By Joseph Staszewski
Anthony Mason is revered for never giving an inch on the basketball court. He should be remembered for each inch he took to get himself to the high level of his profession
Mason, who led Springfield Garden to the 1983 PSAL boys’ basketball city title, was laid to rest last Sunday following a funeral service at The Greater Allen A.M.E. Cathedral in Jamaica last Friday.
He died Feb. 28 at the age of 48 after battling heart problems. He went on to play 13 season in the NBA, after by no means being a high school prodigy. He became best known for epitomizing the tough and physical style of play of former New York Knicks coach Pat Riley in the 1990s.
Mason exhibited some of those characteristic even as a youngster. He was just skinny kid looking to improve and prove himself to those who doubted him at the time. Cardozo coach Ron Naclerio remembers Mason as a kid who left baseball for basketball, made Springfield Gardens team and just kept getting a little better and little better.
“No matter what he did, people didn’t give him credit for how good her was,” Naclerio said.
It further laid seeds for Mason’s tough on-court persona. Nothing was ever going to be handed to him. He just had to keep working, improving and producing. Mason believed in himself and slowly made others believers too. Former Campus Magnet coach Charles Granby remembers a player who always gave his best effort and never needed an extra push to do so.
“He just played hard all the time,” Granby said. “You didn’t have to motivate him. He motivated himself. He just played.”
It’s just one of the many reasons people loved Mason and his larger-than-life personality. Former Knicks teammates Patrick Ewing, John Starks, Charles Oakley and Herb Williams all came to pay their respects at Mason’s funeral. Riley, Starks and former college teammate Grant Winrow highlighted those who eulogized him. Mason pushed his way to the NBA from Tennessee State University to the CBA, the USBL and pro-leagues overseas.
“He just worked to get everything he deserved,” Naclerio said.
He wanted his kids to do it that same way if you ask Lincoln boy’s basketball coach Kenny Pretlow, who coached both Anthony Mason Jr. and Antwoine Mason with the Metro Hawks travel team. Pretlow described him as supportive father, who rooted for his kids like any another parent would and he never put any excess pressure on them to perform. Anthony Mason would often ask Pretlow when there would be chance to treat the team to pizza and a day at the arcade for some other fun.
“He was just proud that they were both very good basketball players,” Pretlow said. “They were just existing off his name.”
Mason made a name for himself. He wasn’t branded the next big thing as a kid or even during his college day. He became it by the will it with the will personality and warrior mentality.
“He just kept on getting better and working,” Naclerio said. “He had a chip on his shoulder.”
