the concession and stands and merchandise stores. He made sure that every player and coach that played for him felt important and the players, and coaches on the field of the stadium against the team that left the city 22 years ago honored him in the right way by winning the game in spectacular fashion.

Above all Robert C. McNair and his family gave back in a big way to the people of Houston to make their lives better and built a relationship that will continue with his wife and children. 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 11/26/18 8 p.m. edition of ESPN’s “GMC Monday Night Kickoff” with Joe Tessitore, Jason Witten, and Lisa Salters; 11/27/18 www.espn.com stories, “DE J.J. Watt Dedicated Win to Late Texans Owner Bob McNair,” and “Big Games by Lamar Miller, Deshaun Watson Boost Texans’ Playoff Hopes,” by Sarah Barshop; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston_Texans; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/NRG_Stadium; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_XXXVIII; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_LI; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_McNair.  

J-Speaks: Sixers' Fultz Again On Shelf Because of Shoulder

Once again, the Philadelphia 76ers are having once again to deal with questions about the health of their No. 1 overall pick as he is on the shelf again because of another supposed upper body injury. 

One day after their 119-114 win versus the Phoenix Suns (4-15) on NBATV last Monday night, 76ers’ guard (14-8) Markelle Fultz will be out all of the team’s practices and games until his shoulder is evaluated by a non-team specialist, according to a report from “The Athletic’s” David Aldridge and Ian Begley of ESPN. 

The recommendation to see this specialist did not come from the team. It was from the direction of Fultz’s agent/attorney Raymond Brothers, which came as a shock to head coach Brett Brown, who played only seven minutes against the Suns last week and did not score, all though he did play 19 minutes and had six points and six boards off the bench in the team’s 122-119 overtime win two Saturdays ago at the Charlotte Hornets (9-10). 

Brown said to reporters the next day though that he played TJ McConnell ahead of Fultz against the Suns because he felt his team needed an instant spark after trailing 36-26 at the end of the opening period. 

“Red Flag type news,” he said. “I mean, played him 20-something minutes four days ago and I thought he played okay. In fact, I thought he did well.” 

“I think he’s having a good year. You know it’s one of those things last night the gym was flat. We needed some energy. I went with TJ [McConnell].” 

“If it’s that real, and he needs to go see a further sort of consultation, then we support him.” 

The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Keith Pompey reported that Fultz was at practice the next day taking part in some light shooting with the Sixers even after Brothers’ said the 20-year-old was not going to take part in anymore team practices. 

So much so that Sixers general manager Elton Brand said that Fultz’s agent told him that the Monday after Thanksgiving was the earliest his client could see a specialist. 

“Raymond’s job is different from my job,” Brand said to the media last Tuesday. “Raymond’s job is to do the best that he thinks for his client. My job is to continue our positive trend to try to get deeper in the playoffs. So, at the end of the day we always support Markelle.”

It is no secret that Fultz has had injury issues with his shoulder in his first season plus in the NBA, which has resulted in him having issues with his ability to shoot. It is a big reason Fultz played just 14 games in his rookie season last year, where he shot below 50 percent from the charity stripe. 

He did say during training camp that his shoulder was better and after a summer of work with skills trainer Drew Hanlen was primed for a fresh sophomore season. 

Fultz began this season with 14 points and four assists in 23 minutes in the Sixers’ preseason opener versus Melbourne United. 

“Physically I feel great, and mentally I feel great,” Fultz said to NBATV after the win. “I put in a lot of hours this summer to get up reps or going through a whole bunch of different situations. So, coming in, I feel perfectly fine. I’m confident. I feel great coming in, and I’m just looking to building each and every day.” 

Even with that confidence, Fultz has continued to struggle offensively scoring an average of just 8.2 points, 3.7 boards, and 3.1 assists on 41.9 percent shooting in 19 games played, with 15 of them starts. 

Since the acquisition of four-time All-Star Jimmy Butler from the Minnesota Timberwolves on Nov. 12, veteran sharp shooter JJ Redick has moved back into the starting lineup and Fultz has seen his playing time evaporate to a previously mentioned season-low of seven minutes versus the Suns a week ago. 

After the game though, Fultz took a positive approach to the reduction in minutes played saying of that his relationship with McConnell “is more than teammates.” 

“We both want to see each other do well, and we want to see the team win, so anytime one of us step on the court, we are probably rooting for each other more than most people. That’s how it is.” 

“You definitely want to go out there and compete…I’m a competitor. But, at the end of the day, coach made a decision to do that, so I have to live with it. My mindset is just, when I step on the court, go out there and play. But while TJ is out there, I’m rooting for him.” 

“It’s not like I’m sitting on the bench pouting or anything. I want to be out there, but I’m going to root for my teammates.” 

If the Sixers are going to solve this by trading Fultz, which his agent Brothers said to ESPN’s NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski last week about a story that came out in “The Athletic” about his client would “prefer a fresh start with a new team” no chance. 

That is especially the case after seeing his continuous shooting issues especially his funky form at the foul line in recent games. 

However, if they were going to pull the trigger and move a guy they have invested in, the only place comparable is the Atlanta Hawks. 

They are a team that is nowhere near being a playoff contender. They are all about player development led by a head coach in Lloyd Pierce who was on their coaching staff for the past five seasons before being hired by the Hawks in the off-season who got the job because of his ability to develop players. 

He would know Fultz’s defensive potential is and what his offensive potential could be. Fultz would not be under the media microscope and he would have a chance to develop alongside a dynamic guard in rookie Trae Young. 

The Sixers also have something the Sixers really need, a perimeter shooter who can also defend in Kent Bazemore. 

“I am not convinced that he will not be able to be an effective NBA player,” ESPN’s Dave McMenamin said on Monday’s edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN about the future of Fultz. “Will he be able to deliver as a No. 1 pick though?” 

“And the burden of expectation I think maybe not just the media in Atlanta but the fanbase.” 

The Sixers fanbase has followed this saga like diehard soap opera fans follow a juicy plot line. 

No matter what happens with Fultz, he has to some how gets over this hurdle. If he has to seek another opinion to make sure he is okay from a physical stand point, he should take that step. 

More than anything though, he needs to get himself right from a mental stand point as well. 

The Sixers in that case have been nothing put accommodating to Fultz. Everyone from management to the coaching staff to his teammates has had his back through all of this from the start.  

Markelle Fultz was selected No. 1 overall for a reason. The Philadelphia 76ers thought he was the type of player that could really play great alongside the team’s two stars in 2018 Kia Rookie of the Year Ben Simmons and All-Star center Joel Embiid. 

That said, the Sixers timeline to be great got accelerated by their 16-game winning streak to close the season, where they finished 52-30 and were the No. 3 Seed in the East. They defeated the No. 6 Seeded Miami Heat in five games in the opening round of the postseason to win their first playoff series since 2012.  

What the Sixers decide to do with Fultz and how he can regain his confidence on the hardwood will ultimately decide what his future holds. 

As far his latest so-called leave of absence to fix whatever physically is ailing him, he should take as much time as he can to get right but he also has to get himself right mentally because he can practice all the shots he wants to on his own in the gym. If he has no confidence in himself mentally it is all for nothing what he does behind close doors. 

J.E. Skeets of NBATV’s “The Starters” asked to his colleague Leigh Ellis how long Fultz should be shelved to correct his supposed physical and likely mental issues? 

Ellis answered, “As long as it takes. Why bring him if he’s going to keep on shooting bobbling the ball at the free throw line?” 

“I think stay away from the game or practice privately. Do whatever you need to do away from the game.” 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 11/26/18 3 p.m. edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN with Rachel Nichols, Kevin Arnovitz, and Davie McMenamin; 11/20/18 3 p.m. edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN with Jorge Sedano, Amin Elhassan, Paul Pierce, Rachel Nichols, and Richard Jefferson; 11/20/18 6 p.m. edition of NBATV’s “The Starters” with Tas Melas, J.E. Skeets, Leigh Ellis, and Trey Kerby; 11/20/18 6:30 p.m. edition of NBATV’s “10 Before Tip,” presented by Ford with Jared Greenberg; 11/21/18 www.nba.com story “Reports: Markelle Fultz To Visit Shoulder Specialist ‘at Direction of his Attorney;” 11/22/18 www.nba.com story, “Fultz’s Agent Says No Trade Request Made to Sixers;” www.espn.com/nba/standings; and www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameid=401070923.

J-Speaks: Continuous Issues For Wizards

After another horrible start in their game on Tuesday night versus the Los Angeles Clippers, the Washington Wizards managed to come from behind to win and snap their two-game losing streak. Even with that victory, things are not all that well in for the boys from our nation’s capital. 

You would think after the Wizards (6-11) overcame a 24-point deficit to beat the surprising Clippers (11-6) 125-118 that at least for one night this team which has the talent to be better than five games under the .500 would see this as win they can build off of but that was not the case. 

After Wizards forward Otto Porter, Jr. who had 11 points and 14 rebounds on the evening rapped up his media session that consisted of trade rumors and infighting amongst the squad, he received a lifeline from a reporter when asked what lessons can be taken from the 2-8 start two seasons back to win 49 games and be within one game of reaching the Eastern Conference Finals. 

Porter’s answer, “I mean, you’re talking about a whole other different team. This is a totally different team from two years ago.” 

He hit it right square in the middle. The Wizards are a completely different team from two years ago, even though the starting backcourt is the same in All-Stars John Wall and Bradley Beal. 

While Wall, who had a game-high 30 points with eight assists, two steals and two block shots, and Beal had 27 points with seven assists, going 11 for 14 from the charity stripe, they played listless throughout most of the game, especially to start as the Wizards were down after the first quarter 40-21. 

Over the past five seasons, which includes this one, head coach Scott Brooks’ team seems to find itself in the same position where they are a very talented team to challenge for supremacy in the Eastern Conference, even during the great run of the four-time defending Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers with four-time Kia MVP LeBron James, but for some reason they just found a way to beat themselves. 

At one point, the organization thought that the issue was at head coach. So, in the summer of 2016 after missing the playoffs after two straight appearances the front office fired head coach Randy Wittman and hired Scott Brooks. 

Another point, the front office of owner Ted Leonsis and general manager Ernie Grunfeld thought that the surrounding pieces around Wall and Beal needed to be changed so they traded center Marcin Gortat, who returned to D.C. on Tuesday night after being traded to the Clippers in the off-season acquiring guard Austin Rivers. They signed eight-time All-Star and three-time Kia Defensive Player of the Year in Dwight Howard to replace Gortat, who was his under study at the start of his career with the Orlando Magic nearly a decade ago. 

With where the Wizards find themselves in this early part of the 2018-19 NBA campaign, their issues are deeper than the X’s and O’s or the roster. Something is just not clicking, which is why again in this now six-year run with Wall, Beal, and Porter as the three pillars of the franchise as well as the Top 3 salaries on the team are in that serious look in the mirror position how can we put it all together and play to the consistent level they are capable of. 

Prior to their victory versus the Clippers, the Wizards had two disheartening losses versus the Trail Blazers (12-5) 119-109 on Sunday night where at one point they were behind 32-12 in the first quarter and last Friday night lost at home 115-104 versus the Brooklyn Nets (8-10). 

Those losses were a major reason behind a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that Wizards are open to trading anyone on the current roster, including Wall, Beal or Porter, Jr. 

This is on the heels of Wall using an expletive towards Coach Brooks after he tried to intervene in argument between Wall and Green at a recent practice according to another that report from Wojnarowski. 

