※转自奥兰多哨兵报Orlando Sentinel，原文连结已缺失；中文翻译不知道是谁做的，只 知道来自百度＿NBA吧，译文连结也缺失，都是利用Google的页库存档所提取，故我有所修 改和部份重翻过；原本是因为我在Google找"Wayne Hall”这个关键字时发现的文章，不知 道贴在这里有没有人已经看过或贴过？！ 原文页库存档：http://0rz.net/3f1qb 翻译页库存档：http://0rz.net/441rg --- 麦迪失去亲友的心理过程 　　那是一个悲伤的时刻，但更糟的是，悲剧从此并没有结束，反而变本加厉地跟随在他周 围，尽管他逐渐成为NBA的超级明星，但是他获得的越多，失去的也就越多--七个赛季，七 次死亡，死去的都是麦迪无法忘记的人。 　　「Ryan McGrady，我们都叫他Ryan T，他临死之前正在打球，突然就离开了人间。」 　　「Corey Bess，是我的表弟，被枪杀了。」 　　「Vanessa Jones，我的好朋友之一，她的男朋友用手枪打中她的脑袋。」 　　「Eric Anderson，那个可怜的男孩、我最好的夥伴之一，也被枪杀了。」 　　「Henry Andrews，我和他一起去上学，结果他遇到车祸，死了。」 　　「Jaclyn McGrady，那是我的继母，死於癌症。」 　　「Johnnie Ruth Green--是她抚养我长大，心脏病夺去了她的生命。」 　　麦迪在痛苦地诉说着，每说到一个死者的名字，他的嘴角就会痛苦地抽搐一下。当生命 中最重要的人之一Ryan T死亡之後，麦迪觉得命运太不公平，现在，有时候他都在怀疑自己 的NBA生涯是否也会突然「死亡」。 　这些突如其来、无法预测但又总是连绵不绝的死亡几乎打垮麦迪，因为死去的都是他身 边重要的人，那些含辛茹苦养育他长大的亲人或者发小儿。很少人能够理解他的真实心境， 当亲朋一个个走向天堂，身在人间的麦迪被无尽的恐惧咬啮着，就像一群人坐在一条船上， 当一个又一个的人被大海吞没时，幸存的那个人其实是最害怕的人。 他最怕电话在午夜中响起。「这样的事情发生过很多次。」24岁的麦迪神情麻木，用低 沉的嗓音缓缓地说，「每天晚上睡觉的时候，我都担心是否还会有人遭到意外。因为以前， 电话响起，传来的总是坏消息。」 第一个在麦迪卧室响起的午夜电话是1997年11月，那时他正在多伦多打第一个NBA季前 赛。比赛的疲劳让小麦很快沉沉入睡，但到了深夜，他被一阵急促尖利的电话铃声吵醒，对 方告诉麦迪，他的好朋友Henry Andrews在州际4号公路驾车的时候遭遇车祸，不治身亡。 那是一个多麽顽强的橄榄球运动员，Andrews的个子虽然很矮，可是即使碰到比他大上 两号的对手，他也绝对不会畏惧。可是车祸却夺去他年轻的生命，麦克格雷迪很伤心，但过 了一段时间，他总算接受这个事实。那是车祸，只是个意外，不是吗？小麦经常拿这个理由 来安慰自己。可那是在Ryan T死亡之前，在後一起悲剧发生後，它几乎改变麦迪整个人生态 度。 当时，他在多伦多才刚刚开始自己的职业生涯，一天，他正在和女朋友在餐馆吃饭。美 好的职业前景，笑靥如花的女朋友，还有品质顶级的葡萄酒，小麦陶醉在人间的奢华生活之 中。这时，他的手机响了，他的弟弟Chance打来电话，告诉他的哥哥，Ryan T打篮球的时候 突然哮喘病发作，被紧急送到医院救治。麦迪很担心T的病情，但想到那只是哮喘，应该不 会有多大的生命危险。 他和女朋友讨论着表弟的病情。大约15分钟後，Chance又打来电话，没说两句，麦克格 雷迪就怔怔地愣在哪里，即使女朋友急促地催问他发生了什麽，小麦还是沉默不语，像一座 雕像那样，呆坐着。 　　Chance在电话中说T被送到医院後抢救无效。最初，当Chance说「他没有醒过来」，小 麦还不知道是什麽意思，他问「没醒过来意味着什麽？」Chance在电话那头难过地说：「哥 ，他已经死了。」麦迪悲痛异常，T是他非常喜爱的表弟，两个人的关系处得就跟亲兄弟一 样，没事的时候，T还经常向表哥发起篮球场上的「斗牛挑战」。 　　餐刀从他的手上掉落，然後他和女朋友疯一般地冲出餐馆，「我不知道当时是否已经为 那顿饭买单。」麦迪後来回忆说。他回到自己在多伦多的住处，把自己重重地「摔」到床上 ，然後一动不动，那个晚上，他始终没有改变自己的最初姿势。第二天早晨，一脸悲痛的麦 迪飞回家乡。 　　但家不再是以前的那个家，而且永远都不会再和以前一样，因为它永远少了最重要的亲 人之一，彷佛珍贵的花瓶被摔坏，再精心修复也难复如初。 　　Ryan T、Corey Bess和Eric Anderson的死，伤小麦最深，他们从小一起长大，一起分 享着小麦的NBA梦想。可当小麦实现他的梦想後，为他祈祷和祝福的人却已经离开人世，没 有人和他打招呼，就悄悄地「不辞而别」。 Ryan和Corey从小是麦迪的邻居，另一个死去的小姑娘Vanessa Jones也是他们儿时的夥 伴，那个可爱、热心的小姑娘有着一对严厉的父母。他们一起把自己住的地方--离奥兰多很 近的Auburndale小镇--叫作「小山」，虽然那里并没有一座山。 　　现在，有空闲的时候，麦迪经常开车去「小山」追思往事，那里有他的童年，有他大量 的生活痕迹。最重要的是，他来到那里，就会自然地想起天国中的朋友。 　　「就是在那个地方，看，就是那里。」他熟悉地指着一处地方，辛酸地说：「我们一起 打橄榄球和棒球，那里是我们童年的乐园。还有那边的一条河，我的祖母过去常去钓鱼，到 了晚上，我们就有香喷喷的煎鱼可吃。那是我们最盼望的事情。」 　　他能够清楚得记得朋友家的方位，到现在都是。他家外面有一道被遮蔽起来的走廊，很 小，只够走20步，但对於童年的小麦来说，那里很大，可以站下他、他母亲、祖母和一位客 人。在街道的拐角处，就是Venessa的家，再左边隔两家就是Ryan T的家，如果往下走不远 的距离，就是Henry和Corey的家。这些好朋友住得都很近，最远的也只有150码的距离。 　　他们的童年过得都是简单的生活--对於「复杂的」携带枪支和嗑药，他们都是躲得远远 地。他们的父母也不许他们出现在新希望街和Hobbs街等地方，因为那里有着太多的不法交 易，经常发生犯罪活动。麦迪有一次在那里亲眼看见警察在一次扫荡行动中逮捕了他在一支 少年橄榄球队打球的教练。还有一次，他透过栅栏看到一名男子被手枪打死，大腿被炸弹炸 飞。 　　「我的感觉就是『妈啊』，怎麽会发生这种残忍的事情呢。」