It was … surreal. I’m not sure there are enough words to describe it. – Thurl Bailey
SALT LAKE CITY — Thirty-three years after Jim Valvano went aimlessly zigzagging across the basketball court, Thurl Bailey felt a jolt of awe as President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Orrin Hatch entered the East Wing of the White House.
There it was, the inimitable power of the presidency.
Born a half-mile away and raised 15 minutes from the White House, Bailey imagined as a kid what it would be like to be inside. The wonder remained even as a college student, when he worked as a congressional page. He knew the Capitol well — including the underground tunnels.
“But that’s not the same as being able to go to the big house,” the Jazz TV analyst said this week.
As a college kid, he saw Jimmy Carter’s State of the Union address. He accepted congratulations from Ronald Reagan via satellite after he and the North Carolina State basketball team won the 1983 NCAA championship. But on Monday, he and teammates from that historic team finally got to meet the president in person.
“It was … majestic,” Bailey said, pausing to find the right words. “It was … surreal. I’m not sure there are enough words to describe it.”
To make it even more meaningful, he received permission to bring along his son, who only last month arrived in Washington, D.C., to serve an LDS mission.
The impetus for the trip was an inquiry Bailey made to Hatch a few months ago. Bailey wanted to know the process of meeting the president. Every few years, members of the historic NCSU team gather for a reunion. But some of that team is now gone. Lorenzo Charles was killed five years ago in a bus accident. Valvano, the coach whose joyous celebration has graced highlight clips for decades, died of cancer in 1993.
Bailey longed for a visit to the White House the team never got. When the Wolfpack won the national title, there was no budget for congratulatory trips.
In January, the president announced the founding of the National Cancer Moonshot Initiative, designed to accelerate cancer research. Bailey’s reasoning was that honoring Valvano’s team would go hand in hand. So he contacted Hatch and soon they were on the presidential calendar.
This year the NCSU reunion would be in Washington.
The Wolfpack had shocked heavily favored Houston that spring day in Albuquerque so long ago, when Dereck Whittenburg’s desperation shot fell a foot short, but Charles waited at the rim. The ensuing dunk triggered one of the most jubilant, unrehearsed moments in sports history when Valvano went running for someone — anyone — to hug.
The ceremony was far less spontaneous Monday. Players gathered at 9:30 a.m., and after going through security, Biden briefed them on the Moonshot Initiative, after which they got the White House tour. At 11:30 they went to the East Wing for the main event.
“There’s so much buildup and so many expectations, you can’t really fathom it until it happens,” Bailey said.
Obama shook every team member’s hand and cordially spoke with players, spouses and family members.
“You could tell he wasn’t in a hurry; he was enjoying it,” Bailey said.
A confirmed basketball fan, Obama bantered about the unexpected twist at the end of the game and the Valvano moment. The president apologized for not having any red and white Wolfpack clothing on.
“We can fix that,” Bailey said, handing him a jersey with his name on the back.
Bailey said there was an unmistakable sense of power in the White House, but pointed out there was strength, too, in a team that had no serious chance to win the national championship, but did. Virginia, an earlier opponent, had Ralph Sampson, a seemingly unstoppable force. Houston had Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler, future NBA hall of famers.
NCSU had gone just 8-6 in conference.
“I think there’s a lot of power in what we accomplished as a team back then. It’s a powerful story,” Bailey said. “We were fortunate enough to visit the Commander in Chief and understand there’s power in that. Regardless of your politics, and for lack of better words, it was a powerful occasion.”
Both then and now.
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