(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. It's another experience I share in common with him, often being told I acted or sounded "too white" to be Black. Originally, we thought this piece was going to speak to his victories, his winning percentage, his accolades, and his achievements with the Warriors. My fathers nickname was The Destroyer, because of his willingness to finish a fight. And most famously, so did Mike Riordan of the Washington Bullets. My father is as humble as they come. Is Californias drought finally over? He performed so well that it prompted a last-minute trade of six-year NBA veteran Terrence Jones in order to make a roster spot for Toscano-Anderson. On the occasion of his fathers induction into, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Chart: Bay Area rainfall totals for this week, On the occasion of his fathers induction into the basketball Hall of Fame, a son pays tribute, Steph Curry could return during Warriors next road trip, per reports, Kerrs game plan, the Warriors energy, lifted the Dubs to a much-needed win, Draymond Green explains his issue with Black History Month: Why do we get the shortest month?, Warriors come alive in third quarter to beat Portland, Steph Curry takes encouraging step in lead-up to return, though timetable still unknown. It's a city made up of an incredibly diverse population, making those of us who tend to fall in minority races or are biracial feel more at peace. (By Howard Erker / Oakland Tribune), Former Golden State Warriors player and coach Alvin Attles and his wife Wilhelmina wave to fans along Broadway during the team's NBA championship victory parade in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Friday, June 19, 2015. "I think I have gone above and beyond to show that I accept who I am. Attles's number 16 is retired by the Warriors and he attends every Warriors home game. While youre asleep, there is someone on the other side of the world trying to figure out a way to steal your ideas and take your money.. I remember this mantra from the time I was five years old, when my father would caution kids at his numerous basketball camps to keep their heads in the books as opposed to betting it all on a professional career. 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. Email: cletourneau@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Con_Chron, How Juan Toscano-Anderson escaped monsters of his youth to become Oaklands Warrior, How Juan Toscano-Anderson gave himself a shot at a long-term future with Warriors, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson attend Oakland protest led by Juan Toscano-Anderson, How Curry's 3-point shooting changed the game. 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. Either before the game or a during a timeout, they walk toward the concourse atop the lower bowl. [8] On February 7, 2015, Attles's number 22 was retired by North Carolina A&T, the first ever retired by the team. 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. Two of his most famous knockouts were against far bigger men: 6-9 Zelmo Beaty and 6-8 Bob Ferry. "I can't envision anyone playing better than Barry is right now," says Warrior Coach Al Attles, whose surprising club leads the Pacific Division despite the loss over the past six months of Nate Thurmond, Clyde Lee, Jim Barnett, Joe Ellis and Cazzie Russell through trades, release or the kind of front-office ineptitude that once made the . Point guard who starred for the Philadelphia/Golden State Warriors from 1960-1971, and coached the team from 1970-1983. "I'm super excited, obviously for myself to be on the team and continue to play basketball, but this is a life-changing contract. At that time, the only NBA player he knew about was Allen Iverson.". Well before Warriors coach Steve Kerr adopted a strength in numbers philosophy to complement his All-Star players, Attles used that concept to help the Warriors lone star in Barry. 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. 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. It was undoubtedly a full circle moment for both Toscano-Anderson and Attles, whose positive influence made an everlasting impact on the future of the Warriors forward. I think it's the best of both worlds.". He was previously the Warriors beat reporter (2016-2021) and the Cal beat reporter (2015-16). But when Toscano-Anderson first arrived at Mrs. Attles classroom in cornrows and a Larry Hughes replica Warriors jersey, he was an 8-year-old from the urban flatlands of East Oakland in a room filled with children from the more affluent Oakland hills. From left are Jeff Mullins, #23, and Happy Hairston, #52. "Even with knowing that final part of the play, I would still make the same play 10 times out of 10," he said. (1999) and Black Magic (2008). Toscano-Anderson memorialized his late cousin by getting a tattoo of 78 Erics jersey number with Oaklands Skyline High School football team on his upper left arm. Scott Adams faces 'consequence culture' as U.S. newspapers drop Dilbert, Tom Cruise's 'ditching' of Suri showcased by Judd Apatow's 'co-parenting' joke, ex-Scientology exec says. He is the longest-serving coach in Warriors history, and also has the most wins in franchise history. I look forward to meeting so many idols from my youth. You can waste them both.. "I had an itch to compete all the time, whether it's who's gonna wash the dishes the fastest, you know, who's going to get from point A to point B, the fastest who's gonna