[5] He intended to return to Newark and coach at his local junior high school when he was drafted by the Warriors. None of the coaches, none of my teammates they really made me feel a part of this. Klay Thompson subscribes. Shenoticed that heseemed to be happiest when he was playing basketball in the schoolyard. To Toscano-Anderson, this meant that he too could compete against the talent in the G League. His steaks were tender, his gumbo was excellent, and his breakfasts were legendary. Heres why California has seen so much active weather. "That's what makes me go.". I cant wait to see his Hall of Fame ring and Hall of Fame blazer. Connor Letourneau is a sports enterprise reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle. That got pretty boring after doing every day at recess. (D. Ross Cameron/Staff Archives), Golden State Warriors' legend Alvin Attles ackowledges the crowd as Nate Thurmond, left, looks on during a special tribute to Attles as part of the NBA Hardwood Classics Month during the game agaInst the Milwaukee Bucks in the first half of an NBA game at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Santa Cruz play-by-play announcer Kevin Dana noticed what he brought to the team early-on. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot concedes defeat, Southern California home sales fall to all-time low, Denver just got a direct flight to this Caribbean island known for music history and vegetarian cooking, NYC Mayor Adams dismisses need to separate church and state, declares himself a servant of God, Zero-calorie sweetener linked to heart attack and stroke, study finds, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. A few lucky ones would be invited to training camp with a chance to join the roster. I don't know if it was my pride or selfishness, but I have no regrets.". could be eligible for a share of $104 million. Now that I have this opportunity to play for the Warriors what I plan to do is just be me: be a great teammate, be the hardest playing guy on the floor, whatever it takes to win. Coming up in the part of the town that I came up in, it almost feels like youre in that book, Where the Wild Things Are, Toscano-Anderson said. By the time Juan was 14, Patricias goal for him was clear: college somewhere, anywhere and a life away from Oakland. [4] He has a bachelor's degree in Physical Education and History along with a master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction. The Warriors have invited various luminaries, including Barry, Mullin, Sleepy Floyd, Marreese Speights and Jason Richardson for Sundays game against the Los Angeles Clippers, which marks the final regular-season game at Oracle Arena. Al Attles Basketball Player #173216 Most Popular Boost Birthday November 7, 1936 Birthplace Newark , NJ Age 86 years old Birth Sign Scorpio About Point guard who starred for the Philadelphia/Golden State Warriors from 1960-1971, and coached the team from 1970-1983. Attles was replaced by Johnny Bach for the last 21 games of the 197980 NBA season (a season in which the Warriors finished tied for last place), though he returned for the next season (Bach would become Attles's permanent successor after 1983). Around this time, a student in Juans third-grade class at Stonehurst Elementary School in East Oakland threatened to stab him. Leave it to Toscano-Anderson to make his connection to the Bay Area known through his song of choice: Thizzle Dance by the late East Bay rapper Mac Dre. "I feel like there's more that I need to do," Toscano-Anderson said. Some players play hungry; Juan plays like a guy whos starving, Warriors guard Mychal Mulder said. And where else would he find out if he could play against the best than back home in the Bay Area? Attles, 36, whose father starred for the Golden State Warriors and is now an executive with the team, is getting ready to release his first feature film.. A film set in Oakland. On a handful of chilly nights, when Patricia couldnt afford a motel and no relatives had a spare room, she slept in the passenger seat while Juan and Ariana were in the back, their blankets pulled tight. 95 jersey, the highest number in Warriors history, is a nod to his grandfathers home at 95th Avenue and A Street in East Oaklands Elmhurst neighborhood. Some nights, he slept with his mom, Patricia Toscano, and sister, Ariana, in their silver sedan. Jeff Mullins and . I wanted to be a guy who establishes himself in this league and is not just here for preseason or a 10-day or a call-up. Nicknamed the "Destroyer",[2][3] he played the point guard position and spent his entire 11 seasons (19601971) in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the team, joining it when it was still based in Philadelphia and following it to the Bay Area in 1962. Despite the violence, Toscano-Anderson came to appreciate East Oaklands blue-collar ethos at an early age. Our house didnt burn; we were among the fortunate. My dad asked how he could help, and my mom suggested he help by giving her a break and cooking every now and then. Golden State Warriors | His wife, Wilhelmina, son, and Hall of Famer Rick Barry represented him during an on-court tribute after the first quarter. "I was enjoying basketball, and that's what I do this for, to just enjoy the game," Toscano-Anderson said. As he walks past familiar liquor stores and laundromats, he is reminded of some childhood memories that shake him to this day. After visiting his mom in San Leandro and getting a trim at Phat Fades Barbershop on East 14th Street, he stops by his grandpas house on 95th Avenue. However, sometimes there is still an internal struggle figuring out where you belong and how you identify. Many of Juans new classmates had parents who were doctors or lawyers. In our Oakland home, thousands of miles away from my fathers ultimate coaching triumph, I hugged my little sister, Ericka and did a happy dance with my mother. Outside of his family, most of the people he interacted with were Black. Five months later, one of his closest cousins, Eric Toscano, was shot and killed while celebrating his 18th birthday at his home on Ney Avenue in East Oakland. "It was like something to feed off of," the Warriors forwardsaid. He is an actor, known for Inside Moves (1980), The Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame. "Like, wow, I get to beat all of these kids? That's the first step, I've gotten through the first step to put myself in a situation to be here for another year, so now I'm working to continue and have longevity in this league.". (By Dino Vournas/Straff Archives), Oakland, CA January 23, 1980 - Golden State Warriors basketball coach Al Attles rejoices. Toscano-Anderson still plays with that same mindset in the NBA. Boards are the best place to save images and video clips. After 3 hours of labor, Patricia gave birth to a 9-pound, 12-ounce baby. He plans on starting with getting his brother a car for his 16th birthday. It was 20 years ago when teacher Wilhelmina Attles, wife of former Warriors star player and coach Al Attles, encouraged Toscano-Anderson to play basketball. "I'm super excited, obviously for myself to be on the team and continue to play basketball, but this is a life-changing contract. The former Warriors general manager, coach and player hadn't been around much at all this season because of health issues. One half of one percent of people looking to play professional basketball will even get the opportunity to try out.. That is the Oakland seeping out of Toscano-Anderson's pores. As Toscano-Anderson said, the team never treated him as a two-way player because of what he brought to the court. His competitiveness always is on full display -- perfectly depicted in the play against the Boston Celtics that resulted in him needing 27 stitches in his head. At the end of the day, I accept that I am in a different category of my own. San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images. The Warriors were longshots to beat the Washington Bullets. Now Toscano-Anderson is poised to become the first Oakland-born player since the early 1970s to stick on the Warriors roster for three straight seasons. I vividly remember racing to my parents home under ashen clouds, sirens filling the air. But it didn't matter to Toscano-Anderson. Golden State Warriors | Although celebrities such as Wilt Chamberlain, Jesse Jackson, and Bill Cosby were friends of his, he never took on celebrity airs. She also helped him get on the Oakland Rebels AAU basketball team. She also did the cooking, the cleaning, paid the bills, helped with homework, carpooled us to our various activities and even taught me how to play basketball, as more and more of my fathers time was spent at work. Although I never quite understood the one-half-of-one-percent phrase, at five years old I understood that my father was a practical man. Family photos from Juan Toscano-Andersons youth. One night, Raymond Young, the Oakland Rebels head coach, called Patricia and told her to make other babysitting arrangements. It was from Patricia Toscano. "I feel like this situation is just destined," he said. Obviously a smart, smart player. Harriette Cole: I don't want the neighbor's kids at my house, Dear Abby: My wife said she doesn't like it, but it's part of my life, Ask Amy: I feel guilty for not speaking up about my co-worker's activities, Ask Amy: I'm your cabin housekeeper, and you apparently have no idea what I do. When Patricias salary from teaching violence-prevention skills to juvenile offenders wasnt enough to cover the rent, she and her kids stayed with her father, Macario Toscano. 2023 Getty Images. Juan's third-grade teacher, Wilhelmina Attles -- wife of Warriors legend Al Attles -- set him up at a basketball camp. He joined the Oakland Rebels AAU team (now known as Team Lillard), and played for Castro Valley High School. This happened once he transferred schools after having a knife pulled on him in second grade. It seems hardly surprising since Attles cemented an 11-year career with the Warriors, coached them to their 1975 NBA championship and served as a longtime club ambassador. The 28-year-old has become a keyrotation player for the Warriors, averaging 8.