Reggie Lewis

[Theresa Lee <tjoyce@mit.edu>]

I'm surprised no one has raised the Reggie Lewis story on the list.  There
were three articles in the Saturday Globe about Reggie, only one on the
Sports page.

According to the Globe, Reggie's widow, Donna Harris-Lewis is suing Dr.
Gilbert Mudge for malpractice. If you recall, Reggie was being checked out
by a 12-member Dream Team of doctors after fainting while playing. Those
doctors were asking Lewis if he did cocaine (so they would know what they
were dealing with) and he denied it. They also were telling Reggie what he
didn't want to hear...he may never play again. He had a heart problem.
Harris-Lewis grew angry at the implication that her husband did drugs
saying, "you can't get over that he's not Larry. Just because he's a black
athlete, you assume its drugs" or words to that effect. She called a friend
who worked at another hospital and, against the nurses wishes, took Reggie
out of the hospital late one night.

Dr. Mudge was the doctor who saw him at the new hospital and diagnosed
Reggie with a benign fainting condition....just what Harris-Lewis and Lewis
hoped to hear because that meant Reggie could play. He practiced and died
doing it. Dr. Mudge is now being sued for malpractice.

One of the things that has come out is that Dr. Mudge claims that he too
asked Reggie if he did cocaine. Reggie denied it four times and admitted
it (away from his wife) the fifth time to the doctor. The doctor warned him
that he must stop immediately because that was what was causing the heart
damage.

The big issue now is whether or not Lewis lied on an insurance application
he filled out (the insurance for his contract.) The Celtics received a
settlement ($17 million) and Harris-Lewis is now being paid on Reggie's
contract ($10 million). If he lied about doing drugs, that could void the
insurance settlement. Would the Celtics make Harris-Lewis pay the money
back?

One of the sidebar stories was about Northeastern University and the fact
that they revealed Lewis had flunked a drug test while playing there. There
were also reports about a friend who claims he both snorted and free-based
cocaine with Reggie. A former Celtic trainer who was deposed for the case,
revealed that he had smoked pot with Reggie at the trainer's condo in
Maine. The former trainer indicated that Reggie had the pot with him.

His wife claims that Reggie had two addictions...his family and basketball.

Could it be that Reggie was not a saint and could never admit that to his
wife? This is the same wife that pushed him to finish his degree, organized
the turkey give-a-ways and still has life-size posters of Reggie in her
home. I think, if he was doing things he shouldn't be doing, his wife would
be the last one to know. She idolized him.

And now, she is, in a weird way, dragging his memory through the mud, in an
effort to try to clear his name and/or make the doctor pay for his mistake
on the diagnosis. The diagnosis she believed over twelve other doctors
opinions.

Rest in peace Reggie.

Theresa