Baker's relapse no surprise

[Tammo29@xxxxxxx]

*******Hughes is not a fan of Bakers and some people feel he may have an 
agenda, but he does make a point here.
Hope he's wrong.********


Baker's relapse no surprise 
FRANK HUGHES; The News Tribune 
When the Seattle SuperSonics were in Boston on Dec. 10, a contingent of 
Seattle media gathered in front of Vin Baker's locker to listen to what he had to 
say since admitting that he had an alcohol problem. 
I have to admit, I expected Baker to be contrite, I expected him to be 
remorseful, I even expected him to be upbeat that he was in the process of besting a 
disease that had gotten the best of him for the previous four years.
He was none of those. So when I heard that he had relapsed recently in his 
fight against alcoholism, and earned a three-game suspension and $75,000 fine 
from the Boston Celtics, I have to say, sadly, I was not surprised.
Seinge Baker in person was disarming, to say the least. Because we had gotten 
so used to seeing his pudgy, overwrought face during his stay in Seattle, to 
see a thin face with hollow cheeks and bright eyes tends to throw you askew 
momentarily, like seeing the ghost of someone you once knew.
But then as I listened to him speak, I heard the same words I used to hear 
when he was in Seattle. It was eery, and I had to second-guess myself, my 
reporter's ear, question my own self-cynicism, because I had heard so many positive 
things come out of Boston and elsewhere about his rehabilitation. I didn't 
want to be the lone dissenter.
But as we left the locker room after listening to Baker speak for almost six 
minutes, I turned to Danny O'Neil of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and said, 
"I hate to say it. I don't think he has changed."
I am no expert in alcohol rehabilitation, but one of the things I thought I 
knew about it was that a person has to admit their mistakes and make amends 
with the people whom he harmed in order to move on and be successful in their 
recovery.
Just to make sure, I called Silver Hill Hospital in New Caanan, Conn., the 
rehab facility Baker attended. I asked a woman in admissions what programs they 
use. She verified they employ the Alcoholics Anonymous 12-step program.
I went online to look up the 12-step program. The following are steps 8, 9 
and 10:
8) Make a list of all persons we had harmed and become willing to make amends 
to them all.
9) Make direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so 
would injure them or others.
10) Continue to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly 
admit it.
What I heard from Baker that day in Boston was the furthest thing from these 
three steps. Asked if he was going to speak with Sonics coach Nate McMillan, 
he said, "Other than saying hello, there is nothing to really say." He never 
said hello.
Asked about his time in Seattle, he said: "God has a plan. I am just happy 
that I am here in Boston. This is a great organization. This is God's plan. I am 
just happy to be here in this city."
To me, it hardly sounded like making amends. To me, it sounded like the same 
old Vin, the one who always tried to say the right things, the one who said 
what he thought people wanted to hear.
That was just one day in the return of Baker, and I wanted to give him the 
benefit of the doubt. I wanted to think that perhaps it was a defense mechanism, 
and that he was simply uncomfortable speaking about the place and the people 
where and with whom his troubles began.
But after his relapse, which some in the Celtics organization thought had 
been ongoing for a month - which takes us back to the time when Seattle was in 
Boston - the Boston Herald quoted a source in the organization as saying: "Vin 
can be two different people. He says the right things, but the truth is he's 
still blaming everyone but himself. He has to get to the point where he likes 
himself, and I don't think he's close to that yet.''
So where does this leave Baker? Considering nine out of 10 alcoholics 
relapse, it is a safe bet he will have another. If he is caught again, there is a 
chance he could lose the remainder of his contract, which still has more than $30 
million left on it.
At this point, though, money probably should not be the issue. The issue 
should be Baker and his health.
Perhaps it is time for him to stop concentrating on basketball and start 
concentrating, really concentrating, on rehab.
Frank Hughes: 253-597-8742, ext. 6120
frank.hughes@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
TAM