All parties in the lead to their win on Tuesday tried to cool the situation with Beal saying to reporters like Candace Buckner of The Washington Post, “What happened at practice happened at practice. Practice is closed. Practice is not a public thing.” 

He added, “It got heated. You guys know that. It happens in this organization, every organization around the league. High school, college, it happens. Guys argue. It happens.” 

Wall, who was fined an undisclosed amount for his poor chose of words to Coach Brooks said of the situation on Wizards 360 presented by MedStar Health, “I’ve been here for nine years, they’ve been digging for stuff all these years.” 

“That’s what they’re going to do. I mean when you’re not winning that’s what they’re going to do. When you’re winning, all they do is hoop right on the bandwagon. So, all you got to do is figure it out, I mean its that simple. If you’re not figuring it out and you’re losing, and you’re a team that’s supposed to be good or doing better it’s not going to look right. So, they got to find somebody to blame.” 

Along with the fact that the Wizards have not brought a lack of motivation to the hardwood to start this season, they just have not gotten to the point that they are willing to care about it to the point they do not challenge each other to bring it. 

It took a complete let down in the second half by the Clippers, who were on the back end of a back-to-back for them to have a chance, which they did take advantage of. Also, the crowd that was in attendance at Capital One Arena did very little cheering until the fourth period. 

Not even a change in the starting five versus the Clippers with Thomas Bryant replacing Markieff Morris did not give them any juice to start the game. 

Morris, who had 12 points off the pine on Tuesday night said after the game that the Wizards win does not change the turmoil they are going through right now. 

Morris also said that the comments coming from their locker room is in his words “messed up” 

He added about getting out of whole they are in, “We just need to figure it out.”

Fan engagement has been just okay, even in the best of times for the Wizards in recent years, who have gotten just as frustrated with their home team’s play as some media analysts have. 

Tony Kornheiser on Tuesday’s edition of “Pardon the Interruption” said of the Wizards, “There’s no team there.”

Former Wizard Paul Pierce, who was on the 2014-15 playoff team that lost to the Atlanta Hawks in six games in the East Semifinals said on Tuesday’s edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN of his former team that Wall and Beal “have been together too long.” 

“You have two franchise pieces who just seems like they have their on-and-off the court issues, and it’s not working out in Washington. So, I think it’s time to break it up.”

J.E. Skeets of NBATV’s “The Starters” said the Wizards needed to overhaul their roster “yesterday.” 

He added, “I’m so tired of this team. I really, really am. They need to do something… Something has to happen because there’s just no fight in this team.” 

This maybe the moment that Leonsis might have to make a decisive move in the weeks and months ahead to bring some life to the Wizards. Leonsis who was not at the Wizards victory at home on Tuesday night has always taken a conservative approach when it comes to making huge changes. 

The only top executive that Leonsis has ever employed on the basketball side is GM Grunfeld and in his 20 years as owner of Capitals of the NHL, he has only changed executives only once. 

Leonsis resisted calls from other NHL teams when they had interests in acquiring the Caps star players in Alex Ovechkin or Nicklas Backstrom. That patience was rewarded when the Caps won the Stanley Cup last spring. 

To expect that kind of success would be hard to fathom no matter how much faith you might have. 

NBA teams know the pickle the Wizards are in and they are looking to see when they are going to offer up Beal in trade talks. 

Trading Wall is really not in the cards, with not just his injury history but that his contract extension that he signed last off-season that begins next season will pay him $170 million through 2023. 

To illustrate Wall's contract by the actual numbers starting next season, he will make $19.2 million this season; $37.8 million in 2019-20; $40.8 million in 2020-21; $43.8 million in 2021-22 and in 2022-23, a player option year $46.9 million.  

“Like I said I love being here. I want to finish my career here,” Wall said. “That’s all I can control and playing basketball, can’t control nothing else.”

Porter, Jr., who signed a four-year, $106.5 million deal he signed last summer brings the shooting and ability to defend on the perimeter are two things teams would love to have but the Wizards attempts to deal him and reserve forward Kelly Oubre, Jr. for a third star to team up with Beal and Wall in past seasons had no real traction. 

Beal is the more attractive player because of his age at 25, his ability to make shots from the perimeter, especially from three-point range and that he has two years remaining on a five-year, $128 million contract he signed in the summer of 2016 after this season.

Whatever the Washington Wizards decide to do, whether it is staying with their current roster or making a move after Dec. 15 when players you signed during the off-season can be dealt or at the Feb. 2019 trade deadline, something has to give. 

They have made two changes at head coach. Tried to bring in other role players to play alongside Wall and Beal. They have tried to resolve their issues behind closed doors. Nothing has worked and all that has come out of this is a frustrated, angry, hapless, snarky group that needs a change and soon. 

As Fred Katz put it in a story about the dysfunctional Wizards for “The Athletic,” on Tuesday “It’s impossible to know if you’ve hit rock bottom until you’ve climbed out of rock bottom.” 

“If the Wizards were at rock bottom this might be what it would look like. They are frustrated with their record, with their play, with their effort. They were supposed to contend for a Top 6 spot in the Eastern Conference but the organization is paying big money for a roster that’s sinking.” 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 7/1/16 www.sbnation.com story, “Bradley Beal Will To Re-Sign with Wizards for 5 Years, $128 Million,” by Yaron Weitzman; 11/19/18 and 11/20/18 6 p.m. edition of NBATV’s “The Starters” with Tas Melas, J.E. Skeets, Leigh Ellis, and Trey Kerby; 11/20/18 3 p.m. edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN with Rachel Nichols, Jorge Sedano, Amin Elhassan, Paul Pierce, and Richard Jefferson;  11/20/18 5:30 p.m. edition of “Pardon the Interruption” on ESPN with Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon; 11/20/18 6:30 p.m. edition of NBATV’s “10 Before Tip,” presented by Ford with Jared Greenberg; 11/21/18 www.espn.com story, “Wizards’ Problems Run Too Deep For One Comeback Win to Cover Up,” by Tim Bontemps; www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameid=401070930; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Washington_Wizards_seasons; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Porter.

