Lewis County Legends: Biographies

[Knight]

I apologize ODB for hitting the ball off your head before the layup. That was a classless act by me and I am ashamed today. Great games last night guys.

[ODB]

Yo I fogive u dogg. I do tha same thang. I was just tired of Smith and his illegal screens all nite long. I 'member how he nearly ended my career at tha courts not long ago. I had to take it out on sombody.

 

As far as T-Mac go, our rivalry will never die. He betta be glad Rodjo held me back. I was comin' strong at 'em. U mess wit me and roll da dice you pay da price!

 

As far as my suspension I will appeal it. Nobody can holdz me down.

[LegendsPRman]

˜Mighty˜ Melvin Stephens grew up in western Lewis County in the foothills of Trace Creek in the early 1930s. Despite growing up during the depression and living in poverty and under extremely harsh conditions, Mel overcame all odds to become a world class athlete and one of Hohenwald˜s most loved basketball Legends.

 

Because he had to work day and night on the family farm to make ends meet, Mel didn˜t begin playing basketball until 1946 (when he was 14 years old) shortly after WWII had ended. As a teenager he longed to be a war hero like his father who helped defeat the Germans under the great George S. Patton. However his aim shooting jump shots was better than his aim with a rifle so he began to concentrate solely on basketball thus giving up his dream of becoming a field sniper. As a youth Mel experienced excruciating battles of one-on-one with his older brother Richard. And it was during these battles with Rick that Mel˜s game grew rapidly and he soon became one of the finest shooters in Tennessee.

 

In high school Mel was not only an All-State basketball point guard his junior and senior years, but also the Valedictorian for the class of 1950. He received numerous scholarship offers from powerhouses like Kentucky and UCLA, but turned them down to join the Marines. Mel knew enlisting meant going off to Korea and having to fight in the Korean War, but he felt it was the honorable and noble thing to do. Also he hoped to return home a war hero as his father had done only a few years earlier.

 

While living in Korea, Mel made the most of his time there. While not off fighting the communists, Mel was either visiting the local ˜massage˜ parlors or playing basketball. However the Korean natives never quite caught on to basketball and soon the natives insisted Mel never play the sport there in their land again. Devastated Mel went to drink away his sorrows in Seoul˜s Yong Feng Chang˜s Sportsbar. It was here he met his real destiny.

 

In the back of the bar was an old plywood table that lay across two wooden chairs. An old fishing net divided the table and on each end was a small bamboo paddle. A walnut was also lying on the table under one of the paddles. When Mel inquired what it was, the bartender told him it was a ping-pong table that the locals played on every Friday and Saturday night. Curious Mel went over and picked up a paddle and invited a young boy to play with him. Although the young boy easily beat him, Mel continued playing each day. Though it took months of practice, Mel later became known as the ˜Ping Pong Chicky Chong Daddy˜ and was the first American to ever win the Seoul City Championship.

 

After retiring from the Marines in 1970, Mel enrolled at Columbia State Community College. Now near 40, Mel knew it was time to earn the college degree he always wanted. However his downfall came when CSCC athletic director Dave Hall brought in two new shiny ping-pong tables and set them up at the Student Center. Mel skipped at least one class every day to play ping-pong. He proved untouchable and was undefeated for 15 straight years (in which he only took 1 class a semester) until he lost to Japanese exchange student Tito Suzuki in an overtime championship finale. Devastated Mel turned back to basketball and the Courts of Hohenwald for relief.

 

Mel teamed up with Doc Haley in 1987 and they proved to be an unstoppable duo. They won the Courts Championship three years in a row and were voted best duo of all time. However in 1991 Mel got the itch again to play ping-pong and retired from the Courts. He re-enrolled at CSCC and was planning on getting his degree in education. However a setback came in 1993 as the CSCC ping-pong championship game was inadvertently scheduled the same day and time as Mel˜s Biology II final. Rather than lose the championship to CSCC ping-pong Rookie of the Year Tukaki Chan, Mel skipped the final and opted to play Chan. Mel won a close and exciting game, which Aubrey Flagg labeled ˜the best I˜ve eva seen˜. Despite pleas to Mr. Bailiss, Mel was unable to make up the biology exam and thus flunked out of CSCC for the second time, and was banned from the Student Center forever.

 

As with most Legends˜ stories, this one too has a happy ending. Mel enrolled in MTSU in 1999 and has since earned his bachelor degree. He still occasionally plays ping-pong, but hasn˜t touched a basketball in over a decade. Despite being known more for his ping pong play, Mel did have a major impact on the Courts the few years he was there and for that I say, ˜THANK YOU, Mighty Mel Stephens!˜

[govu]

Thanks PR Man that was a great story about a truly great American athlete and war hero. Keep the Bios coming, they are the best stories ever on Coacht.

[LCHS2003]

When will the next biography be?. They were pretty cool and had all of us laughing. Most of the basketball players are wanting to hear about Clinton. How about it?

[Guest Scalper]

As many other Legends before him, William James Dabbs grew up on the hard streets of Hohenwald. Growing up as a kid, Billy's only wish was to become a star player for the Panthers and play for the Legendary Albert Elison. Billy's dreams came crashing down in 1994 when Big Al told him that he just was not good enough. Billy was forced to take his dream to the courts at Memorial Park. Billy still holds the record for playing the most games by himself at the park (16 hours straight). Despite his short comings, Billy developed into an accurate set shooter at the courts. In 1996 he earned the nickname "Billy the Kid" for his shooting accuracy. Billy began spending time at the LCMS gym on Saturdays watching the local junior pro teams compete. This is where he became acquainted with Junior Pro Coaching Legend William (Billy) James. Coach James has a career coaching record of 799 wins and only 11 losses in twenty years. Billy the Kid began dreaming of someday becoming a real Jr.Pro head coach himself someday. Billy became obsessed with the X's and O's of the game of basketball. He practically spent every waking hour studying games and strategies. On Saturdays, Billy would be at the gym at 8:00am with his notebook in hand awaiting to analyze the games for the day. Billy also began attending the practices of some of Hohenwald's most notable coaches including Billy James, Rhonda Wills, Greg Amacher, Richie Anderson, and Jeff Durham. By season's end Billy had developed his own personal Coaching library complete in a 10 volume set. He approached Jr.Pro Executive Director Frank Wills about filling a head coaching vacancy in the 4th and 5th grade boys league. On October 1, 1996 Billy began practicing his team which was made up of some of the leagues most underrated talent including: Billy Joe Sharp, Chris Reynolds, Dustin Runions, and Tobey Morton. By seasons end Billy the Kids team had finished second in league play with their only losses coming to the James team led by Darren "Big Game" James. This set up a championship game of epic proportions between the Master and the Student. Billy the Kid was determined to prove to his Coaching mentor that he belonged in the annals of Jr.Pro history. The Kid's team kept the game close throughout by utilizing an exhausting stall offense that The Kid borrowed from LCMS Coaching Legend Chuck "the Snakeman" Stanley known as the "Stanley Stall". With just under a minute to play the score was tied at 30-30 and the James team had the ball. Coach James called timeout to set up the play for the game winning shot. Big Game was to come out to the top of the Key to receive the ball, he would pass the ball to the wing and and the ball-side post would come up and set a back screen for Big game. The Ball-side wing would lob the ball to the rim where a wide-open Big Game would catch and score. The one thing Coach James overlooked was the fact that the Kid had instructed his star center Chris "Smits" Reynolds to stay back into helpside. When the lob pass came, Smits intercepted it and quickly passed it out to Tobey who passed up the court to a breaking B.J.Sharp for the game winning bucket at the buzzer. Fans rushed the floor to celebrate. During the awards ceremony, Coach James protested by presenting Director Wills with a copy of B.J.'s transcript. It was ruled that at 13, B.J. was to old to play in the 4th-5th league and the Kid's team had to forfeit. Crushed by the loss, the Kid moved to Columbia where to this day he is active at the Riverside Youth Basketball league and credited with helping develop some of Columbia's best basketball talent.