make 100 threes the fastest. He joined the Oakland Rebels AAU team (now known as Team Lillard), and played for Castro Valley High School. He tries to impact the game the same way Green does -- by doing a bit of everything. He shot and killed Juan on 92nd Avenue. When Toscano-Anderson shops at the Costco in San Leandro, strangers often thank him for organizing two protests in Oakland last spring against social injustice and police brutality. I'm super proud of that.". SPRINGFIELD, MASS. Hes been in and out of the hospital in the last few recent months, Ridder said. He hadnt known how to cook, just as he hadnt known how to coach when Franklin Mieuli asked him to take charge of the Warriors. Seventeen days after her due date, Patricia went into labor. The racket she caused made my father get up to ask her what was wrong. One half of one percent of people looking to play professional basketball will even get the opportunity to try out.. 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. Organize, control, distribute and measure all of your digital content. A little-known story is that after winning the championship in 75, my father was a hot coaching commodity. Attles was never a star in the league, yet he was an . It's also in Mexico. . 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. Mrs. Attles told her not to worry about it. I am done trying to show people that I am Black and I am Mexican. Now living this childhood dream, Toscano-Anderson returned to Chase Center not as someone on the preseason roster contending for a spot, but as a Golden State Warrior. Ive always been a Warriors fan. Outside of his family, most of the people he interacted with were Black. The team that selected him was the then Philadelphia Warriors. When his mom moved back to Castro Valley when he was in fifth grade, he refused to leave East Oakland. After police officers broke up the dispute and left the scene, the man returned. Toscano-Anderson was introduced to basketball in the third grade at Oakland's Stonehurst Elementary School by his then-teacher Wilhelmina Attles, who is a former Upsala College basketball star and also the wife of Warriors legend and Hall of Famer Al Attles. Toscano-Anderson contains a similar fire to that of Draymond Green, who's considered the heartbeat of the team. Despite the violence, Toscano-Anderson came to appreciate East Oaklands blue-collar ethos at an early age. He also didnt inundate us with a lot of technical things and paper work. He also serves as a team ambassador. I vividly remember racing to my parents home under ashen clouds, sirens filling the air. You can too for just 11 cents a day for 11 months + receive a free Warriors Championship book. 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. Juan Toscano-Andersons uncle Macario Toscano Jr. (center left) takes a photo with family members outside Toscano-Andersons childhood home in Oakland. One of those games included a USA-Mexico match. A Warriors Outsiders segment was detailing Toscano-Andersons rise with Golden State. (Dan Honda/Bay Area News Group), Golden State Warriors legend Al Attles, center, tosses the basket ball between Jenny Fang, left, and her cousin Ella Fang to start a game as part of the refurbished baskteball court ceremony at Lincoln Square Park in Oakland in 2006. Ever! Furthermore, in 2018, Toscano-Anderson joined the G-League with the Santa Cruz Warriors, where he played for the club for two seasons. Willhemina Attles, wife of Warriors Hall of Famer Al Attles, holds a mug signed by current Warrior Juan Toscano-Anderson and his third-grade classmates from back in 2002 when Attles was. I was 10 years old or so and ran around playing tag in the locker room with my cousins Bernard and Kevin. But even with his guaranteed contract, he knows it doesn't mean he can slack off. Alvin Attles III is a writer, a filmmaker and the son of basketball Hall of Famer Al Attles. There, in the back of the driveway, Juan and his cousins would shoot at a plastic crate hung on a gate. In my case, I was raised in a predominantly white family and went to a predominantly white school. Toscano-Anderson's mother, Patricia, tried her best to flip the narrative for Juan and his siblings. Tuesday, February 12, 2013. . This happened once he transferred schools after having a knife pulled on him in second grade. On his right shoulder, One in a Million is written in black ink. Several teams came looking to throw big money at him, hoping they would lure him away with more than Mr. Meuli could offer. And Al Attles Golden State Warriors have just won the NBA championship!. The time when he was in the backseat of his moms car outside the McDonalds on 98th Avenue and International as men exchanged gunfire that barely missed him. [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. But I never really indulged in the culture, per se. She noticed that he seemed to be happiest when he was playing basketball in the schoolyard. 