By Kevin Pelton,
SUPERSONICS.COM Aug 1, 2005
For some people, NBA summer leagues are most important as the first opportunity for high draft picks to make their NBA debuts. Others are looking to see which highly-regarded players who happened to go undrafted will end up where. For me, however, the summer leagues are about the unknowns, the players who weren't on ESPN's Big Monday but still have a chance to play in the league.
My fondest summer-league-related memory is the open practice the Sonics held with their summer squad four years ago. There, a 7-1, 270-pounder named Jerome James that few in attendance at Seattle Pacific University had ever heard of dominated the scrimmage, blocking shots and throwing down dunks. Seven months later, James was the Sonics starting center.
Now that it's my job to know the Sonics summer leaguers, few players truly surprise me the way James did. This year was an exception, however, when a 7-footer not listed on the Sonics roster showed up at the first day of summer training camp and displayed impressive athleticism. Along with KJR's Dick Fain, I scrambled to figure out who this mystery man could be - Rashid Byrd, as it turns out.
Days earlier, the Sonics scouting staff had been doing something similar.
"He found us," Sonics Director of Basketball Operations Dave Pendergraft explained. "He came in the gym to work out. He was dating a girl in the Tacoma area, he was playing for the Tacoma IBL team, so he was just playing around in the gym. (Assistant Coach) Jack (Sikma) saw him, Dwight Daub saw him, then I talked to Nick Collison about him. Well, he's 7-1, he's walking around the gym, what do you have to lose?"
Pendergraft describes Byrd as a "basketball vagabond," and that's an apt description. After one season at Eastern Oklahoma State JC, Byrd declared for the 2002 NBA Draft. He went undrafted, was cut by the NBDL's Huntsville Flight and has since bounced around basketball's minor leagues, playing for a couple of NBA summer-league teams. This spring, Byrd ended up in Tacoma.
"The Tacoma Thunder under Coach (A.C.) Mosely," said Byrd. "He's a great guy. He took me in. I came all the way from New York, came out here for the IBL team. I was like, 'I'll go and just try it out, see how it is.' I tried it out, saw how good it was, got onto the team, played and also did well."
In addition to playing, Byrd had also been working out with the Seattle basketball community.
"I worked out, with a guy named James Edwards," said Byrd, referring to the former UW and NBA center, "and also (former Sonics special assignments coach) Steve Gordon. We worked out together for a month and a half, and they saw some talent and ability in me and they believed in me."
Through those contacts, the Sonics and Byrd found each other. Naturally, Pendergraft was intrigued by Byrd's potential.
"He's got NBA height," said Pendergraft. "He's got NBA length and he can jump out of the gym. He had an okay high school career in New York city, then he played for a junior college, and he's really been a basketball vagabond since then. He played in Kosovo, played in several minor leagues, so he's never really had consistent coaching or weight training or anything. He's just learning. A guy's 7-1, walking around with that length, you have to give him a chance."
At 7-1 and a listed 235 pounds, Byrd is unquestionably lanky. This build, in addition to his athleticism, draws immediate comparisons to a former Sonics summer leaguer, Mikki Moore.
"You put it in its proper place - this is just summer league and this is just a mini-camp; we're not even playing against other summer-league teams," explained Pendergraft. "What you try to do is compare him to Mikki Moore at 23 years old. I've known Mikki a long, long time. Mikki was probably a little better basketball player, because he had four years of college experience, but there are a lot of similarities between the two players."
Byrd impressed the Sonics enough during the three days the team trained in Seattle to make the final summer-league roster over more heralded players including former second-round picks Ousmane Cisse and Rick Rickert.
"I've just been out there trying my hardest to show everybody that I can play this game and I can learn and that I'm willing to learn, and that's what's brought me here so far," said Byrd. "It's an opportunity - I've got to take advantage and do the right things, listen to the coach, try to understand and just work hard."
There is a danger of succumbing to the optimism of summer. As Pendergraft points out, it's important to keep in mind the context of competition. Byrd also has seen only limited action since the Sonics arrived in Salt Lake City for Rocky Mountain Revue play, recording three points and one board in 22 minutes over three games.
Still, to me, guys like Byrd are what summer league is all about.
"Me doing well and being out here and playing and keep staying in good condition opened the window," said Byrd. "I'm in the window right now, trying to get into the door."
As it turns out, I actually did know Byrd, and you might too. Three years ago, Byrd starred in a Got Milk? commercial that features him dribbling the ball and waiting … and waiting … and waiting for it to come back, emphasizing his height. (Message: Drink milk and grow to be 7-1.)
"That was my first experience being on TV, and it went well," said Byrd. "It was nationwide. Every time an NBA game came on, my commercial came right behind. That was a great experience, to do a commercial. Got Milk? brought a lot of my shyness out, because I'm a very laid-back guy and kind of shy and won't speak unless spoken to."
When the ad was running regularly, Byrd was recognized, "A lot. When the commercial was out, everybody was like, 'That's the Got Milk? kid.' They knew me as the Got Milk? kid. I didn't have a name. Just Got Milk?, that's all."
Byrd's other claim to fame is his experience on the And 1 Streetball Tour, where he earned the nickname "Seven and Sum Change" by dazzling with his athleticism and powerful dunking ability.
"They called me Seven and Sum Change because I'm so long and so athletic," said Byrd. "They'd say, every time I'd attack the rim and go for an alley-oop, 'Seven and Sum Change,' because I stretch out every time. I jump as high as I can because nobody should be able to outjump you."
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