my man Dee Brown...what more can you say...

[This was written before the announcement that Dee and Roger had made the team for the Jazz. ]

Dee Brown
From the Salt Lake City Tribune: Glad Hander

As the final buzzer sounded last night in Sacramento and the players walked off the floor, I noticed something unusual that made me laugh. As Dee Brown passed referee Eric Lewis, he held out his hand. The referee appeared startled, but slapped palms with the Jazz guard, and sort of watched him walk away with a quizzical look. He, and the rest of the league, had better get used to it. Because if Brown hangs on and makes the team next week, the NBA will have a new goodwill ambassador making the rounds. The rookie guard is just about the most upbeat, friendly, genuine athlete I've run into. He's got the people skills of Ron McBride, able to talk to anyone he meets, and he shows real interest in what they're saying. During warmups in Detroit last week, one of the basketballs rolled away and ended up next to a toddler standing along the front row. Brown went after the ball, and probably spent a minute and a half crouched over talking to the little girl, obviously enjoying her shyness. It's hard to picture many other NBA players having that moment, and apparently enjoying it as much as he did. It's no wonder he>was the most popular player at Illinois. Brown's future in the NBA is far from secure, but he's clearly going to have people rooting for him. How friendly is this guy? Before the game in the Delta Center last week, he even came over and shook hands with the writers. Now THAT'S something I'm not used to. ~Phil Miller