[govu]

This past Sunday morning at 8:00am, Lewis County's favorite son Joshua "Buster" Keltner departed from his hime in Western Lewis Co. to begin his journey as a professional boxer. It was a sight to see as fans lined the streets waving flags to show their support for their hometown hero. The Tennessee Army National Guard provided Buster with an escort all the way to Nashville. Reports from the Nashville School of Professional Boxing have indicated that buster has already risen to the top of his class and is currently ranked #1 with 3 TKO's. In this morning's teleconference, Buster reminded the fans about the May 3 boxing event at Barnes Auction. Buster say's "I will be READY to knockout Earl the Pearl no later than the 5th round." Tickets are going fast but a few seats remain. You may purchase a ticket by contacting the Lewis County Professional Sports Council or Howard "the Bear" Spears, Executive Director.

[ViQueen]

I'm not real familiar with all of these players from Lewis Co., but I remember a tall, thin guy that played 3-5 years ago. He wasn't that good on defense, but I remember him being able to shoot the lights out. Any help with this? He was a white boy with brownish hair. Any ideas of who this could be? :confused:

[LegendsPRman]

Jeremy "Ewok" Halbrooks grew up in a Centerville Ghetto in the heart of Hickman County. Every Sunday morning when Jeremy was very young, he and his family would load up in their beaten down station wagon and travel to nearby Hohenwald to attend Freedom Holy Temple Church. After the service Jeremy and his family would go and visit his mother's sister, Judy Reeves, and her family. As a young child, Jeremy stood in awe and was mesmerized at the athletic ability of his two first cousins, Randy and Clinton. Being several years older than Jeremy, Randy and Clinton would often pick on the much younger by having him stand under their 8' basketball goal while they dunked on his head.

 

After years of playing with the "White Wonder" and "Handy" Randy, Jeremy's game began improving and he was finally invited to Memorial Park by Clinton to play in the inaugural three-on-three family-members-only basketball tournament at the legendary Courts. It was a cold October Sunday evening as Clinton signed up his family to compete for the winner-take-all $600 cash prize. Other families competing in the 3 on 3 event were:

John, Derrick, and Josh Powers;

Larry Rodgers, Lil' Jerry Brown, and Dennis Klein;

Ryan, Chris (Smits), and Damon Reynalds;

Evan, Andy, Chris Lawson;

Lincoln, Lantz, and Billy Dabbs;

The Tanner family;

Patrick, Lain, and Scotty Hinson; and

Bobby, David and B.J. Sharp.

 

Each family played extraordinarily well, but the Reeves' and the Powers' made it to the finals. With Clinton guarding John, Randy guarding Derrick, and Jeremy guarding Josh, it seemed as though the teams were evenly matched, as the final score would soon indicate. After a brutal 37 minutes the score was tied at 28 apiece after a "White Mike" jumper, and the next team to score a basket would win. "The Mailman" John Powers slowly brought the ball up the court and passed inside to Josh. As Josh was fading away to clinch the game for the Powers' family, Randy came from the weak side to knock the ball away and into Jeremy's hands. Jeremy sprinted up court and, despite pleas from family and friends, shot an 18-foot jumper over the outstreched arm of Derrick Powers. The crowd fell silent but soon erupted with applause as the ball hit nothing but net. The Reeves' family had won the first family 3 on 3 championship and all because of Jeremy˜s last second heroics. Despite his overall stat line being modest at best (7 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block and 1 assist) Jeremy was named MVP of the tournament.

 

Jeremy continued playing at the Courts for several more years but abruptly retired in 1999 following reconstructive knee surgery. He hasn't been seen at the Courts since, but you can find him hanging out at the Parking Lot in Hohenwald on most Saturday nights. Most Court historians will remember him for his last second heroics in the 3 on 3 tournament against the Powers' family, where he went from being the "black sheep" of the Reeves' family to a hero with one defining shot. For that one defining shot, where he proved that anyone can rise from the bottom to the top in one shining moment of glory, I say, "THANK YOU", Jeremy Halbrooks.

[sportsman]

I need to know the basketball histories of some more of the legends of the courts. Anyone out there with some information on: Tim Baker, Chris Tanner, Chris Overbey, or Brian Spicer? If so please speak up and let us hear some of the legendary stories of the greatest basketball players that Lewis County has ever seen.