J-Speaks: LBJ's Return To "The Land" No. 2

If there is one date that four-time Kia MVP LeBron James will always remember in his soon to be Hall of Fame NBA career is Dec. 2, 2010. That was the night he played at the Cleveland Cavaliers as a member of the Miami Heat for the first time. It was an experience unlike any other where he got booed, cursed at, screamed on by the sell out crowd of Quicken Loans Arena that once cheered his name. He did make up for it four years later when he returned home, led the Cavs to four straight appearances in The NBA Finals, and won the city it first title in a little over five decades. The question is what will be in store for LBJ as he and the Lakers come to town on Thanksgiving Eve on ESPN? 

Like that first appearance as the visitor nearly eight years ago as a member of the Miami Heat, James and his new team are in the exact same position as his former team is. 

The Los Angeles Lakers enter action just a little over the .500 mark at 9-7 and the Cavaliers are struggling mightily after losing the 14-time All-Star in free agency for the second time around, as they possess a 2-13 mark. 

This will mark the 14^th time that James will be facing the Cavaliers, with the first 13 coming with the Heat, and six as a member of the team that he said in a national televised ESPN announcement where he told Jim Gray and the entire nation that he was “taking his talents to” in July 2010. 

James’ first visit as the opponent was a spectacle that one had to see in order to believe. There were coordinated chants by the fans. Dozens of signs were on display throughout the crowd. Objects were thrown to the court. 

“Once I hit the court in warmups, you could hear the boos. It was probably the loudest I’ve ever heard boos in my life. I felt the animosity. I felt the scrutiny. But once the ball was tipped, I’m in my safe haven. There’s nothing that can stop me from trying to be the best I can be.”

This was on the heels of when he made “The Decision” over the summer where fans were burning his jersey and fans were on television crying and calling him a traitor. 

“It was something that nobody had ever seen before,” James said of that moment. “Everybody knew the emotions behind it. Cable television made sure that they captured every moment. It was an eerie feeling, just going back. It was an uncomfortable feeling going back because of the situation. And I knew how up in bunches everybody was.”

When it was all said and done though, James would have the final word as he scored 24 of his 38 points on the evening to break the spirit of the audience and lead the Heat to a 118-90 win. When he was substituted out of the game for good at the end of the third quarter, the Heat were up by 30 points. 

“The only thing I was talking about was, ‘How can I play well?’ I wanted to play well. I wanted to play well more than anything,” James, who was 15 for 25 shooting on the night with eight assists and five boards said. “I knew I had the group of guys that were going to ride for me that night, no matter what. That was just the makeup of our club. I wasn’t worried about that. But it was an eerie night.” 

This game wound up being a serious turning point for both teams as the Heat entered the contest 11-8 and proceeded to win 19 of their next 20 games and proceeded to make it all the way to The Finals, where they lost to the Dallas Mavericks in six games. 

The Cavs on the other hand really nosedived after that loss going from a 7-10 mark at that point to losing 35 of their next 36 games and really never recovered until James returned in the summer of 2014. 

This next first visit back to “The Land” as a member of the Lakers should be different for James after coming back to the Cavs in free agency in as mentioned the summer of 2014, leading the Cavs to The Finals four straight seasons and leading them back from a 3-1 deficit in the 2016 to take down the mighty Golden State Warriors in seven games to capture the city’s first pro sports title since the Cleveland Browns led by Hall of Famer Jim Brown won the NFL title in 1964.  

Unlike the first time when James received a nasty reception, he will be feted with a video tribute and likely hear loud cheers from fans who were witnesses to perhaps the greatest run in Cavaliers’ franchise history and in that town’s pro sports history. 

If it is anything close to what has been scene in the ESPN advertisements with the song “The Way We Were,” it will a welcome sight for fans who have not much to cheer about their Cavaliers so far this season.  

James, who had 51 points in the Lakers 113-97 win at the Heat (6-11) on Sunday night is not really thinking too much about his latest return to northeast Ohio as he is about the play of his newest team the Lakers, who have won six of their last eight games after a 3-5 start.  

“I don’t know,” James, who registered his 13^th 50-point game of his career said to reporters on Sunday about his expectations of his return to Cleveland. “I don’t try to put too much into it. I will go out there and see if we can keep this thing going. I think we are playing some really good ball right now.” 

That good ball James is referring about is the Lakers run of four wins in their last five contests and during this stretch, he has averaged 33.6 points on 56.1 percent from the field. 

In the first four seasons the James spent with fellow future Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade and perennial All-Star Chris Bosh, the Cavs went 97-215 and it has not been any better the second time around. 

Their aforementioned 2-13 start included an 0-6 beginning, which led to the ouster of head coach Tyronn Lue and it has not gotten much better under his replacement Larry Drew. 

Of their 13 losses so far this season, the Cavs have lost eight of those games by 10 points or more, including their 113-102 setback at the Detroit Pistons (8-6) on Monday night, where they were down by as many as 30. 

To bring the Cavs struggles into clearer context, they have trailed by 20 points in a game eight times in the early stages of the 2018-19 NBA campaign mainly because they have been outscored by 58 points in the opening stanza in those 13 setbacks. 

It has also not helped that key veterans on the Cavs in All-Star Kevin Love, who signed a massive four-year, $120 million contract extension, and guard George Hill are shelved because of injury. 

Sharp shooting vet J.R. Smith, who was a big part of those Cavs teams that reached The Finals four straight seasons has been in and out of the rotation this season and in it was announced on Tuesday in a statement that “J.R. Smith will no longer be with the team as the organization works with J.R. and his representation regarding his future.”

“The organization wishes J.R. and his family well and appreciates, and thanks him for his contributions in the community, to the team and his role in the 2016 NBA Championship.” 

