Allan Houston scores with guidance for graduates

Allan Houston was invited to address students at Western Connecticut State University’s undergraduate commencement Sunday because he is a former pro basketball star. The advice he offered, though, was based on his experience as a father and a student himself, along with a little he learned as a competitor.

Houston, who played for the New York Knicks for nine years and finished his career as one of the NBA’s top scorers, with a reputation as a gentleman of the game, said most of his best ideas came from family and friends.

He recounted a playoff contest in New York. He couldn’t remember which team they were playing, he said, although it may have been against the Miami Heat, which the Knicks always had a tough time beating.

“This one was very intense,” Houston remembered. “We lost a playoff game in Madison Square Garden. You don’t want to lose a playoff game in Madison Square Garden, your home court.

“I remember walking off the court having my head down, walking through the tunnel and of course I could hear some of the comments fans were making. On my way home a friend called me. I expected him to say something like, ‘Don’t feel bad, you played hard.’

“Instead he said, ‘Allan, don’t ever let me see you walk with your head down after a game. A child of God never has his head down after he loses.”

Houston said that command forever changed his outlook.

“Your true values -- your calling-- are much bigger than the game of basketball,” was the lesson he learned, Houston told the graduates.

He said his own parents, both teachers, instilled in him a respect for education, along with an expectation for hard work, humility and sacrifice.

Still, Houston said, “I think that is different than knowing your inner self.”

He encouraged the new graduates to continue the journey of self-discovery by describing part of his job as an assistant general manager with the Knicks, which requires him to conduct interviews each year with prospective NBA draft choices.

“I ask them, what do you want your legacy to be? Most of them say, ‘I want to win.’ And I say, ‘OK, but what happens after you win?’”

There are always one or two, Houston said, who give him the answer he is looking for.

“They have a much bigger idea of what they can add as a person, other than points and statistics,” he said. Most often, it is as a parent, a teacher, or a co-worker.

“When you have that special calling in your life, it enhances your identity,” he said. “It helps you understand true commitment once you understand your true value.

“It’s not that you win,” Houston concluded. “It’s how you win.”