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| UCLA's Tony Parker works out during practice at the NCAA college basketball tournament, Wednesday, March 26, 2014, in Memphis, Tenn. UCLA plays Florida in a regional semifinal on Thursday. (AP Photo/John Bazemore) |
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MEMPHIS >> Sitting inside a FedEx Forum locker room on Wednesday, Tony Parker called this city his second home.
The UCLA forward graduated two years ago from Miller Grove High, located some 400 miles east of the Bruins’ Sweet Sixteen site. His father, Virgil, had a friend who lived in Memphis, which meant frequent trips from their Atlanta-area home. The University of Memphis recruited him to play college ball and landed his good friend Shaq Goodwin.
So yes, Tony Parker is quite comfortable as UCLA (28-8) prepares to play the nation’s No. 1 team.
“I definitely feel like I’m in my element,” he said.
But this isn’t any ordinary homecoming. When the Bruins face off against Florida (34-2) at approximately 6:45 p.m. today, it will mark the first time Parker’s brother can watch him play in person.
Adrian Parker was released from Phillips State Prison in Buford, Ga., on Jan. 25. He had finished serving a 15-year sentence for armed robbery, as well as a concurrent five-year sentence for possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
According to an appellate court document from 2001, the victim testified a car carrying three men stopped next to her in a shopping mall parking lot. One man stepped out of the back seat and shoved a sawed-off shotgun in her face.
Two of the men later pleaded guilty, and one identified Adrian Parker as the gunman.
When Adrian was arrested in 1999, Tony was just 5 years old.
“I actually remember it vividly,” Tony said. “I remember the sirens, everything. I remember my sisters calling me in the room, telling me what happened.
“Back then, I didn’t really understand, but as I got older I would talk to my brother all the time. When you see your brother through prison bars, it’s not good, especially when he’s got a son.”
Tony said taking care of his brother’s son Jayvion, now a ninth-grader, is part of what made him who he is today. Adrian, stuck behind bars, talked to Tony regularly and made sure he would become a role model for Jayvion.
A role model is something Tony still considers Adrian.
Now 20 years old and 6-feet-9, he’s roughly a foot taller than his older brother who turns 34 this year. As a sophomore, Parker is averaging 6.9 points and 4.5 rebounds this season after rarely seeing the floor a year ago.
Still, he thinks back about 17 years ago, when he would tag along as his brother went to play basketball with friends at a local court. As their mother went grocery shopping, Tony would sit and watch, entranced. That is the Adrian he remembers.
“My brother made a mistake,” Parker said. “We all make mistakes. He was young.”
Their relationship still is in good shape.
“It’s been great,” Tony said. “He’s probably the reason why I am where I am right now. There were a lot of situations where he wasn’t there, but he was there in spirit. His words of wisdom really helped me out.”
SCOUTING REPORT
When Parker takes the floor tonight, he almost certainly will be matched up against Florida’s Patric Young.
It’s a numbers game, really. The SEC Player of the Year officially is listed at 6-9, 247 pounds. Every Bruin but Parker — 255 pounds — gives up at least 17 pounds to Young. Parker shook his head when asked if he’d seen anyone in the Pac-12 that compares.
“Not really,” he said. “Because Pat plays so physical. He’s a physical specimen. Pat is a really big presence inside. He’s a banger. It’s what he does. He’s a Ronny Turiaf-type guy, a Kendrick Perkins-type guy.”
Parker has been in and out of foul trouble all season, but picked up just one in 18 minutes against Stephen F. Austin last weekend in the round of 32. The Lumberjacks did not start anyone taller than 6-6.
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