STAN MORRISON-A CALIFORNIA HERO

By Craig MacDonald

Stan Morrison, 78, was recently inducted into the California Sports Hall of Fame for his many years as a champion athlete, college basketball coach, university athletics administrator and inspiration throughout "the Golden State."

Also inducted in the 2018 ceremony at Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa in Cabazon, California, was former Laker great Michael Cooper, Major League Baseball Manager Tony La Russa and Raider football stars Cliff Branch and Tim Brown.

The prestigious awards are given annually to athletes, coaches and media who made a lasting impression on California sports. Morrison sure did that! As head basketball coach, he helped college teams from San Jose State, the University of Pacific and University of Southern California earn berths in the NCAA Basketball Tournament. His San Jose State, Pacific and USC teams won league championships or tournaments

Morrison, who in 1959 was center for the UC Berkeley team that won the NCAA Championship, has carved out a lifetime career as a humble humanitarian. He has been active in (and often held leadership positions) in more than 28 non-profit organizations, many in Southern California.

They range from High Five America, which uses basketball as a vehicle to fight gang violence and addiction, Olive Crest (group homes for abused teens), Boy Scouts of America, Susan B. Komen Foundation, Meals on Wheels, Riverside Humane Society, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and The Unforgettables, which provides dignified burials for children from poor families.

The man, who bursts with enthusiasm, was "stunned," when he learned of his selection to the Hall of Fame. He was recommended for the award by NBA Hall of Fame Basketball Champion Bill Walton. "What Stan has done to build community, to create a positive culture is a classic example of what it means to be a great Californian and an American hero," said the San Diego native, whose own son became an NBA Champion (and currently coaches) the LA Lakers.

Morrison, who also served as Athletic Director at UCSB and the University of California-Riverside, was a personal coach and consultant to Laker Star Shaquille O'Neal.

(On a personal note, he also served as my basketball coach at San Jose State. He had been a coach at Sacramento's El Camino High School and later, Head Coach of the Freshman Team at SJS in 1967. We got to play basketball with him and became addicted to his enthusiastic, non-selfish winning ways. His inspiration helped  create one of the top teams in California--we even beat Stanford and Cal.

I'll always remember the future Pac 10 Coach of the Year-- his smile, his passion for helping and developing others, his living the "Golden Rule," his love of his family—both basketball and personal, how he treated everyone the same--whether you were a star or a substitute--and how he deeply cared and took an interest in how you did both on and off the court.

On our team, he mentored Sacramento's Darnell Hillman, who became the NBA's first Slam Dunk Champion and he gave tips to the varsity's Coby Dietrick from Riverside, who would become starting forward for the San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls.

A couple years ago, I spotted Stan outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles. He looked just the same and had the same effervescent personality I remembered over 45 years earlier. He greeted me with a smile and we reminisced as he recalled the players from our special freshman team of long ago.

 And the humanitarian will always be a champion to thousands more, who don't know him, but benefit from all he has done for Californians.)