Smith told Jason Lloyd of “The Athletic” about his feelings for the Cavs currently, “I don’t think the goal is to win, the goal is not to try to go out there and get as many wins as you can. I think the goal is to develop and lose to get lottery picks.”

Other than Love, center Tristan Thompson, sharp shooter Kyle Korver and Channing Frye are the only players remaining from that 2016 title team. 

“It’s tough to lose a guy like that, especially when you’ve been in the trenches with him. You’ve been to war with him,” Love said to ESPN’s Rachel Nichols and Richard Jefferson in an interview on Tuesday alongside Frye. 

“These guys both know what JR has meant to this team and meant to this city. He was one of the fan favorites. He was a guy that played both sides of the ball…and we all wish him the best, we all love him and he’s going to do good but in a lot of cases in this league it’s a business as well as you know sometimes it’s better for both parties to part.”

One player that will also be center stage on Wednesday night for the Cavs is rookie lead guard Colin Sexton, the No. 8 pick in June’s draft. 

He was the First-Round pick that the Cavs were sent from the Boston Celtics for All-Star guard Kyrie Irving the summer prior. 

A move that was very shocking to James, even though Irving had requested a trade from the Cavs. What made the move even more head scratching is Irving had two more years left on his contract and if James did decide to leave last summer, which he ultimately did, the Cavs could have had their franchise player of the future already on their roster. 

In the aforementioned Cavs loss at the Pistons on Monday night, Sexton had 18 points, and in his five starts at the point guard spot has averaged 18.6 points and overall this season is averaging 13.2 points. 

“I think one thing with us we always hold him accountable,” Frye said to Nichols about how the team has taken to Sexton being a starter. “When Colin went into the starting lineup, Colin’s numbers have gotten a lot better because we’ve held him accountable to like, ‘As a starting point guard you need to play like this.’” 

“So, for us right now our record doesn’t reflect how hard these guys work. How much better I feel we’ve gotten but we still have a long way to go.” 

On Wednesday night there will be a serious buzz in Quicken Loans Arena with return of LeBron James the second time around. While it will be nowhere close to the hostile level it was eight years ago, it will be a special one. One that we all will be watching as the Los Angeles Lakers visit the Cleveland Cavaliers at 8 p.m. on ESPN. 

Frye said to Nichols and Jefferson that he expects the fans to give the future Hall of Famer an “amazing reception.”

“I think everyone makes decisions about what they want to do what’s best for their life and I think for both parties it just ended up working out,” he said, “and I think for us, I think it’s going to be great. I know Cavs fans are going to be awesome and loud, and hopefully that type of energy helps us, and we get win No. 3.” 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 11/20/18 3 p.m. edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN with Rachel Nichols, Jorge Sedano, Amin Elhassan, Paul Pierce, and Richard Jefferson; and 11/20/18 www.espn.com story, “The Night LeBron James and Cleveland Will Never Forget,” by Dave McMenamin and Brian Windhorst; and www.nba.com/games/20181121/LALCLE#/preview.  

J-Speaks: Hornets' All-Star Guard Joins 60/40-Point Club

On Saturday night, Charlotte Hornets All-Star guard Kemba Walker had a scoring night to remember individually but his team lost in overtime versus the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday night. Two days later, he had another stellar scoring performance and his team won, and in the process joined a very exclusive club. 

In the Hornets (8-8) 122-119 loss versus the Sixers (12-7) in overtime on Saturday night, Walker scored a career-high and set the Hornets single-game scoring record with 60 points, going 21 for 34 from the field, including 6 for 14 from three-point range and 12 for 12 from the free throw line. 

That 60-point night also represented an individual scoring high by a player in the NBA this season, topping the 52 Golden State Warriors All-Star guard Klay Thompson had in his team’s 149-124 win at the Chicago Bulls on Oct. 29. 

The two-time All-Star though was noticeably disappointed after his team’s third loss this season versus the Sixers, with two of them coming in overtime. 

This one was especially heart felt because the Sixers newest acquisition in four-time All-Star Jimmy Butler blocked Walker’s last shot attempt and saved the ball inbounds. Moments later Butler, who had 15 points on the evening sank the eventual game-winning triple that gave the Sixers their third win on the road in 10 tries so far this season. 

“I’m still proud, that’s an unbelievable thing to do right there,” Walker said of his record setting performance. “I’m just mad that we lost. I’m a competitor. It would have been even better with a win.” 

Walker made sure of that the outcome went in the Hornets favor on Monday night scoring 21 of his 43 points in the fourth quarter in leading the Hornets to a 117-112 win versus the Boston Celtics (9-8), which included hitting the game-clinching three-pointer with 32.3 seconds left in the fourth period. 

When asked by FOX Sports Southeast reporter Stephanie Ready how he has been getting it done, Walker, who registered his third 40-point game of the season said with a smile, “I don’t know. I’m just playing basketball.” 

“Off-course my belief in God. It’s been helping be play the way I’m playing but for the most part I’ve been working on my game. I come in here every night getting shots up, working on my game. I’m staying as ready as possible for these kinds of moments.” 

“My teammates look at me. My coaching staff, they put me in great situations to score the basketball and you know, I’ve just been making some shots.” 

With 103 points scored in his last two games, Walker joined a very exclusive club of players who followed a 60-plus point performance with a 40-plus point performance. 

The last player to do this, according to the Elias Sports Bureau was future Hall of Famer of the Los Angeles Lakers Kobe Bryant during the 2006-07 season. Recent Hall of Fame inductee and ESPN NBA studio analyst Tracy McGrady did it with the Orlando Magic back in the 2003-04 season. The great Michael Jordan, the owner of the Hornets did this as a member of the Chicago Bulls in the 1989-90 season, while the late great “Pistol” Pete Maravich did it in the 1976-77 season. The late great Wilt Chamberlin had four occasions of scoring 60-plus followed by a 40-plus point performance in his career.