麦迪描述他童年看到的惨 剧，至今还觉得心有余悸，「实在是太可怕了，从那以後，我就下定决心永远都不要介入到 那种事情之中。太可怕了。」 　　就在麦克格雷迪在多伦多的最後一个赛季，Vanessa Jones--就是那个可爱的、有着父 母严格管教的小姑娘--被枪杀了。 　　那是在1999年10月6日的早晨，麦克格雷迪正在更衣室里寄鞋带，准备即将到来的季前 赛。 　　同时，一起悲剧正在麦迪童年生活的地方「小山」发生。悲剧的主角是他的好朋友瓦尼 莎‧琼斯。那个早晨，Vanessa的母亲Flora接到一个电话，打电话的人声称她的丈夫大卫在 驾驶一辆卡车时遇到麻烦，希望Flora赶过去帮忙。然後，Flora就离开家，她告诉女儿 Vanessa她很快就会回来。因为家中最近遇到一件麻烦，Vanessa与前任男友Oscar Hodge分 手，後者几天前来到她们家要求谈谈被拒绝。Flora预感到有什麽事情要发生。 　 准确地说，Vanessa三天前决定与Hodge分手，退还了他的订婚戒指。於是，警方後来认为 Hodge无法忍受这种失望，故意指使一个人打电话给Vanessa的母亲，把她支走，这样房子里 就只剩下Vanessa一个人。当Flora刚一离开，Hodge就鬼影瞳瞳地接近Vanessa的家，他按响 了门铃。开门的人正是Vanessa，还没等她反应过来关门，Hodge扣动扳机，一颗口径为0.38 厘米的子弹射进Vanessa的大脑。 　　当Flora意识到受骗赶紧回家，发觉女儿已经屍横在家门，据後来的法医签定，Vanessa 当时已经死去半个小时。实施报复计划成功的Hodge开车来到一个公众场合，宣称他杀了一 个人，把自己的手机扔给一个旁观者，然後把手枪放进自己的嘴巴里，再次扣动扳机……但 是，他的自杀计划没有成功，等到他恢复健康後，也就是2001年，他被判终生监禁。 　　19岁的Vanessa永远去了，麦迪没有参加她的葬礼，但是距离无法阻挡这起悲剧对他的 震动。她是一个多麽好的姑娘，有着良好的家教，经常是放学就回家温习功课。「为什麽有 人要想用枪杀死她呢？」麦迪非常不理。 　　如果你爱一个女人，你想娶她，就应该尊重她。为什麽要杀她呢？简直是太离谱了。」 麦迪喃喃自语。 　　来到魔术队後，小麦买下去世的高尔夫球手Payne Stewart的别墅，那里位於奥兰多的 西南部，十分幽静，是一个居住的好地方。可不久，他知道自己的继母Jaclyn患上癌症，即 将撒手人寰。他慷慨地提出自己将会照顾弟弟Chance--他是Jaclyn带过来的孩子，成为 Chance的监护人。Jaclyn泪流满面，感谢小麦的仁爱。 　　那一年，麦迪真正地成为NBA的明星，到了2000-01赛季末，麦迪已经是NBA最受人瞩目 的大明星之一。两周後，Jaclyn去世，麦迪和Chance一直祈祷母亲能够活到母亲节那一天（ 五月的第二个星期天），但病魔冷冷地拒绝了他们的请求。 　　不到两周後，警察在一个名叫Fort Myers的地方发现麦迪儿时夥伴Corey Bess的屍体， 之前一个叫Derek Davis的男子试图抢劫Bess和他的一个同伴，两个人见势不妙夺路而逃， 但罪恶的子弹击中科里的背部和腿部。他的同伴被击中手臂，幸存了下来，可科里却再没有 醒过来。 　　「小山」的夥伴Corey、Ryan、Vanessa都离开了。麦迪和他们曾经是最铁的「死党」， 他们是无话不谈的朋友，可别的好友却像约好般地在天国再次「结伙」，偏偏撇下他一个人 。 　　逛。骑着，骑着，当麦迪意识到只有他一个人在骑着车，没有朋友在他的身边时，这个 的男人就会嚎啕大哭，他声嘶力竭地喊着：「一切都变了，变了。他们都离开了这里，去干 自己的事情，他们又团聚了。」 　　这个球场上的天才球员在「小山」的旷野处孤独无助，「没了，没了，现在就是和我一 起长大的猫都没了。」他的嗓子都哭哑了，可他还在哭泣着。可怜的孩子。他在球场上那坚 强，可有时候他比谁都要脆弱。 　上赛季，麦迪以场均32.1分的绝对高分摘下NBA的「得分王」。他的进攻才华让人瞠目 结舌，有些晚上，一些球队对他的防守简直「形同虚设」，人们都相信他是不可阻挡的。但 「死亡恶魔」没有丝毫地畏惧他，它制造的「防守」似乎是麦迪永远不可逾越的情感障碍。 　　去年三月，一大帮朋友聚集在小麦的别墅中，他们为了一件事情而来，可来到之後，却 没有人有勇气说出真相。诺大的别墅静寂地可怕，大家都在尴尬地沉默着，小麦盯着自己的 朋友，怒气冲冲地发问：究竟发生了什麽，告诉我，我能够挺得住！ 　　他的又一位朋友Eric Anderson死了。 　　这个在Auburndale高中打控球後卫的小伙子，在一处麦当劳停车地方观看一夥人斗殴时 ，被飞来的子弹误入胸膛。他死的时候，只有25岁。 　　他们有着很深的友情，即使在麦迪大红大紫、很不得志的时候，依然如此。麦迪曾经试 图说服Anderson搬到奥兰多，用他的学历来找一份工作。安德森答应了，但却是有条件的-- 他可以接受小麦的文凭，但是他不想住在离小麦很近的地方。他说：「我不想与特雷西住在 一起，靠着他的帮助生活。」 　　在Anderson死去的那个夜晚，他本来是计划回家与女朋友呆在一起，但是却没想到飞来 横祸。那场打斗一直从一家俱乐部打到麦当劳的一处停车场。正在旁边观看的Anderson打电 话给女朋友，让她赶紧开车过来接他走。但已经晚了，正在打斗的一夥流氓拔出了他们的枪 ……枪响了，Anderson倒在血泊之中，无辜的人成为受害者。当Anderson女朋友开车赶来时 ，她的男朋友已经停止了呼吸。 　　麦迪简直不敢相信这起悲剧。新年来到之後，他安慰自己说这一年他不会再失去亲人好 友，这应该是他发达、快乐和安宁的一年。他在球场上不可阻挡，他的女儿Layla顺利出生 ，一切都预示着美好的前景。他想，不会再听到「午夜凶铃」，不会再有诡异的死亡。这个 赛季就要结束，应该没有意外了吧。 　　但最後，麦迪带着凄惨的心情出现在Cypress教堂的葬礼仪式上，他和他的朋友欲哭无 泪，恨死了这家教堂，「我们每一次来到这里都是参加葬礼。我们讨厌这个教堂，真的。」 麦迪最後再看了Anderson遗体一眼，泪水夺眶而出，身体颤抖得厉害，他的两个朋友赶紧扶 住小麦。 　　朋友知道他又情绪失控了，尽管他在球场上是不可阻挡的，但在这里，永远都不是这样 。 　　直到今天，他还在思念着已经去了天堂的Anderson。「说实话，我仍旧不能相信他死了 的事实，我想他是去度假，或者去干别的事情了。