Trail Blazers Coach Commits an Amazing Act of Compassion.

aol news | April 28, 2003 | unknown

[flying Elvis]

(April 28) - Portland Trail Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks may not be able to carry a tune. But, to one young singer, his is the voice of an angel.

Natalie Gilbert was selected to sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at a nationally televised NBA Western Conference playoff game Friday night. She took her place alone at midcourt as the crowd that packed Portland's Rose Garden Arena stood in excitement and anticipation.

The 13-year-old did fine for the first few lines.

Then, somewhere around the "twilight's last gleaming," she forgot the words.

She closed her eyes and shook her head. She appeared to be on the verge of tears.

Desperate, Gilbert turned to look for her father. That's when she saw Cheeks walking toward her.

The coach put his arm around the girl and began singing with her. He encouraged the crowd to sing along. Together, they made it all the way through to "the home of the brave."

"I didn't even know if I knew all the words, but as many times as I've heard the national anthem, I just went over and continued to sing," Cheeks told CBS SportsLine. "The words started coming back to me and I just tried to help her out."

"It helped me a lot. It made me feel more comfortable," Gilbert said in a CNN interview. "It was just like having a huge choir of 20,000 people around you just singing a great patriotic song."

"I wish I could help some of the players like that," Cheeks said.

The Portland players needed lots of help in Friday's contest. The Dallas Mavericks pounded them, 115-103, leaving the Blazers one game away from being bounced out of the playoffs in the first round.

On Sunday, Portland fought back for a 98-79 victory, ending a 10-game postseason skid.

And the team has invited Natalie Gilbert to sing the national anthem again next season.

[flying Elvis]

This is one of the more heartwarming things I have read in recent days. I am now a Trail Blazers fan.

[flying Elvis]

I haven't slept in 36 hours and goofed up the title. Can you remove "shows"?

[William McKinley]

Be a fan of their coach. He has always been classy, and it was a very classy move (it was even better than it appears in print).

But the Blazers, as a team, are not worthy of support. They are a collection of thugs, assembled long before Mo Cheeks took over the team.

[NittanyLion]

Maurice Cheeks is a class act.

[babble-on]

absolutely, always has been even when he was with the Knicks

[Seeking the truth]

Mo Cheeks was a classy player unlike the many thugs/felons in the NBA today.

[dixiechick2000]

This is a very heartwarming story and Maurice Cheeks is a great guy, but William McKinley is right about the players.

[Patriotthunder]

This is a great story. With this one simple act Maurice Cheeks showed what kind of man he is.

Go Trailblazers!

[Dog]

Mo Cheeks is a class guy...

[admiralsn]

Mo Cheeks, along with fellow 76er Dr. J, were two of the classiest guys to ever play the game.

[benjaminthomas]

I am now a Trail Blazers fan.

A perfect example of drawing the wrong conclusion based on one data point. This was indeed a great moment, and Maurice Cheeks is as far as I understand, a good guy. But the Trail Blazers have a reputation of being a bunch of thugs and malcontents. You could do better in your choice of teams to root for.

[benjaminthomas]

You beat me to it!

[flying Elvis]

Okay, I stand corrected, my emotions got to me, I'm now a Maurice Cheeks fan. : )

[pbear8]

She lived all performers nightmare, thank God a compassionate man came to her rescue.

[CathyRyan]

After Saddam and his thugs forget about teams to root for... I am looking for humanity to root for. :)

[Tallguy]

Mo Cheeks, along with fellow 76er Dr. J, were two of the classiest guys to ever play the game.

Agree with you on Mo Cheeks. Didn't Dr. J get slapped with a paternity suit a few years back?

[Ferret Fawcet]

thank you for a wonderful, sweet story.

[Egregious Philbin]

[FryingPan101]

A blatant act of pure goodness. I'm overwhelmed.

[NotJustAnotherPrettyFace]

This is too cool. I'll pass this along to all my singing friends. Many of us have sung the National Anthems at major league sports events.