In a year where he is the sixth highest paid player on his team and is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, the No. 9 overall pick in 2011 out of the University of Connecticut picked a really good time to be at the top of his game and has put the Hornets in a very serious position of deciding to trade the best player and get something for him now or take the risk of where they may go elsewhere this summer. 

That is because Walker so far this season is leading the NBA with a career-best average of 29.6 points on a career-high 46.5 percent from the field and shooting a solid 38.9 percent from three-point range. He is also averaging career-highs in free throws attempted at 6.3, where he is shooting 86.0 percent and in assists per game at 6.1 

Keeping him though may prove to be even more difficult because as FOX Sports New Orleans play-by-play commentator Joel Meyers said during the San Antonio Spurs versus New Orleans Pelicans telecast that if Walker makes either the First, Second or Third All-NBA teams this season, he is eligible under the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement for a super max extension worth $220 million. 

In the words of former Hornet’s guard and Meyers broadcast partner in David Wesley, “Somebody’s got trouble.” 

The Hornets did see this coming as last season they were entertaining the thought of trading Walker but Jordan and the organization did not as the team missed the playoffs for the fifth time in Walker’s career. 

The real question though is Walker worth that supposed super max contract? 

Future Hall of Famer and 2008 Finals MVP and champion with the Celtics Paul Pierce said on Tuesday’s edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN that the Hornets will not only be a playoff team this spring but Walker has established himself as a Top 5 point guard in the NBA right behind 2017 Kia MVP Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder; two-time Kia MVP and three-time NBA champion Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors; three-time All-Star and 2017-18 All-NBA First Team selection Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers and All-Star and NBA champion Kyrie Irving of the Celtics. 

Pierce also apologized to Walker because last week on the show he said that All-Star Victor Oladipo of the Indiana Pacers was the loneliest star in the Eastern Conference. He said “no,” it is Walker because he cannot name the starting five on the Hornets. 

With the ways things are right now in the Southeast Division, with the only real competition so far being the Orlando Magic, who have not made the playoffs since 2012; Washington Wizards and the Miami Heat really struggling so far this season and the Atlanta Hawks rebuilding their team, the Hornets have a real shot at not only making the playoffs for the first time since 2015 but winning their division for the first time since get this ever in franchise history. 

That said, they will be in the lower part of the East standings behind the Toronto Raptors, 76ers, Celtics, Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks. 

“Everything Paul said about Kemba and the Hornets is accurate. There going to win the Southeast Division because Washington a mess. Miami doesn’t have a star. Because Orlando and Atlanta are who are just who they are,” ESPN’s Amin Elhassan said on Tuesday. 

“But having said all of that, there going to be a six seed at best because if you think about Milwaukee, Philly, Boston, Toronto, Indiana all better. There going to be [the] Sixth seed at best. It’s kind of stinks but that’s life.” 

There is a report from The Charlotte Observer that the Hornets are looking to acquire All-Star guard Bradley Beal from the Wizards to give Walker that much needed running mate that he has lacked in his time with the Hornets. 

If the Hornets have any plans on making any kind of noise in the East this season, they will have to acquire another player that can be a real second scorer to go alongside Walker because for the kind of money they shelled out to Nicholas Batum and Marvin Williams a couple of off-seasons back, they have not lived to those contracts. Players like Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Cody Zeller, Malik Monk, Frank Kaminsky, or rookie Miles Bridges have only flashed how great they can be or they have not matured yet into being consistent players on the professional hardwood. 

If the Hornets are counting on Jeremy Lamb, their second leading scorer on the season at 13.7 currently to be that second banana to Walker, that just will not cut it. 

To bring this point into context, other than Walker only two other Hornets scored in double figures in their win versus the Celtics on Monday night with Lamb scoring 18 and backup big man Willy Hernangomez scoring 14 off the bench. The next closest man to scoring 10 points was Batum with nine and Williams, Zeller, Bridges and Walker’s understudy in veteran Tony Parker each scoring seven.

“I’d love to see him play with a couple of good players so the pressures off him to have to play this well,” Hall of Famer Kevin McHale said on “The Players Only” edition of NBATV’s “Gametime,” presented by Kia on Tuesday about the Hornets getting a better supporting cast around Walker. “I look at their team, their 8-8. There finding a way to win games. He’s playing at an unbelievable level and Charlotte got a big decision to make while signing him this summer. It’ll be hard to let that young man go if you’re in Charlotte.” 

What Kemba Walker has shown in the last two games is not only his improved shooting that he has worked on over the last few off-seasons and during the season, but his willingness to take big shots. His has mastered the art of the step back three-point shot, which is the result of what he said to Ready him putting in the time late into the night to perfect his shot and it has shown. 

He has also shown that he wants to make his mark where he is, with not just how he has improved his game on the court but the impact he has had in the community. 

This man after the greatest scoring night of his career and the best individual night in Hornets history was sad because his team lost on Saturday night and in his next performance two nights later, Walker did everything in his power in the fourth quarter to lead his team to victory with the game-clinching triple.  

Walker through his hard work and dedication has put himself in position to get paid big time this summer. Will it be the Hornets that pay Walker? Will owner Michael Jordan and general manager Mitch Kupchak trade him at the February 2019 trade deadline? Or, will they re-sign him to that super max contract, pending he makes any of the three All-NBA teams and get some help for him? 

Two things are for sure after what Walker has done in his last two games. He will be in the All-Star game that ironically enough will be in Charlotte this February 2019 and he put himself in the same conversation as back-to-back Finals MVP Kevin Durant of the Warriors, the previously mentioned Irving and 2014 Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, who are all unrestricted free agency this summer. 

In the eyes Co-host of ESPN’s “First Take” Stephen A. Smith, Walker is a superstar in the league and should be talked about a lot more as the headliner of the 2019 NBA Free Agent Class this summer saying on Tuesday’s edition right to all that were watching, “Ladies and gentlemen, Kemba Walker for the Charlotte Hornets has arrived. This brother is special. Special.”

