"Not dark yet, but it's getting there for Vin Baker"

[Tammo29@xxxxxxx]

Percy Allen / NBA reporter
Not dark yet, but it's getting there for Vin Baker 


DARREN HAUCK / AP
Former Sonic Vin Baker had his contract terminated by the Boston Celtics last 
week. Agent Aaron Goodwin said Baker, a recovering alcoholic, is not drinking.


Is it over yet? Can we finally look at Vin Baker and make a few definitive 
comments now that his plunge from four-time All-Star to recovering alcoholic has 
landed him someplace outside of the NBA? 
Are we finished snickering and shaking our heads in mock disgust? 
My guess is, probably not. 
Somebody will give Vin another chance, just as Boston did. The final chapter 
of his basketball story has not yet been written. 
Soon after the men with the law degrees decide if the Celtics are on the hook 
for all, a portion or none of the roughly $36 million that remained on his 
contract, he will play again. 
Perhaps in New York, where Knicks general manager Isiah Thomas is fond of 
restoration projects. 
Or in Miami, where president Pat Riley has expressed an interest. 
Or maybe Laker Gary Payton can convince his bosses in Los Angeles to take a 
chance on his former teammate. Payton has always had a soft spot for Vin. 
Always called him his "little brother." Always protected Vin when nobody else 
would. 
Vin's playing days aren't over. His agent, Aaron Goodwin, said six teams have 
called about the enigmatic power forward. 
The only real surprise is more teams haven't called. 
 
Professional sports, especially the NBA, is a business where men in power 
always believe they are the one person who can squeeze a few more points and 
rebounds out of the malcontents. 
Why do you think troubled washouts such as Dennis Rodman and Isiah Rider are 
making comeback attempts? 
The NBA has a short memory when it's convenient. And in Vin's case, there 
have been many around him who must suffer from amnesia. 
"I thought I could get it from him when I was given that opportunity, but I 
couldn't do it," Sonics coach Nate McMillan said. "And I thought he just needed 
a change of address. Playing closer to home, I felt that when Vin went to 
Boston, he would play better. 
"It wasn't so much what he was doing, but where he was at. And to see him out 
of the league now is a shock." 
Vin has always surrounded himself with people who believe in him, and when 
things turns bad, he turns on them. 
He did it to Goodwin and McMillan. 
And he did it to Steve Gordon, the former Sonics special-assignment coach who 
followed Vin to Boston, believing they had an agreement of sorts. Once that 
arrangement fell apart, Gordon sued Vin for $1 million. 
"I know I'm not the first, nor, I suspect, will I be the last to be fooled by 
Vin Baker," Gordon said. "And I guess I was probably a bigger fool than 
anybody, because I was around him more than anybody. 
"Was he a casual drinker? Yes. To a degree. But I never thought alcoholic. 
Never thought he'd not be playing basketball because of drinking." 
I think of Vin, and I'm reminded of so many others before him who have fallen 
from grace. The power-forward position with the Sonics must be cursed or 
something. 
Consider the men who have held that spot and how their NBA careers have 
fared. 
Think of Spencer Haywood, who chronicled his final NBA days as a "cocaine 
haze" in his autobiography. 
Think of Shawn Kemp. He, too, once was an All-Star for the Sonics. Kemp also 
had demons that he battled while in Seattle. Like Vin, those addictions came 
to light after he left town, and now he is out of the league. 
But maybe McMillan is right when he said: "Vin is different. He's not done 
yet." 
If that is true, then Vin needs to return sooner rather than later. The last 
thing he needs is to sit around and wait for an arbitration hearing. 
The last time Vin had an extended stay away from basketball, he gained 
excessive weight during the 1999 lockout-shortened season and was never the same 
again. 
I can only imagine where Vin is now. Is he wallowing in self-pity? Is he 
depressed like he was in Seattle? 
Is he drinking again? 
Goodwin said no to each question. 
"Vin's in a totally different situation now," he said. "He's in a great frame 
of mind. Each day goes by, Vin isn't closer to breaking down. He's closer to 
playing basketball. 
"The final word can't be said yet. It can't be said yet because Vin's not 
done." 
So maybe this isn't the time for Vin's basketball eulogy, but I've got a few 
thoughts about his situation. 
It saddens me. 
Not because Vin is a friend or someone with whom I've shared a close 
connection. We've spoken a few times over the years and quite honestly, I don't think 
I know him very well at all. 
I'm saddened because I feel that Vin should have known better. 
I believe he's one of the good guys, and so I must ask, how could he waste 
his God-given talent with seemingly little remorse? 
How dare he squander all that he has been given, the good parents, the love 
and affection of friends and family, the incredible athletic ability and a 
genuinely sweet, humble disposition? 
He seems too smart, too articulate and too kindhearted for this to happen. 
Vin may indeed return someday with the same old apologies and excuses. And 
when he does, we would be wise to be a little more cynical, lest he break our 
hearts once again. 
Percy Allen: 206-464-2278 or pallen@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx