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GARY FORBES A disarming star |
AMHERST -- There is no out of bounds.
When a deflected pass flew over the scorer's table at practice Tuesday, three Minutemen raced after it, wrestling for the ball in the Mullins Center seats. University of Massachusetts men's basketball coach Travis Ford would have it no other way. Ferocity: That's one thing he's looking for.
But it's not the only thing.
Moments later, Gary Forbes soared high for a defensive rebound, then put the ball on the floor. One dribble upcourt, he spotted freshman Sedale Jones streaking for the opposite hoop. Forbes caught the bounce with his right hand and aired out a rising fastball up, up, and away - just beyond the reach of Jones. As two teammates went tearing after the ball in the stands, Forbes scowled ever so slightly, as if to say that with just a bit more effort Jones could have hauled in the pass.
In an instant, Ford lit into his best player. "Don't blame Sedale," he thundered. "Take some responsibility. You think that's the way they do it at Duke? You think that's the way they do it in the NBA?"
Ford shook his head and glared at Forbes. Taking a couple of steps toward the 6-foot-7-inch senior, Ford crossed his arms and screamed, "Be a leader!"
As the rage echoed in the seats, Forbes nodded slightly, smacked his fist twice across his heart, and called out, "My fault, Sedale."
Forbes is a charismatic presence, an articulate young man with a deep, resonant voice that sometimes provides color commentary on radio broadcasts of UMass women's games. With his teammates, his status is unquestioned. Forward Tony Gaffney calls him "the focal point of our team's camaraderie."
On the court, Forbes has been the star of a surprising 8-2 team that already has posted statement wins on the road at Syracuse and Boston College. He leads the Atlantic 10 in scoring (21.5 points per game) and stands fifth in rebounding (7.5) and seventh in assists (3.8).
Still, it's not easy, this leadership stuff. Forbes has had to grow into the idea of being accountable for others. In a real sense, he has had to grow into the idea of being accountable for himself.
By far the youngest of six children of Roberto and Ana Maria Forbes, Gary was the prodigal son who could do no wrong. He grew accustomed to getting his way. Sometimes that meant sneaking extra sweets - even though diabetes was ticking as a possible time bomb in his family. Sometimes it meant coasting in school, relying on his charm more than his hard work. On the court, it meant an allowance for what Ford calls "effort lapses," particularly on the defensive end, because after all, with the ball in his hands, he could do some magical things.
He has the tight handle and court vision to play point guard at 6-7, the feathery release to stick a 3-pointer from way beyond the arc, the creativity and power to score in the post as a power forward. If he wasn't always fighting through picks or moving his feet on defense, so be it. Plus, he could be so disarming with his smile, the kind that could melt the hearts of cheerleaders and teachers - even coaches.
"I probably need to be harder on him," said Ford, "but you like him so much that he winds up talking you out of being tough on him at times . . . People have been taking care of him his whole life. He has been babied. That's just his nature; people want to do that for him. He has been able to get away with a lot of things."
Forbes doesn't deny it.
"Oh yeah," he said, chuckling. "I've always been spoiled. That's a perfect assessment. I get it from my father. He's always been able to talk his way into things and talk his way out of things. I'm just a sly talker."
Panama roots
Roberto Forbes was more than just talk, though. He worked on the Panama Canal in the city of Colon, where Gary spent his first five years. Combining his welding and carpentry skills, Roberto crafted a homemade backboard, rim, and basket for the family. That's where Gary took the first shots of his life.
In late 1989, after a year of escalating hostility, the United States invaded Panama to overthrow General Manuel Noriega. As a preschooler, Gary recalled bundles of toys from the looting that followed "Operation Just Cause." While it seemed like "a wonderful Christmas" to him then, he now looks back at it through a different lens. Getting all that stuff without having to work for it did not provide a healthy message.
Amid the political turmoil, Ana Maria Forbes decided to move her youngest children to Brooklyn, where her mother had lived for many years. (Roberto stayed in Panama with the older kids and did not arrive in the States for almost a decade.) Entering first grade, Gary spoke little English, and was teased ruthlessly on the first day. For the next week, he stayed home while his mother and grandmother immersed him in the language. In a way, they were shielding Gary from the rough treatment, but there was also another message: School and communication mattered deeply. According to Gary, his mother has never cared much about basketball, she is "all about academics."
So imagine her pride years later when Gary earned a full scholarship to the University of Virginia in 2003. Dreaming about an NBA future, Gary was thrilled to play basketball in the mighty Atlantic Coast Conference - there was no better steppingstone. For Ana Maria, this was also a big deal: Among basketball powers, Virginia was one of the finest academic institutions in the country.
As a freshman, Forbes started most of the games for coach Pete Gillen and averaged a respectable 7.6 points. He was playing in some of the most famous arenas in college basketball and holding his own. He felt he was on his way.
Onset of diabetes
In the summer before his sophomore year, Forbes began to feel faint. In a week, he dropped 20 pounds. When he had his blood tested by school doctors the diagnosis was, as feared, diabetes.
Forbes knew that his grandfather had been blinded by the disease and died young. He was dimly aware of his father's diabetes. Gary's mother had often warned him of his susceptibility to the disease, but as a kid growing up, he thought he could skate by, because, well, he always did. None of his older five siblings had become diabetic - why would it happen to him?
Though "petrified" of needles, Forbes learned to inject himself with insulin. The disease did not hit with full force the first year; Forbes has since learned that a "honeymoon period" is not uncommon. He managed to play well for the Cavaliers, averaging 9.4 points per game. There were moments when it looked like stardom was on the horizon: 17 points and 10 rebounds at Cameron Indoor Stadium against Duke, 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting at the Smith Center against North Carolina.
But there were other times when he felt listless. He acknowledges he let his studies slide. By year's end, he was in a funk. Virginia had fired Gillen, and Forbes would have to adjust to new coach Dave Leitao. What's more, he would have to adjust while being academically ineligible for the beginning of the first semester. It was a conversation he dreaded having with his mother. "I got scolded on for days and days," he recalled.
Amid the uncertainty, Forbes decided to start over, transferring to UMass. He got good reports from his AAU coach about Ford, who had just been hired. One of Ford's top assistants, Steve Middleton, was someone he knew from Brooklyn. He also knew several UMass players and recruits from AAU ball.
Granted, the Atlantic 10 lacked the aura of the ACC. And true, UMass had been going through tough times, but Forbes knew the program had some good history: a Final Four appearance in 1996, another well-spoken 6-7 guy from New York way back named Julius Erving. He decided to take the plunge.
Back in control
His first year was a disaster. He was fully prepared to sit out the season as a transfer, and enjoyed the company of fellow transfers and current teammates Etienne Brower and Luke Bonner, but he was not prepared for the power of the diabetes. There were times when his blood sugar was too high, and he would feel as if all his muscles were cramping up. Other times it was so low he almost passed out. Team doctors told Forbes he was at risk of a diabetic coma, and that if he couldn't get control of the disease they would recommend having him suspended from the team for his own good.
"I was a really bad diabetic because I was so used to eating the wrong things," Forbes said. "I thought I could get by with it."
Read the riot act by Ford, Forbes began to respond. He began talking at length with his father, who had since moved with the family to Jonesboro, Ga., where he works for Morehouse College. Roberto Forbes shared tips about not just limiting sweets and carbohydrates, but about timing his food intake - eating first thing in the morning and just before he goes to bed.
By the time the season opened last year, he had bought into the discipline of his diet, and began to see it as something that could help in other ways. He got into the routine of taking five insulin shots per day, and became attuned to his body's needs like never before.
His first year back on the court was a qualified success. He averaged 13 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, and helped the Minutemen to a 24-win season, the best in 11 years. Still, it was a struggle to adjust to a UMass offense that was focused on feeding the post, dictated by having two A-10 first-team big men in seniors Rashaun Freeman and Stephane Lasme.
For Forbes, it was a good season, but with just one year of college basketball left, good wasn't good enough.
This past summer proved to be a basketball odyssey. Forbes was invited to play on the Panamanian national team in the FIBA Americas Championship in Las Vegas. In preparation, the team practiced for 11 days in Panama, Forbes's first return to his native land. It provided a reunion with family members - including a brother he had not seen in 17 years - and a fascinating look back at a neighborhood he had not known since he was a little boy heaving up shots at a homemade hoop.
"It was a real humbling experience to see where I came from and how good I have it here, how blessed I am," said Forbes.
The tournament itself provided a tantalizing taste of the possible. Forbes had the opportunity to meet Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Carmelo Anthony of Team USA, the tournament winner. While Panama bowed out in the preliminary round, it didn't go without a fight, losing its final game to runner-up Argentina in overtime. Forbes led all scorers that day with 29 points.
Watching the FIBA games on television, Ford saw a new man. "He was really laying it on the line for his team," said Ford.
As a senior at UMass, he has been doing the same. "He's become a complete player," said teammate and roommate Nana Ampin. "It's beautiful to watch. He makes his game look like an art."
Against Wisconsin-Green Bay last month, Forbes put together a masterpiece with 25 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 blocks, and 2 steals. That took place with Roberto Forbes in the house, the first time the former canal worker had seen his son play college basketball. Out to dinner that night, Gary and his dad had much to talk about: controlling diabetes, playing for Panama, working well with your hands, the pros and cons of being a sly talker. Ultimately, Gary Forbes said, his dad is right - you are judged by the work you do.
According to Ford, that work has been something to watch. He talks about how Forbes has "grown up and matured greatly" in gaining control of the diabetes. On the court, he notes Forbes has become a far better defender, and that he is able - most of the time - to muster the extra notch of effort that greatness demands. "He still takes moments off at times," said Ford. "Once he can get that out of his system, the sky is the absolute limit."
© Copyright 2007 Globe Newspaper Company.