我不能相信啊。」在参加完Anderson的葬 礼後，小麦和私人训练师Wayne Hall碰巧翻到一些老照片，都是他们外出参加活动时拍的， 其中就有小麦和Anderson的合影。照片里，他们幸福地笑着，小麦摩挲照片，久久不语，「 如果你看他这时的表情，是你希望永远都不要看到的悲痛欲绝的样子。」Hall说。 　　在本赛季初，麦迪有过一段消沉的时间，他批评NBA的联防「杀」了他的进攻才华，是 对他的禁锢。他说看到自己的球队连输19场比赛无法忍受，他说自己考虑过要离开篮球。 　　但熟悉小麦的人都知道，那不过是这名天才球员情绪紊乱时的正常表现。太多的死亡和 悲剧让小麦深深地恐惧未来，他经常在害怕地想：「今年，我还会失去谁？」 　　又是一起让他心碎的悲剧。今年一月份，他的舅妈JOHNNIE死於心脏病发作，在小麦贫 困的童年，舅妈对他的帮助很大。 　　今年二月，麦迪举办了一个生日party，他的女儿Layla度过一周岁生日。这一天，他的 家变成儿童们的乐园，蛋糕、气球、玩具和鲜花到处都是。欢乐的气氛，终於让麦克格雷迪 多年悲痛的心绪终於有所缓解。 　　「我不敢相信自己有一个可爱的女儿，一个真真实实的女孩子。」麦迪摇着头，但脸上 浮现出大大的笑容。 　　他的朋友Obbe Maldonado与小麦站在一块，他们在回忆过去的往事，两个人的角色在男 人、男孩和男人之间不断切换着。现在，他们都是有孩子的父亲。「我告诉你，」 Maldonado说，「现在还用我告诉你吗？直到你有了孩子，你才会真正地懂得生命。」 　　「你将会为自己的孩子死去。」Maldonado说。 　　「我肯定会的。」小麦很快地答道。 　　只有在这个时刻，死亡才是不惮於提起的一个单词。为了自己的孩子而正常地按照自然 规律去死，那是爱的体现。 　　「每一个人都无法逃避死亡，他们都会迎来自己的那一天。」麦迪超然地说。 　　但小麦还无法超然到忘记那些过去光怪陆离的死亡，他宁愿拥有这些记忆，而不是永远 忘记。「尽管我很受伤，但那些事实无法磨灭。我很受伤，但我还活着。尽管我身体有很多 伤，但我还能够打球，我还会不断地打球。所有死去的人都值得我的尊重，都值得我去为他 们而拚搏。」 --- 英文原文如下： Seven seasons, seven deaths. Tracy McGrady's life is forever scarred with the sudden losses of loved ones. By Jerry Brewer | Sentinel Staff Writer Posted February 29, 2004 Email this story to a friend Printer friendly version SEVEN SEASONS, SEVEN DEATHS # HENRY ANDREWS, 20, friend. -- Died Nov. 7, 1997. Car accident. # RYAN T. McGRADY, 19, cousin. -- Died Dec. 5, 1999. Complications from asthma. # VANESSA JONES, 19, friend. -- Died Oct. 6, 1999. Shot. # JACLYN McGRADY, 38, stepmom. -- Died May 8, 2001. Cancer. # COREY BESS, 22, cousin. -- Died May 20, 2001. Shot. # ERIC ANDERSON, 25, best friend. -- Died March 16, 2003. Shot. # JOHNNIE RUTH GREEN, 73, great aunt. -- Died Jan. 28, 2004. Heart failure. GRAPHICS Mourning star. (ORLANDO SENTINEL PHOTO ILLUSTRATION) Feb 29, 2004 PHOTOS Nothing but grief. (COURTESY OF TRACY MCGRADY) Feb 29, 2004 Reaching out. (COURTESY OF HOOTEN FAMILY) Feb 29, 2004 ORLANDO MAGIC NEWSLETTER Get more Orlando Magic coverage delivered straight to your inbox. Become a member of our site and sign up for our Orlando Magic newsletter. NEXT GAME SEASON RECORD 17-45, last in Atlantic Division NEXT GAME March 3, vs. Milwaukee, 7 p.m. (Sunshine Network) LAST GAME March 1, lost to Boston, 117-96 ORLANDO MAGIC 2003-04 schedule Magic televison schedule Roster | Player stats 2003-04 photo gallery Team news | Player profiles Multimedia presentations Magic player photos 2003-04 season preview PAST SEASONS 2002-03: Results | Season stats | Playoff results | Playoff stats | Photos | Playoff photos | Playoff stories | Season preview 2001-02: Results | Season stats | Playoff stats | Photos | Playoff photos 2000-01: Results | Photos | Playoff stories | Playoff photos NBA NBA news | Scores Standings: East | West Stats | Teams | Injuries Odds The boy had a question. It was not about his car accident, the one that put him in this hospital bed and left him comatose for 13 days. It was not about his crushed pelvis, his shattered hip, his punctured lung, his damaged brain. It was not about the ventilator that sustained him. Hayden Hooten kept looking at some pictures. In each one, he rested gingerly in bed, and Tracy McGrady, his favorite basketball player, leaned over him, smiling. The photos were all over the 16-year-old's room at Sand Lake Hospital, blown up poster size. "Tracy McGrady came to see me?" he asked. "Why?" Obbe Maldonado understood his friend now. He saw McGrady's desert-dry face swell with tears. Then McGrady collapsed, and two men strained to lift his 6-foot-8 body. It was December 1999. They were at the funeral of McGrady's cousin, Ryan T. For the first time in his life, Maldonado witnessed McGrady, then 19, unable to control himself. "That's when I knew he had feelings," Maldonado said. It was a sad moment that would only multiply itself. It triggered seven paradoxical years for a teen who would grow into a star. The more McGrady has gained, the more he has lost. Seven NBA seasons, seven deaths. These people cannot be forgotten. "Ryan McGrady -- we called him Ryan T. -- he was playing ball and forgot his inhaler. "Corey Bess. They shot my cousin." "Vanessa Jones, her boyfriend shot her in the head." "Henry Andrews, went to school with him, car accident." "Jaclyn McGrady, that was my stepmom, cancer." "Johnnie Ruth Green -- she helped raise me -- it was her heart." When Ryan T. died, McGrady considered life unfair. Now, he sometimes wonders if it is as fleeting as an NBA career. Seven deaths later, loss has scarred McGrady. It doesn't make his grief more important than others who mourn. It doesn't make him more of a victim of his roots and of circumstance than any other person who has risen from poverty. This struggle puts him on a universal level. Move through tragedy with McGrady, and his smirking, aloof image vanishes. Then a man who fears answering his phone after midnight appears. "It's happened so many times," McGrady, now 24, said. "I'm wondering who's going to be next. Sleeping at night, waiting on a late phone call. Bad news." The first phone call came in November 1997. McGrady was going through his first NBA preseason in Toronto when he learned that Henry Andrews, the little football player who could fight guys twice his size, had fallen asleep while driving and wrecked on Interstate. 