WestWoodTopper 0 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 http://www.philly.com/inquirer...r_Philly_friend.html Orlando's Lee takes time to remember Philly friend By Mike Jensen Inquirer Staff Writer Courtney Lee stood in front of a grave at Chelten Hills Cemetery, his hands stuck in his jeans pockets, not saying a word for a minute. Lee had just finished practice yesterday afternoon with the Orlando Magic, preparing for tonight's Game 4 of the NBA playoff series with the Sixers. Whenever he is in town, Lee tries to make it to the cemetery on Washington Lane in Mount Airy, to stop at the headstone with the basketball on it. To see his friend Danny. "Crazy how it worked out, playing in the playoffs, in Philly," Lee said quietly to Danny Rumph's uncle, Marcus Owens, who was at the grave with him. Edit - when posting articles, please only post 3 or 4 paragraphs and a link, forum rules...thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WestWoodTopper 0 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 http://www.philly.com/inquirer...r_Philly_friend.html Orlando's Lee takes time to remember Philly friend By Mike Jensen Inquirer Staff Writer Courtney Lee stood in front of a grave at Chelten Hills Cemetery, his hands stuck in his jeans pockets, not saying a word for a minute. Lee had just finished practice yesterday afternoon with the Orlando Magic, preparing for tonight's Game 4 of the NBA playoff series with the Sixers. Whenever he is in town, Lee tries to make it to the cemetery on Washington Lane in Mount Airy, to stop at the headstone with the basketball on it. To see his friend Danny. "Crazy how it worked out, playing in the playoffs, in Philly," Lee said quietly to Danny Rumph's uncle, Marcus Owens, who was at the grave with him. Edit - when posting articles, please only post 3 or 4 paragraphs and a link, forum rules...thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aron-Ingi 0 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 Nice article... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Danb23Rock 0 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 I got so much more respect for Courtney now, and I already thought so much of the guy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WestWoodTopper 0 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 For those who want the whole story on the matter here is a great article published a year ago on ESPN.com. Danny Rumph was WKU's leader and a great reason for CLee's success. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/...mns/story?id=3212517 Lee dedicates spectacular career to memory of a friendComment Email Print Share By Dana O'Neil ESPN.com Archive Courtney Lee was a typical teenager, brash and daring, who couldn't wait to bust out of the restraints and rules he had to obey while under his mother's watch. He would go away to college, be a man on his own and establish his own identity and his own set of rules. A week into his newfound independence, the new man was in his coach's office asking for his mommy. Lee laughs about the all-consuming homesickness that dropped on him like a bout with the flu his freshman season at Western Kentucky, but he won't deny how bad he felt when he first exchanged his Indianapolis address for one in Bowling Green. He practically begged his mother to let him come home, but all he heard was, 'Tough luck, stick it out,' or the click of the phone as she hung up. [+] EnlargeJoe Robbins/US Presswire Courtney Lee's play this season has has caught the attention of NBA scouts, and he is projected as a possible first-round pick in the draft.Darrin Horn tried everything to make things easier, but nothing the coach said could quell the loneliness that had Lee quite literally sick from missing home. "I thought we were going to lose him the first day,'' Horn said. Four years, nearly 2,000 points, an 8-1 record in the Sun Belt Conference and a potential first-round tourney spot has a way of erasing bad memories. The kid who once couldn't bear Bowling Green is now like the town mayor, beloved and adored by a rabid fan base. Casual hoops fans likely have never heard of Lee. That's the cost of playing in a league outside the Big Six conferences. The people who matter, however, know exactly who he is. The anticipated mass exodus of freshmen may change things come June, but right now, Lee is slated as a late first-round draft pick. NBA scouts salivate over Lee's size (6-foot-5, 200 pounds) and marvel at his ability to create shots for himself and his teammates. Previously content to be a role player, Lee has emerged in his final season as a leader and a less reluctant star, averaging 21.3 points per game. Only once this season -- in a win against Middle Tennessee State when he was hit with early foul trouble -- has Lee failed to reach double figures in scoring. That he is a well-seasoned senior in an age of preemie first-rounders barely old