[MeanJeanJr]

I heard that Buster had a very hard week of training, and is now even more prepared than ever to fight the "Pearl". In a interview via cell phone on his way home late Fri. night Buster had this to say: "I feel very confident going into my second week of training, I am getting stronger mentally and physically and still believe Pearl will last no longer than round five! " However it is being reported to me that Buster is deeply saddened that his partner/trainer/ and longtime friend Larry Rodgers has yet to call and check on him or invite him to do anything as of late Saturday afternoon. This could be a huge mental blow to Buster and cause the fight/career to be postponed or cancelled.

[LegendsPRman]

There have only been a few great father-son duo's in Courts history. Many recall John and Josh Powers, Charlie and Bryan Tibbs, and Doc and Steven Haley. But after reviewing the Court's record book all weekend I found another great duo that sometimes gets overlooked, "Dunkin" Donald and "Shoeless" Joe Chaffin. These two have rarely been given the respect they deserve, and have probably been erased from many of our memories. So to pay tribute to this dynamic father-son duo, I now give you the biography of Donald Chaffin.

 

While most of the legends grew up in poverty and lived in harsh environments, none can compare to Donald Chaffin's early life. Living in the gang-plagued, inner-city slums of Chicago, Donald was raised in numerouse ghettos by his street hustling, con artist father, whose only true love in life other than his son was basketball. Surrounded by prostitutes, crack addicts, and mobsters, Donald had to grow up quick. When his father wasn't selling hot merchandise, or scalping tickets to Bulls games, he and Donald would spend most of their at one of the numerous Chicago Courts working on their games.

 

Joe, who was height-deprived because of poor nutrition as a child, did not look like your typical basketball player. Despite standing only 3'8", he his best to teach Donald the game of basketball from a Center's perspective. By the time Donald was in the sixth grade he had developed some great low post moves and a killer hook shot. He was starting for his Jr. High team and his career in basketball looked bright. But just when things were looking up for the Chaffin's in Chicago, an angry mob boss put out a hit on Joe. When Joe learned of this he and Donald immediately dropped everything they were doing and headed for the railroad tracks, leaving behind everything they owned, including Joe's tennis shoes (thus earning him the nickname "shoeless" Joe). They courageously hopped on a moving train and planned on being in Florida within a week. However their plans and the train they were on both crashed midway through their trip just outside the Hohenwald city limits near Kimmins. Thankful the Chaffin's survived and began their new life in Hohenwald.

 

It wasn't long after they reached Hohenwald that the Chaffin's discovered the Courts. Everyday you could find Donald and Joe at the Courts playing against some of the best ballplayers around. Donald was continuously improving and in the Fall, Joe signed up Donald in the infamous Jr. Pro basketball league. Donald was drafted by Billy "The Tiger" Dabbs and soon established himself as one of the top centers in the league. Early in the season Donald led his team to victory and had 38 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 blocked shots against big Nick Spicer. It was after this game that many fans began loving Donald and prompted legendary coach Albert Ellison to lable Donald "The Next Big Thing". Donald lost some of his fan support, however, in the league championship game against Billy James' fighting Volunteer squad led by "Big Game" James and Phillip Denton. Late in the game with the score tied, Head Official Travis McKissack called a charge on Donald. Donald immediately protested and received a technical foul. Joe then ran on the court from the stands to confront McKissack and was ejected from the gym. Donald then took up for his dad and shoved McKissack. T-Mac T'd him up again and threw him out of the gym as well. Before Donald left the court he threw both arms up in the air and gave everyone in the gym a "one finger salute". This led to League Commissioner Frank Wills later banning Donald and his dad from participating in Jr. Pro events for life.

 

When Donald reached the 8th grade he made the varsity squad for the Running Raiders led by Coach Howard "The Bear" Spears and Hughbie Brown Smith. Donald started in the post and was having a great year, when abruptly he and his father vanished. No one to this day knows what happened to the Chaffins, though there has been speculation that the mob finally caught up them. Some say the Chaffins are "swimming with the fishes" in the Buffalo River while others insist they are buried under the football field at Panther Stadium. Still close friends of the Chaffins, like Billy Dabbs and Lil' Jerry Brown, hold out hope that the two escaped and are in Florida having fun in the sun. Regardless of where they are now, the Chaffins made basketball exciting and entertaining in Hohenwald for a few short years and for that I say, "Thank You, 'Dunkin' Donald and 'Shoeless' Joe Chaffin for all you have done for basketball".