4. McGrady was miffed, but he accepted Henry's death as a random occurrence. That was before Ryan T. died. He was having dinner with his girlfriend in Toronto, where his NBA career began. Chance, his brother, was on the other end. Chance told his brother that Ryan T. had an asthma attack while playing basketball. McGrady was concerned but not panicked. Ryan T. was an asthmatic. This had happened before. Fifteen minutes later, Chance called again. "He didn't make it." "What do you mean he didn't make it?" "He died, man." McGrady dropped his fork. He and his girlfriend bolted from the restaurant. "I don't know if I paid the bill," he said. He returned to his condo and plopped on his bed. He did not move the rest of the night. He flew home in silence the next morning. Home wasn't the same. Home never would be the same again. McGrady is from Auburndale, a Polk County town of 11,000 between Orlando and Tampa. Ryan T. died on the court where McGrady honed his game. The deaths of Ryan T., Corey Bess and Eric Anderson hurt McGrady the most. He grew up with them. They shared his NBA dream. They all died as McGrady lived their dream. Ryan T., Corey and Tracy lived in the same neighborhood, as did Vanessa Jones, a cute, studious girl with strict parents. They called the neighborhood The Hill, though there is no hill. McGrady often drives through The Hill to remember his past. "That was, like, the spot," he said. "We played football in the street. We played baseball. We'd do anything. My grandmother used to always go fishing, and we'd always have a fish fry in the evening time. That's what we did." He can remember the proximity of his friends. On Lincoln Court, there's his old home with the screened porch, small enough to walk through in 20 steps, large enough to accommodate Tracy, his mother, grandmother and a visitor. Around the corner, on Henry Street, is Vanessa's home. Two houses to the left is Ryan T.'s place. Two more houses down, at the end of Henry, are Corey's -- CB's -- quarters, where all the boys used to hang. Four friends in 150 yards. It was a simple life, as long as they stayed away from the complicated stuff -- the drugs and guns. Out of hood nobility, the children had some protection. They weren't allowed on this one stretch, between New Hope and Hobbs streets. There was too much dealing, too much crime there. McGrady once witnessed police arrest his youth league football coach during a drug bust. Gunshots were as common as wind gusts. McGrady wasn't even a teenager when he looked over a fence and saw a dead man, his leg separated from the blast of a shotgun. "I was like, 'Damn,'. " McGrady said. "I changed after that. I was like, 'Man, this is real out here.' I didn't want to be a part of that. Not at all." Barry and Lynn Hooten didn't know what motivated McGrady to see their son. Maybe it was the Polk County connection. Maybe