Tony Brown, who officiated more than 1,100 NBA games for nearly 20 years, died Thursday after a battle with pancreatic cancer, his family announced Thursday. he was 55 years old.
Brown was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer in April 2021 and recovered enough to return to work at the NBA Replay Center last season. According to his family, he recently entered hospice care in Atlanta.
“We have been sustained by a constant outpouring of love and support throughout this journey of building strength, acceptance and peace,” said Brown’s family – his wife, Tina Taylor-Brown and their children. Bailey, Basil and Bailen – of the 2018-2019 – said in a statement . Old and new, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your love is immeasurable.”
Brown was selected to host two NBA All-Star Games and played the 2020 NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat. He also wrestled championship round games in the CBA and his WNBA, and was a WNBA All-Star official before moving to the NBA in 2003.
A native of Tallahassee, Florida, he was diagnosed after experiencing stomach discomfort. At first, he thought what he had in mind was bad sushi. After a dozen rounds of intense chemotherapy, Brown recovered enough to return to work and his medical team, the NBA. , and received the blessing of his family.
“Sit down and say ‘Why me? Or ‘What am I going to do?'” Brown told The Associated Press earlier this year. What kind of example would I be to my children if I lay in this bed and they passed me? If you have it, in a life that you can’t challenge or overcome.”
This was the story of his life. he accepted the challenge.
A talented high school basketball player, Brown eventually decided to transfer to what was then called Clark College (now Clark Atlanta College) after accepting a scholarship to Florida A&M. . His scholarship was not available there, so Brown left school as an employee of Delta Airlines. He cleaned planes, drove passenger carts, then became a flight attendant and remained with Delta until his retirement in 2007.
By then, his NBA career was in full bloom. He worked at the 2018 All-Star Game in Los Angeles and was later selected to work at the 2021 Game, which was moved to Atlanta, where his fellow referees for the 2021 game were: An Atlanta resident Tom He Washington and Courtney He was Kirkland. They, like Brown, were graduates of historically black colleges, and that game was the one the NBA introduced his HBCU and promised to raise over $3 million. for a scholarship.
“For us, the most important part of this whole game is that we are representing NBA officials and we have to do a great job for them,” Brown said of the game. “We go on that floor every night and represent each other, and that’s the highest accolades and achievements we can get from doing our job.”
Even in the last days of his life, Brown’s focus was on others. I worked for Earlier this month, several Clark Atlanta players visited Brown at the hospice and presented him with a jersey as a thank you for his efforts.
Attorney Mauri Davis, one of the primary organizers of the scholarship effort, said the family is still chasing the $100,000 goal, and that amount will be offered to Clark Atlanta at the men’s basketball season opener on November 7. I said I would like to present the check.
“Tony Brown embodies what it means to be a Clark Atlanta basketball player,” said Clark Atlanta coach Alfred Jordan. It’s what sets you apart from others because these qualities are hard to come by these days.”
Brown was also part of the NBA’s historic night.
On December 30, 2020, San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich was furious that a foul was not called on then-playing Spurs DeMar DeRozan’s drive in a game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Brown ejected Popovich for his outburst, and Popovich instructed then-Spurs assistant Becky Hammon to take over.
Hammon became the first female manager in NBA history.
Earlier that year, Brown made his only on-court appearance in the NBA Finals. He’d been in the league’s restart bubble for a few weeks at Walt Disney World. I thought about how my family would react to the news.
“I was speechless when I found out,” Brown said at the time. “The first thing I experienced was the sacrifice that my family had by my side during this journey.
In addition to thanking his caregivers, Brown’s family has officially joined the NBA and the National Basketball Referees Association for their support of the Lustgarten Foundation and PanCan, an organization dedicated to fighting pancreatic cancer. I expressed my gratitude.
“Keep trying for treatment,” his family said.
Reported by Associated Press.
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