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. She was aware of the struggles the Toscano family was facing and wanted to help, so she suggested Toscano-Anderson enroll in the Golden State Warriors youth camp. Juan, he said, had a real future in basketball. When Attles arranged for him to attend the Warriors youth basketball camp for free, she didnt imagine that it would start a hardwood odyssey that would culminate in a roster spot on his hometown NBA team. * * *. Using her sisters address, Patricia transferred Juan to Montclair only a 15-minute drive from Elmhurst, but a world away in some respects. His #16 is retired by the Warriors, and even in his 70s he attended every home Warriors game. That got pretty boring after doing every day at recess. Not a bad story for someone who Dana says is such a great dude.. "It's God-sent for sure. Many of Juans new classmates had parents who were doctors or lawyers. Attles, 82, has had four surgeries in the past. IRS delays tax deadline for Bay Area, but California hasn't followed: What should you do? By the time Juan was 14, Patricias goal for him was clear: college somewhere, anywhere and a life away from Oakland. Instead, Attles became a world champion as an NBA coach. And Toscano-Anderson has a similar tenacity, grit and hustle. There is a probably apocryphal story to the effect that one of the sportswriters covering the game began his filing with the lede "HERSHEY, Pa. Wilt Chamberlain and Al Attles combined for 117 points last night as the Philadelphia Warriors defeated the New York Knicks 169147." An armed policeman spotted us running around and forcefully grabbed hold of me. All she wanted was to keep him smiling. 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. He thanked Attles again Thursday . 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 ran into the house and asked my mom what I should rescue from the house. 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 Bay Area will catch a break from winter storms for a couple days, but it wont last very long. (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. Juan went home and declared to his family he was giving up soccer. "He just brings that energy and juice to every moment that he comes into the game. Golden State Warriors | Before Letourneau joined The Chronicle, he covered the Oregon State Beavers for The Oregonian. After a home game last month, he returned to his apartment with his girlfriend and turned on NBC Sports Bay Area. Toscano-Andersons No. He is a graduate of Weequahic High School in Newark, New Jersey and North Carolina A&T State University. My dad paid the boy a visit. He retired as a player after the 197071 season, and stayed on as head coach, guiding the Rick Barry-led Warriors to the 1975 NBA championship over the heavily favored Washington Bullets, making him the second African-American coach to win an NBA title (the first was Bill Russell). She and Kansas City . Access the best of Getty Images with our simple subscription plan. The immense pride Toscano-Anderson has for his hometown is a common trait found in most Oaklanders, including myself. I started playing basketball in third grade. At first, it was about making the Santa Cruz Warriors during a tryout. "I can get in where I fit in in the hood, and I can go to a quinceaeraand speak Spanish. Every time he walked into that building, he got a taste of what he wanted his future to be. In other words, Toscano-Anderson made his NBA debut for a team that has been a continual thread throughout his life. One day, my mother came home from a full day to find my father napping. Yes, the wife of Warriors legend Al Attles. If you are having difficulty accessing any content on this website, please visit our Accessibility page. His toughness stemmed from loyalty.Related Articles And well just smile, because thats so him. After finishing fifth on the Warriors all-time games played list (711), he transitioned into coaching the organization. I just, I was living in urban culture. Everything I envisioned as a young kid, when I met Ms. Attles and I had cornrows and I used to wear a Larry Hughes jersey to school, Im doing all of that right now. He is married to Willhemina Rice. She also helped him get on the Oakland Rebels' AAU basketball team. 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. To see your child living his dream, it means everything.. That showed me like, oh, I got a long way to go to get better.". There were times people told Toscano-Anderson he made the wrong decision by going to the G League. He won an NBA championship in 1975, which made him the second African-American coach to do so, joining Bill Russell. The voice of the iconic Bill King rang out. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. I get to enjoy everything I get to do with my family. Yes, the wife of Warriors legend Al Attles. But hey, hes here and Im here. I never thought in a million years Id be playing for the Warriors, let alone in the NBA, but its exciting for myself, for my family, for my friends, and for the people of Oakland.. "He's been in and out of the hospital in the last few recent months," Ridder said. He is an awesome husband, a great father, a super uncle, the best Pop-Pop, and a one-of-a-kind friend. Oakland is no stranger to people with mixed backgrounds. Everybody always said that if Al ever got into boxing, Barry said, he probably wouldve been a world champion.. She also helped him get on the Oakland Rebels AAU basketball team. Before Fame That's when fate intervened. The time he saw a homeless man beat another homeless man with an aluminum bat on 95th Avenue. Patricia Toscano, who grew up in a neighborhood known to locals as the killing zone, often worried that her four kids were destined to become grim statistics. Without him, she felt lost. (By Howard Erker / Oakland Tribune), Oakland, CA February 8, 1981 - Golden State Warriors basketball coach Al Attles. Although the American team was full of G League players, Mexico came out on top. 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