| | CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Charlotte Hornets gave fallen
teammate Bobby Phills their highest honor Wednesday night by retiring his jersey and hoisting it into the rafters of the Charlotte Coliseum.
|  | | Dr. Bobby Phills, the player's father, holds his grandson, Bobby Phills III. |
Teammates and family members fought away tears at the end of a
10-minute ceremony as Phills' brother, Dwayne, perched the player's
3-year-old son, Bobby Ray Phills III, on his shoulders. The
youngster pulled on a rope that raised his father's white jersey
and No. 13 to its permanent home in the Charlotte Coliseum's
rafters, 100 feet above the playing surface.
The boy was wearing a jersey bearing his father's number and
sporting "R.I.P. DADDY" where players' names are usually
inscribed.
It was the first jersey retirement in the franchise's 11-year
history.
Phills, the Hornets' co-captain, died Jan. 12 in a traffic
accident near the coliseum. Police say Phills was racing teammate
and close friend David Wesley at speeds in excess of 100 mph when
he lost control of his car and crashed. Phills was killed
instantly; Wesley faces two misdemeanor traffic charges.
Even though Phills died nearly a month ago, the Hornets
scheduled the ceremony for Wednesday night because the opponent was
the Cleveland Cavaliers. Phills spent his first six NBA seasons
playing for Cleveland before signing a seven-year, $33 million
contract with Charlotte. He was in his third season with the
Hornets at the time of his death.
The ceremony included a video tribute and the presentation of a
$135,000 check by his Charlotte teammates to the Bobby Phills Scholarship Fund. Framed jerseys were presented to Phills' widow, Kendall, and his parents, Bobby and Mary Phills.
Kendall Phills presented a $100,000 check to the scholarship foundation.
"Therefore Bobby's dream will never be retired," she said.
| |
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AUDIO/VIDEO
 Kendall Phills gives thanks during her husband's jersey retirement ceremony.
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