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.2 steals over the last 13 games, while shooting 63 percent from the field and 40.6 percent from deep in 29 minutes per game. Over the next three years, he established himself as the countrys best player. You hardly feel out of place. My father is now 83 years old. (By Robert Stinnett / Oakland Tribune), Al Attles was the head coach for the Golden State Warriors during their only championship in the 1974-75 season. After the Warriors went 48-34 in the 1974-75 season, Attles coached the Warriors to their first NBA championship in 1975 by upsetting the Washington Bullets in a four-game Finals sweep. Then, it also appears inevitable they will honor Attles. But his desire to play basketball continued, which led him to play in Mexico for four seasons and play for the Mexican national basketball team. Patricia was a single mother of four. BARTs second Transbay Tube could get quashed as planners scale back S.F. Heres the impact of the latest 2022 tax returns: IRS further extends filing deadline for most Californians. In other words, Toscano-Anderson made his NBA debut for a team that has been a continual thread throughout his life. He honed his skills at Oakland rec centers and the Boys & Girls Club. It has been his entire life, as he grew up on 95th Avenue in East Oakland. Coach Steve Kerr rocked a retro-style suit in Attles' honor, sighing and saying after the game, "Polyester, 100 percent polyester. On April 6, 2019, Attles was chosen as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame honor comes 59 years after Alvin Austin Attles, Jr. was drafted in the fifth round by the Philadelphia Warriors out of North Carolina A&T. He will turn 83 in November. Toscano-Anderson was introduced to basketball, specifically Warriors basketball when Wilhelmina Attles -- wife of Warriors legend Al Attles and Toscano-Anderson's former teacher at Stonehurst Elementary School -- got him involved with the Warriors' youth program. I am excited to be in Springfield. Toscano-Andersons No. Dear Abby: Why do they imply my husband is a freak? Alvin Austin Attles Jr. (Destroyer. (By Howard Erker / Oakland Tribune), Oakland, CA February 8, 1981 - Golden State Warriors basketball coach Al Attles. What are the similarities between money and potential? Collect, curate and comment on your files. Its nice they are recognizing someone who has been committed to the game of basketball.. Doing these things for his family, and simply the time he gets to spend with them, are the biggest things Toscano-Anderson had to sacrifice when he went and played overseas. My mom explained that her day was exhausting, and she was tired. Everybody makes a mistake. My dad agreed and the next day, he promptly burned a can of franks-and-beans for dinner. There were others who said he shouldn't have gone to training camp with the Warriors last year because they didn't have an open roster spot. He is married to Willhemina Rice. Keen members of Dub Nation likely saw a lot of Toscano-Anderson while they watched this past NBA Summer League as he played on both of the Dubs summer squads in the California Classic and Las Vegas Summer League. After joining the former Philadelphia Warriors in 1960 as the clubs fifth-round draft choice, Attles became known as The Destroyer during his 11-year NBA career because of his unyielding physical presence along with 8.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists. Just make sure he gets there," Patricia recalls Mrs. Attles saying. Rather than voice her displeasure about her day in comparison to his relatively short day, she instead took her frustration out on the pots and pans in the kitchen. To make the Santa Cruz Warriors 2018-19 roster, Toscano-Anderson needed some good fortune a timely preseason trade that freed up a contract for him. Using her sisters address, Patricia transferred Juan to Montclair only a 15-minute drive from Elmhurst, but a world away in some respects. As Toscano-Anderson said, he didn't ever believe he'd play for the same team he grew up cheering on. . Im just ecstatic that hes one of the positive ones. [7] He was a role player on the 1964 Warriors team (with Wilt Chamberlain and Guy Rodgers) that made the NBA Finals and eventually lost the championship series to the Boston Celtics, four games to one. Want Warriors news delivered to your phone? It's also in Mexico. In addition to sending Juan to the Warriors youth basketball camp, Attles connected him with the Oakland Rebels, a youth AAU program. On Friday against Washington, players wore shooting shirts featuring Attles' likeness. Bay Area gets a break from winter storm. His work has been honored by APSE, CNPA and the Professional Basketball Writers Association. Whenever issues arose in the neighborhood, it was Juan who defended her. I love it here. Alvin Attles III is a writer, a filmmaker and the son of basketball Hall of Famer Al Attles. You know, just really taking on the competitive challenge that was needed.". You can also get notified of new episodes on iTunes, Google Play Music, Spotify, Stitcher and SoundCloud. I am versatile. But it never changed Al Attles. Wilhelmina, the wife of Golden State legend Al Attles, could sense that something troubled her new student. (Jane Tyska/Staff Archives), Former Golden State Warriors head coach Al Attles attends a press conference to introduce the team's new draft picks at the team's headquarters in Oakland, Calif., Monday, June 27, 2011. On a typical day Rick and Pam Barry get up between 10 and noon in their house on Mercer Island outside of Seattle and begin their exercise routine: First, there's 15 minutes designed to develop the. Really? The court was renamed as Al Attles Court. Attles moved with the team to the Bay Area at the end of the 1962 season, playing until 1971. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! 95 -- to represent 95th Avenue in East Oakland. Riordan was looking to give his team a spark, or worse yet trying to get Barry thrown out of the game for retaliating. I thought he changed the game the other night in the second quarter with his emotion. Whenever the Warriors luminaries return to watch the game they played and love, they often do one thing that becomes as memorable as marveling at the highlight reels. But as a child, it's even harder. In addition to becoming a hero of sorts to Mexicans and Mexican Americans for being the only active NBA player of Mexican descent, Toscano-Anderson has become an icon to Oaklanders, many of them still upset that the Warriors left their home of 47 years for San Francisco. "I can get in where I fit in in the hood, and I can go to a quinceaeraand speak Spanish. I don't want to say I didn't accept it. When his third-grade teacher Al Attles' wife, Wilhelmina took him to a Warriors-sponsored basketball camp, Toscano-Anderson returned home and told his soccer-obsessed grandpa, who asked . Miss Manners: I shouldn't call because the phone scares people? He played overseas, joining the Mexican national basketball team in 2016 at the FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament, and then in Mexico and Venezuela from 2016 to 2018. Warriors come alive in third quarter to beat Portland Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. Through the rest of elementary and middle school, Juan split time between his grandpas home and those of his AAU coaches in Oakland, not moving to Castro Valley full-time until the summer before his freshman year of high school. So when Mrs. Attles stepped in and brought him to the Warriors' youth camp, it unlocked a new level of competitiveness in Toscano-Anderson. A week before Juan was killed, Patricia had learned she was pregnant with her second child. Beyond that, Attles didnt know much. Follow Bay Area News Group Warriors beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. He walks a little crookedly, and he struggles with his memory sometimes. "Juan didn't know either. Either before the game or a during a timeout, they walk toward the concourse atop the lower bowl. Tough. "I knew that I was Mexican. "I love Al Attles (then the head coach). Attles coaching credentials went beyond on-court accomplishments. A mechanical engineer, he raised four kids as a single father and tried to shield them from the gang violence overtaking the surrounding streets. Work to make people respect you, even if you cant do something for them.. She also helped him get on the Oakland Rebels' AAU basketball team. Attles, 82, has had four surgeries in the past. Toscano-Anderson was born and raised in East Oakland. My mom suggested I gather all of my fathers trophies and momentoes, so I grabbed as many as I could and began rushing back and forth to the car. "But, with all that being said, I feel like I have done myself a disservice by trying to make people happy. "We were houseless, we lived in a car, and from here and there to different places," Patricia said. Similarly, Toscano-Anderson has always been a Warrior, since he was part of the organization's youth program in the third grade. But my father never seriously entertained any of those offers. Alvin Attles wife she was my third grade teacher and I was playing soccer prior to that put me into a Warriors Camp. And so that was kind of humbling. Al Attle's wife Wilhemina with children Erika and Alvin Jr. watch Game 4 of the championship series against the Washington Bullets May 25, 1975 (Photo by Terry Schmitt/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images) DETAILS Restrictions: Contact your local office for all commercial or promotional uses. Almost all their belongings, including many of the kids childhood photos, were destroyed. I just, I was living in urban culture. And playing alongside players such as Steph Curry and Draymond Green and seeing the championship trophies the Warriors won without him is constantly humbling him and serves as reminders as to what level he wants to reach. Al Attles a filmmaker and the son of basketball Hall of Fame and. Montclair only a 15-minute drive from Elmhurst, but I have done myself a disservice by trying make. 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