Sad news coming boards way...

[Capt. Tuttle]

Watch Pearl's highlights. He makes people look foolish...and he does it without even coming close to palming the ball.

Everyone who has tried to emulate him since cannot pull off his change of direction without palming the ball...even though it's never called today.

He was the best ball handler I've ever seen in the open court. I don't know who I'd put second. No one is close.

John Thompson wouldn't press him. Enough said.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

I think a service at the Dome would draw at least 30K.

 

[Briancuse]

There needs to be a permanent tribute to him on campus somehow. He needs a section of the Melo center where his jersey is kept, a non stop highlight reel or something.

And JAB needs to lead a effort to Pearl into the College Basketball Hall Of Fame.

Pearl Washington is HOF'er!!!!!

Perhaps somewhere around campus they could name a street after Pearl.

 

[orange44]

He needs a statue in front of the Melo Center IMO.

I totally agree!!

 

[AlaskaSU]

I'm so crushed to hear this. Pearl was just before my time, but as a kid, I always knew his legend. I'll never forget seeing the video of his half court shot against BC and practicing it in my yard, including the sprint to the locker room.

I'm sure some of you have fantastic stories about him and I know I'd love to hear every single one. I hope his final days are filled with joy and love and peace. What a good man being taken way too early.

The sprint was to call his Mom. I hope she is able to be with him now.
Wish we could rename the carrier dome as the Pearldome.

 

[Roll Cuse]

It's called a heads up. Posts like these have been made during the NCAA investigation, during the Fine stuff, during recruiting and even by mods.

The problem is that people arent stupid. When you post something like this and there is something so blatantly out there that we can easily connect it to, or twitter search for that matter, everyone knows what its about. Therefore if the OP didnt find it his place to say anything...then maybe they shouldnt have. Simple as that.

anyway this side bar took away from the real point, so thoughts and prayers. Id attend a service at the dome and Im too young to have really watched him.

 

[Dave85]

anyway this side bar took away from the real point, so thoughts and prayers. Id attend a service at the dome and Im too young to have really watched him.

I was at this game and is still by far the greatest sports moment spectacle I've ever witnessed:


I think Pearl was a very highly recruited player out of High School and really put the Syracuse basketball program on the map. He really help paved the way for the juggernaut we know as Syracuse Orange basketball. So many great players and so many great moments. Pearl is a very big piece of Orange history. You don't have to know him to appreciate what he has done.

I never saw Dave Bing play but if you love Orange basketball you can appreciate what he did in his career (28.4 PPG, shut up!):

http://orangehoops.org/dbing.htm

All these great players paved the way to what we enjoy so much today.

 

[Cheriehoop]

Little crazy random story. My mother was not a big basketball fan, actually not a big sports fan. Occasionally my mother would attend one of my basketball games, always worried that I would "catch my death of cold" playing in the cold winter but sweating from playing in a gym. I still laugh thinking of the time I went to the bench during a game and felt something land on my back. My mother had thrown down her sweater on my back to avoid my inevitable death from getting chilled in the gym. I was dying from heat but had to laugh.

Back to Pearl. I was at the game and like everyone else was so psyched about it. Talked to my mother the next day, Sunday, when she surprised me hearing her so excited after watching reruns on the news and reading the Sunday paper. She kept saying "That Pearl is just wonderful isn't he? I can understand why you love seeing him play". ( she obviously didn't understand why I wanted to take the physical punishment playing though) The next night, Monday night, she called so excited saying "I can't believe he did it again. Wow, he's so special. I'm surprised you're home though". After asking who is special and why wouldn't I be home at 9pm, I realized she just watched a game replay of the SU-BC game on tv and thought that Pearl had hit another game winner.

Mothers are so special and seeing Pearl over the years reminded me every time I saw him - his run to call his mom after THE shot and the connection with my own mother. My mother was right as usual - he is so special.