enough to drive only makes him more attractive. "He's going to be one of those guys who goes to individual workouts and surprises a lot of people,'' one NBA scout said. "We know him, the blue-collar guys, but the GMs don't. He's going to match up with some guys who have the national reputation and the pedigree and blow them out of the water. This kid can just play.'' Now more mature, Lee admits he was pretty much ready to chuck it all as a rookie in favor of a return ticket home. Then, a few days into those awful first weeks, Lee met junior Danny Rumph, who took Lee under his wing, counseled the freshman by sharing his own homesick pains. Rumph came to Kentucky from Philadelphia, an even tougher adjustment than transplanting from nearby Indy. Well-liked and even more well-respected, Rumph decided he wasn't going to let Lee quit. So if Rumph went somewhere, he brought Lee along with him. He shepherded Lee through offseason workouts and on-campus social life. I knew we were getting a high-major caliber athlete when we signed him. I thought we were getting a guy who could be a potential all-conference kind of player. A potential first-round draft pick? I'd have to say no to that. --Darrin Horn Slowly, Lee came around. Instead of plotting ways to travel the 225 miles home whenever he saw a day off in the schedule, Lee stayed on campus. His trips and phone calls home eased up and eventually all but disappeared, relegated to their rightful place of weekly chats and holiday break visits. In between, Lee and Rumph grew inseparable. They roomed together on campus and for road trips. When school breaks weren't long enough for Rumph to get all the way back to Philly, he went to Indianapolis with Lee instead. "If it weren't him, no, I don't think I would have lasted,'' Lee said. "I probably would have transferred back home, but I was lucky. Danny was the first person I latched onto.'' It's strange, really, that Lee wanted to go back home so badly. Indiana hadn't exactly been kind to him, at least not in terms of basketball. A star on a stacked Pike High School team, Lee helped his overloaded roster -- Xavier alum Justin Cage and Indiana's Robert Vaden, who followed Mike Davis to UAB -- finish 29-0 in his junior season and second in the nation behind LeBron James' St. Vincent-St. Mary team. As a senior, Lee finished second in the voting for Indiana Mr. Basketball, and in that year's Kentucky-Indiana All-Star game weekend, he scored 48 points in two games. Indiana and Purdue both looked at Lee, but when push came to shove, neither came up with a scholarship offer. "He was disappointed but he understood the business of it,'' Pike High coach Larry Bullington said. "If anything, I think it motivated him.'' Just a touch. "If anybody says that they don't think that way, they're lying,'' Lee said. "There's always a part of you that wants to throw it in their face, to say 'See what I've accomplished.''' Horn would love to say he was simply smarter than everyone else, that he pulled one over on all the big boys and stole a player they simply missed on. He would love to, but he'd be lying. "I knew we were getting a high-major caliber athlete when we signed him,'' Horn said. "I thought we were getting a guy who could be a potential all-conference kind of player. A potential first-round draft pick? I'd have to say no to that. That's like asking me if, when I was at Marquette, did I know Dwyane Wade would be good. Well yeah, but not necessarily a world champion MVP.'' [+] EnlargeAP Photo/Daily News, Joe Imel Danny Rumph took a younger Courtney Lee under his wing, and Lee dedicates his current success to the memory of his late friend and teammate.Lee's big r Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Noonskadoodle17 9 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 What an article....Courtney Lee is going to be one hell of a player when it is all said and done and I am so excited to see Lee Nelson and Howard bring so much excitement to Magic basketball for many years to come!!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ambrose 0 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 Next year will so exciting to see thoes guys play together. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MilitaryMagic 0 Report post Posted April 26, 2009 Nice articles, a nice look into CLee's life. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brian_Cook_Phan 0 Report post Posted April 27, 2009 great article Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Soul Bro 1,423 Report post Posted April 27, 2009 Wow Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shine88 90 Report post Posted April 27, 2009 Great article. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lawyers,Guns.and Money 0 Report post Posted April 27, 2009 Loved it, and what's cool is that Courtney is going to get better and better every year. The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
