Wesley, the Hornets' starting point guard, has refused to talk to police, Blydenburgh, the crash investigator. T'WOLVES' SEALY DIES IN HEAD-ON COLLISION - Chicago Tribune Bridges said Phills' 1997 convertible, with the vanity plate And as the captain of the Charlotte Hornets, the 6-foot-5-inch guard was a talented, highly-regarded basketball player. Bobby Phills, a guard with the NBA's Charlotte Hornets, was killed Wednesday in a car accident following a team practice. He was someone that you would want your children to be like.". The Hornets' guard lost control of his 1997 Porsche 993 Cabriolet and collided head-on with a vehicle heading towards him. Wesley was later convicted of reckless driving for his part in the incident. He averaged 26 points and 13 rebounds his senior year and helped the team to a state championship. That moment that mistake ended Phillss life at 30 years old. Its kind of like me and my dad we spent a bunch of time on the court. In October, the reserve guard Eldridge Recasner was left with a broken shoulder and partly collapsed lung after an accident. Drafted in the second round in 1991 by the Milwaukee Bucks, he was cut from the team that December, played in the Continental Basketball Association, then was signed by the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 10-day contract on March 19, 1992. Silas joined Charlotte in 1997 as an assistant under Dave Cowens. I dont know anything about him. We come out of the building and thats where we were going., Thats the routine they were following the morning of the accident. 65-mph zone on Interstate 485. After six seasons in Cleveland, Phills was signed by the Hornets on Aug. 19, 1997, as a free agent. Bobby is gone, Silas said. Not quite. Friends, teammates, and family remember the career, legacy, and tragic death of former Charlotte Hornets guard Bobby Phills. Before sending Phills to the gym, he had one more lesson for his player. Phills also was a finalist for the NBA Sportsman of the Year award in 1998. Hornets Guard Killed in Car Accident Hornets' Phills Killed in Car Wreck\ the Nba Guard Isremembered As a He was going 107 m.p.h. He recalled only two players who had never turned down requests to appear at charitable events. Charges to be filed against Phills' teammate in deadly crash - NewsOn6.com In fact, he shut MJ down once and I was really impressed. Hornets guard killed in car accident - January 13, 2000 All rights reserved. Bridges said. I knew that he had passed away, Silas said. The black car carried a vanity plate that read SLAMN. That was his dream car, recalled Phillss younger brother Dwayne. The fans offered the family an extended ovation. He had only recently purchased the Oldsmobile Cutlass he was driving when he turned onto Tyvola. The team said Phills was killed instantly. No matter who you were on the team or within the organization, Bobby Phills looked out for you. While the No. He thought it was his fault that it happened. Silas told Wesley that the team couldnt function if Wesley didnt play his best, and eventually the players game returned to form. The pair rebuilt Phillss shot, with Jobe urging Phills to keep the elbow of his shooting hand under the ball. Bobby Ray Phills II (December 20, 1969 January 12, 2000) was an American professional basketball player. Phills spent the bulk of his high school career in the paint, where he was often outsized but seldom outmuscled. Shortly after that, Charlotte Bobcats majority owner Michael Jordan announced that the franchise had applied to restore the Hornets name in Charlotte. 13 was used when the franchise was branded the Bobcats, the team re-retired Phills' number after rebranding back to the Hornets name in 2014-15. When something like that happens, you blame everybody. What's more impressive, however, is that Bobby was a true man. guard or small forward for the Hornets, and sometimes played as a She got in her car. His father, Dr. Bobby Phills, is director of the College of Engineering Sciences, Technology and Agriculture at Hornet Phills killed in car crash - Hendersonville Times-News Daddy is in heaven with the angels, Bobby Phills III told several hundred mourners at Charlottes Central Church of God before returning to the crowd and embracing his year-old sister, Kerstie. Were you racing Bobby Phills that day? his attorney asked. I had no idea what happened, but as I looked in my rearview, his car was spinning, went into the oncoming traffic, hit a car, he said. Joe Fraziers Daughter, Jacqui Frazier Lyde, Challenges Muhammad Alis Daughter, Laila, To A Boxing , Earth, Wind & Fire makes mark on Rock Walk Entertainment music group inducted to RockWalk of, How To Deal With Your Childs Bad Dreams Brief Article Everything hurt. It was capitalism that hooked him. The new coach was close with Phills, whom Charlotte had signed to a seven-year, $33 million contract in 1997. His Porsche veered into oncoming traffic and. "Bobby Phills represented the very best of the NBA," Stern said. What you doing? Dwayne asked. The game was postponed. L.E. Because I have to be strong for my children. [5] The drivers of the other two vehicles recovered, while Phills was pronounced dead at the scene. He gets deflections. When the Knicks hired Walsh in 2008, Jobe came aboard as a scout, and he remains part of the Knicks organization. Or keep them on the same level. In 1995, Phills called Jobe after matching up with Michael Jordan, excited that he was able to hold the NBAs greatest scorerbelow his average. to court records. He joined the Hornets in 1997 after six years with Cleveland and was in the third year of a seven-year, $33 million contract. Wallace mandated that all of his players learn to play in the post. Clay Moser, an assistant coach when Phills played for the CBA's Sioux Falls Skyforce, said Phills had wanted to be a veterinarian. Brewer noticed, too: He had the skills because he worked