For Pops, Goodbye May Be A Beginning

January 5, 2010 - 4:23 p.m. Pops Mensah-Bonsu is one of the nicest, most engaging guys I have ever met. He is well-rounded with a psychology degree from George Washington University. He was a handsome, regal guy with a voice that starts somewhere south of Antarctica. If you ever needed someone to dub God’s voice, Pops would be your pick. He is a cultured man having started off in his native Great Britain and then immigrated to the United States at 15 to play ball. His work has taken him to school in Washington D.C., as well as playing addresses in Italy, Spain and four NBA cities: Toronto, Dallas, San Antonio and Houston. When Pops was released today, there was probably a moment of silence among Raptors fans. On any Raptors chat, the number one question was about whether Chris Bosh will resign. The second most frequently asked question was about Pops: would the Raps release or re-sign him and why, oh why, wasn’t Jay Triano playing him? You couldn’t argue with that. Pops averaged 6.7 minutes a game. He appeared in six games and averaged 1.3 points per game. If anyone, anyone could squeeze notoriety out of 1.3 points per game, it was Pops. He was like a basketball drug, his potential was addictive. Even in a league of high flyers, Pops had maximum altitude. He was in such great shape, he looked great just standing still. But here’s the problem. Poor Pops was born in the wrong place, at least as far as basketball goes. Canadian scientist and social critic Malcolm Gladwell posits that exceptionally skilled people need to spend about 10,000 hours honing their particular skill. That goes for athletes, musicians, software writers, whatever. Pops didn’t get that time. He wasn’t able, like the young Pete Maravich, to dribble the basketball in his small town to and back from every activity. Pops was doing other things. Stop for a second and ask yourself what you saw Pops do. Dunk? Yep. Block shots? Right again. But perhaps one in every 15 or 20 possessions ends up in a dunk. You’ve had a good game if you have managed two or three blocks. What are you going to do the rest of the time? That’s the tough part for Pops who will nonetheless make himself a very rich man when he eventually signs with a European team. Should he continue his tour through the NBA, there will be more days like Tuesday when he is cut loose to free up money or to make room on the roster for a returning player. The possibility is open to sign him to tryout contracts, including another with the Raptos. Who knows, maybe you can never discount a player with Pops’ extraordinary athleticism. Eventually Pops will have to settle for being the best player in a European capital. But this is where Pops Mensah-Bonsu is unique. The fantastic vistas and accomplishments will, for him, continue after he hangs up his sneakers. For Pops, unlike so many others, basketball is just the beginning.