“We’ve seen some of his skills before. We’ve seen some explosions but he dropped 60 against the Philadelphia 76ers and Jimmy Butler, and those boys the game before, and after that he dropped 43 on Kyrie.” 

“He’s fast. He’s quick. He’s got a nasty handle. He’s got a pull-up jay. He can dance on you in one style. He can hit the three. This dude ain’t even six-feet tall. This kid is something special and owe by the way, while we’ve been sitting around here talking about max dollars, and $200 million contracts, Kemba Walker is in the last year of a deal paying him $12 million. $12 million.” 

“Now, there is no question that Michael Jordan, Mitch Kupchak and those boys are going to take care of him. They are going to pay this man and they got to pay this man. But if by some chance he decided he wanted to leave I suggest Michael Jordan gets on the phone with him or call him into the office because he is MJ, and make sure he wants to commit to you.” 

“Because trading him ain’t gonna work because he’s only making $12 million. So, you got to talk about a sign-and-trade, and even that ain’t going to get you possibly the equitable compensation you would deserve.” 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 11/19/18 8 p.m. game San Antonio Spurs versus New Orleans Pelicans on FOX Sports New Orleans with Joel Meyers, David Wesley, and Jennifer Hale; 11/20/18 1:30 a.m. edition of “Players Only,” “Gametime,” presented by Kia with Chris Webber, Isiah Thomas, and Kevin McHale; 11/20/18 6 p.m. edition of NBATV’s “The Starters,” with Tas Melas, J.E. Skeets, Leigh Ellis, and Trey Kerby; 11/20/18 3 p.m. edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN with Rachel Nichols, Jorge Sedano, Amin Elhassan, Paul Pierce, and Richard Jefferson; www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/6479/kemba-walker; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Hornets.

J-Speaks: The Passing of the Legendary Publisher of Marvel

He was the comic book genius that brought us some of the most legendary superheroes that would eventual make history on the silver screen as they did in the lives of children and children at heart on paper and the small screen. He not only created characters that saved the lives of the innocent from the forces of evil but characters that had real life flaws. Well at the start of this week, the Marvel nation and all the lives that this person touched mourned his passing. 

Stan Lee, a former resident of the Long Island part of New York passed away on Monday. The 96-year-old was declared dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA according to Kirk Schenck, the attorney for Lee’s daughter Joan Celia “J.C.” 

Mr. Lee’s wife of 69 years and the voice of some of his female characters in the former Joan Clayton Boocock, who he married back on Dec. 5, 1947 passed away on July 6, 2017 from complications of a stroke. She was 95 years old. Lee is survived by his daughter J.C., and his younger brother Larry Lieber, who also worked in comics.  

Mr. Lee was rushed to the hospital because of a medical emergency that arose early on Monday. Earlier this year, Lee publicly disclosed his battle with pneumonia and that in February was rushed to the hospital because his condition had gotten worse.

He was born Stanley Martin Lieber in New York, NY on Dec. 28, 1922. He grew up in Washington Heights and lived during his teen years at 1720 University Ave. in the Bronx, NY where he graduated from DeWitt Clinton High School. 

Mr. Lee along with a few other colleagues invented much of which is now called “The Marvel Universe,” where he signed his comics Stan Lee. 

“I didn’t want to be known by my regular name as a comic book writer because it was embarrassing,” Lee said once. 

Black Panther, who is portrayed by Chadwick Boseman in the movie installment was the first African American superhero in mainstream American comic books that was co-created by Lee in 1966. He, along with Spider-Man, The Incredible Hulk, Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, and Ant-Man was just some of the example of the genius and sensitivity of Mr. Lee that millions of fans responded to over and over again. 

“There will never be another Stan Lee,” Chris Evans, who played Captain America in the Marvel movies said on his Twitter page @Chris Evans. “For decades he provided both young and old with adventure, escape, comfort, confidence, inspiration, strength, friendship and joy. He exuded love and kindness and will leave an indelible mark on so, so, so many lives.” Evans ended the tweet with Mr. Lee’s famous catchphrase “Excelsior,” which is the description in the names of hotels, newspapers, and other products to indicate superior quality.”

Robert Downey, Jr. who played Tony Star, also Iron Man in the Marvel movies echoed similar thoughts by saying on his Instagram page robertdowneyjr with a picture of him and Lee together with a large heart, “I own it all to you,,, Rest in Peace Stan… #MCU #Excelsior #legend #rip #stanlee #TeamStark (@jimmy_rich).”

Actress Evangeline Lilly, who played Van Dyne in the latest Marvel movie, “Ant-Man and the Wasp,” which premiered earlier this year said on her Twitter page @EvangelineLilly, “Stan…more than a master of stories, you always seemed like a master of living. I will look to you for inspiration for the rest of my life. You live on. Xoxo Your wasp.”

Those characters would had not been possible though if not for the success of “The Fantastic Four,”

That first superhero unit began the tidal wave of greatness for Mr. Lee and Marvel. The group also became an important part of Mr. Lee’s legacy as he was able to create other iconic groups like “X-Men,” which was the first big-budget film based on Lee’s characters grossed over $130 million at movie theaters in the U.S. in 2000, while “Spider-Man” grossed over $400 million at the box office. 

Those movie franchises helped to usher in the movie empire that Marvel became, producing franchises like “The Avengers,” that went from the comics, to television in cartoons and now are thrilling audiences in movie theaters across the world for nearly two decades, becoming the most bankable mega-franchise in the history of cinema.

To put this into context, the most recent Marvel team-up movie “Avengers: Infinity War” grossed over $2 billion across the globe.

