Lance Blanks could not stop grinning six weeks ago. He was going to be a grandfather soon. At last, one of his closest friends was
receiving the significant opportunity that Blanks had assured him he merited. And a college student younger than him was honoring
him on national television, in a boisterous arena?
In Kansas City, Missouri, on that March night, Blanks claimed he was initially unaware of his own movements. But Timmy Allen, a
senior at Texas, stood in the audience behind the Longhorns’ bench and smiled when he realized that he had celebrated a shot in the
Sweet 16 against Xavier by imitating the dance that Blanks had made famous 33 years before, in the same round against the same
opponent.
“It’s amazing,” remarked Blanks. “It
This was the typical Blanks, happy and full of thanks, to so many of us who knew him. Whatever Blanks did, from coaching a young
Spurs draft prospect named Tony Parker one-on-one to broadcasting games on TV to helping raise two daughters while tending to his
long-ill father, a pioneer in the integration of college football, he did it with the same passion that drove Texas fans to “Dance with
Lance” in 1990.
It’s also the reason the news on Thursday was so terrible. The NBA released a statement from Blanks’ family stating that he passed
away in Dallas on Wednesday at the age of 56. The reason of death was not stated.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!