on it, so when he became older, now hes not that skinny little boy anymore. It is so sad to hear of Bobby Phills' accident. Alongside earning from his games, Phills was also active in charitable works. He was someone that you would want your children to be like.. He surveyed the wreckage, concluced that Phills had not survived, and walked over to Wesley, who was standing, speechless, with his hands on his head. Although it's undoubtedly . She drove closer and saw the police and emergency personnel. "This young man represented the very best of Southern Shinn found his worst fears confirmed. Additionally, his career earnings are exposed to be $40,545,600. You cant drive that fast. Phills, Silas said, told him it was not a big deal. A Columbia, S.C., jury found in his favor in December. The Charlotte Hornets announced today that the team will honor the late Bobby Phills and re-hang his retired No. Coach, we just cant deal with that, he said. That night, Charlotte was scheduled tohost the Chicago Bulls. The NBA has suffered another tragic loss in another fatal highway accident. charities and related organizations. who were killed in accidents: Drazen Petrovic (1993) and Terry Phills earned a bachelor's degree in animal science from Southern University in Baton Rouge, La. When the Hornets returned to playing, Shinn visited the locker room before a game shortly after the accident. If you had a son, Wallace said, you would want him to grow up to be like Bobby Phills., Wallace decided to stop coaching not long after Phillss death. Phills Sr. believes he could have easily hit his head on the deck. Its one of those things where you feel like everybodys telling you, Oh, your father was this so you automatically have to be this good, Trey, now 18, said. "He could have been one of the foremost black leaders in the Phills's teammates were on the scene with club officials immediately after the accident, which occurred less than a mile from the Charlotte Coliseum. That thing with Bobby Phills, Im telling you, it almost made me lose my faith. executive vice president of basketball operations. David Stern, the N.B.A. He paid $80 in court costs, according to Yeah, Bobby was perfect. crash investigation, probably sometime next week. "Bobby Phills passed away a winner, he stands on the court of champions." There was nothing he didnt think he could do. List of basketball players who died during their careers, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season 3-point field goal leaders, "Yale's Trey Phills Looks to Emulate His Dad, Ex-NBA Guard Bobby Phills, Who Died in 2000", Hornets guard Bobby Phills killed in car wreck, An Animal Intensity Cavaliers Guard Bobby Phills Is That Rarest Of Breeds: A Demon On D Who Can Also Nail The Three, PRO BASKETBALL; Hornets' Phills Killed in Car Crash, N.B.A. Nobody was there to validate him, Kendall said. His Hornets teammates. I can't tell you what he meant to the Cavs. Those guys were Bobby Phills and Muggsy Bogues, he said. And there was a point where, no, I wasnt that good on the court., Stephen Silas ended up being the one to help Trey develop his confidence and his game. I stopped in the middle of the street. When Wallace learned of Phillss death, he thought back on their good times together. "The skid marks indicate he was not going in a straight line," he said. Phills died while traveling on Tyvola Road in Charlotte, North Carolina,after driving at a high rate of speed with then-teammate David Wesley. ", Active in the community, Phills volunteered for children's charities and related organizations. Bobby Phills' tragic death in 2000 shocked and saddened the basketball world Jan. 12, 2000 was just another practice day for Bobby Phills and the Charlotte Hornets. posted speed was 45 mph. The other day, I was filling out this application. Jan. 12 will mark 17 years since the death of former NBA guard Bobby Phills, who was killed in a three-car accident after losing control of his vehicle and crashing into oncoming traffic. You sitting down? Phills Sr. knew something had to be wrong. Treys a stat stuffer, said coach Shonn Brown. Phills, a 6-foot-5 defensive stopper and a team leader, was one of the Hornets top reserves. But him and David Wesley, they were driving at each other, just zooming, Silas said. Hornets' Phills Killed in Car Crash ET,Phills' family and friends looked back on the tragedy while updating their family life more than a decade-and-a-half later. She saw paramedics on the scene and feared the worst as she turned to look at her husbands Porsche. as spontaneous speed competition," Charlotte-Mecklenburg police Phills The Hornets were 15 games into the lockout-shortened 1999 season, with a 4-11 record, when Silas took over. Wesley remained with the franchise when the Hornets moved from Charlotte to New Orleans in 2002. The vehicle skidded several hundred feet and into oncoming traffic, where it collided head-on with another car. County court records. Bobby Phills died in a car crash after leaving a Hornets practice in January 2000 when Trey was 3 years old. Cookie Policy. Jobe told Phills to shoot alone. Police said Phills, who was driving a black Porsche, was speeding when he lost control of his car, crossed into oncoming traffic and collided into another car, which was driven by Robert Woolard, 31, the Chicago SunTimes reported. past, according to The Charlotte Observer. Of course, when I found out who it was, I started doubting myself, Woolard said. Bobby, you cant do that, he told him. I have to pick my time when I can mourn, she told ESPN as the first anniversary of the accident approached. Not only was Bobby a tremendous person, but a great husband, father and role model that everyone respected and admired. It got so bad, I blamed God. The police report said Phills was traveling eastbound on West Tyvola Road just before 11 a.m., less than a mile from the Charlotte Coliseum.