“I think everybody loves things that are bigger than life…I think of them as fairy tales for grown-ups,” Mr. Lee said to “The Associated Press” 12 years ago. “We all grew up with giants and ogres, and witches. Well, you get a little bit older and you’re too old to read fairy tales. But I don’t think you ever outgrow your love for those kinds of things, things that are bigger than life and magical, and very imaginative.”

Some recent projects that Lee help to make possible that have been seen on the silver screen include the previously mentioned “Black Panther,” “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” and “Guardians of the Galaxy,” to television series like “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,” and “Daredevil.”

While today we take being able to catch these mega blockbuster films for granted, there was a time seeing some of these heroes sharing the pages of comic books was a thrill. 

A thrill that was scripted by Lee himself during the 1960s, where he created The Avengers and X-Men. In 1972 as Marvel’s publisher and editorial director, and four years later created the character Spider-Man, which sold 72 million copies.  

The real innovation behind the real greatness of Lee’s characters was that he gave these superpowered characters real life flaws, whether they were physical at times, but just as important psychological issues. 

Mr. Lee tried to make Spider-Man, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow, and the rest of the “Marvel Universe” as he explained to a reporter once, “real flesh and blood characters with personality.” 

“The mere fact that he has superhuman power doesn’t mean that he may not have acne or he may not have trouble with his girlfriend or get a sinus attack in the middle of a fight” Lee added in another interview many years back. 

That personal charm and charisma that really made him a truly great salesman earned him a spot on the famed Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2011 and on July 18, 2017 joined some of the rest of Hollywood’s elite on July 18, 2017 as he imprinted his hands, feet, and signature in cement in front of LA’s TCL Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Blvd. 

As much fun as that was for Mr. Lee, what he enjoyed more than anything was the cameos he made in each of the Marvel movies and TV projects, as we could see his gray hair and very slightly tinted specs. 

When asked by a reporter from WABC 7 “Eyewitness News” at New York’s Comic Con a couple of months back that could he had imagined that Marvel would reach this kind of popularity? 

“No, I never thought,” was his answer, adding with a smile “Years ago, I just hoped the books would sell so I could make enough money to pay the rent.”

All of this might not had happened though if the prior art director and editor had not quit. A 17-year-old Lee jumped that that opportunity of having creative control of Atlas Comics at that time, which eventually became Marvel. 

One year prior to achieving that moment, Lee took a job as an assistant at a comic publisher at the new “Timely Comics” division of comic-book publisher Martin Goodman. 

When he came home after a stint in the Armed service during World War II, where he wrote for training films, Mr. Lee went back to Marvel where he would begin what he felt at that time was a very boring run at assembling comic books. 

He told the Guardian back in 1979 he wanted to quit but his wife said to him that he should do the kinds of comics you would read. 

Mr. Lee went to work and created “The Fantastic Four” in 1960, creating the characters, plot line, and text, while famed Marvel artist Jack Kirby created the illustrations. 

That change in thinking, along with what came after that allowed Lee to not only have enough money to pay for a place to live in New York in 1949, he was able to buy a three-bedroom house on Broadway in Woodmere, NY on Long Island. 

Three years later, Mr. Lee, Joan, and their daughter J.C., who was a toddler then moved into a former caretaker’s cottage on Richards Lane in Hewlett Harbor, NY.  

Mr. Lee said to Newsday about living in that house in 2007, “…And we had our own little duck pond, and it was so nice and suburban, and kids used to come and feed the ducks, and it was lovely. We hated moving away.”

After the passing of his wife in 2017, Mr. Lee was left with a serious void that opened the gates for those that should have moved on years ago to sink their teeth into the fortunes of a person that was in serious mental and physical decline. 

That consisted of him being forced out of Marvel in 1998, which led to lawsuits, legal fights in the court room and an elder abuse investigation of who spoke for him that marred Mr. Lee’s final years of life as he tried to get a share of profits from some of the aforementioned movies and television shows based on his characters. 

He would eventually go on to start his own companies like in 2001 as Lee, Gill Champion and Arthur Lieberman former POW! (Purveyors of Wonder) Entertainment to develop film, television, and video games. Mr. Lee also joined forces with longtime rival of Marvel DC Comics, putting his own spin on their superheroes like Batman and Wonder Woman. 

One person who had a high level of respect for Mr. Lee and was there before his passing was his successor as the editor-in-chief at Marvel Roy Thomas, who paid him a visit 48 hours prior to his passing to discuss his upcoming book The Stan Lee Story. 

“I think he was ready to go. But he was still talking about doing more cameos,” Thomas had said. “As long as he had the energy for it and didn’t have to travel, Stan was always up to do some more cameos He got a kick out of those more than anything else.” 

On Monday the world said goodbye to an icon in Stan Lee, who brought to us comic book figures that were larger than life, who had a human side to them that we all could relate to. Those characters would go from appearing on comic pagers to the small screen in cartoons, to eventually the silver screen and back to the small screen that we watched in record numbers and became a major part of our lives. 

Stan Lee, born Stanley Martin Lieber made a connection with young people beginning in the 1960s at Marvel that has continued for nearly six decades and shows no signs of slowing down. 

As the Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company Robert A. Iger said in a statement, “Stan Lee was as extraordinary as the characters he created. A superhero in his own right. The scale of his imagination was only exceeded by the size of his heart.” 

Information and quotations are courtesy of 11/12/18 5 p.m. edition of WABC 7 “Eyewitness News at 5,” with Diana Williams, Sade Baderinwa, and Lee Goldberg with weather, with report coming from entertainment reporter Sandy Kenyon; 11/12/18 5 p.m. edition of WCBS “CBS 2 News at 5 PM” with Maurice DuBois, Kristine Johnson, and Lonnie Quinn with weather, report from 6 p.m. news anchor Dana Tyler; 11/13/18 Newsday article, “Stan Lee| 1922-2018 Marvel Comics Visionary,” by Frank Lovece and The Associated Press; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant-Man_and_the_Wasp; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Lee.