Hayden living in Lake Wales, about 20 minutes from Auburndale, mattered to McGrady. Hayden kept asking why, and his parents just smiled and confirmed the authenticity of those pictures. Hayden was entranced. The parents hoped that reinforcing his idol's visit would help cure his post-traumatic amnesia. McGrady came on Dec. 20, or Day 45 of his hospital stay. There would be 27 more days there, none better than this one. McGrady pulled out an autographed game jersey and presented it to Hayden. "Our boy lit up like a light bulb," the parents recalled. McGrady left Auburndale in 1996 and went to Durham, N.C. He spent his senior year of high school at Mount Zion Academy, a basketball factory located in a boom area for hoops. To become a great player, he had to go elsewhere. He made the biggest of jumps, from high school to the NBA, ventured to Toronto in 1997 and missed his little country town for his entire rookie season. After the 1999-2000 season, McGrady would become a free agent and sign with the Orlando Magic, partly because Orlando is 40 miles from Auburndale. It was a homecoming. But home, or at least the feeling behind it, was dissolving. In McGrady's final season in Toronto, Vanessa Jones -- the cute, studious girl with strict parents -- was killed. On the morning of Oct. 6, 1999, McGrady laced his sneakers to endure more of the preseason NBA grind. In The Hill, on Henry Street, Flora Jones received a call. The caller told Flora that her husband, David, was having problems with his truck. David needed Flora to meet him at The Tree, a local landmark in nearby Winter Haven, the caller said. Flora left to help her husband. She told her daughter, Vanessa, that she would be back. Flora and Vanessa had been surprised earlier when Vanessa's ex-boyfriend, Oscar Hodge, came to the house pleading to chat. He was rejected. It was over between the two. They had split three days earlier. Vanessa had taken off the engagement ring and given it back. Hodge couldn't handle the disappointment. So, police think, he had someone place that phony call to Flora. Once Flora left, he approached the home. Vanessa opened the door. Hodge fired a .38 at her head. Mom would return home to find her daughter's body 30 minutes later. Then Hodge drove to a Lake Cannon boat ramp, proclaimed he had killed a person, threw his cell phone to an onlooker and placed that gun in his mouth. He pulled the trigger, but his suicide attempt failed. After he recovered, his trial began, and in 2001 he was sentenced to life in prison. Vanessa, 19, was gone. By the end of the year, only Corey and Tracy were left from The Hill crew. McGrady did not attend the funeral, but distance did nothing for the shock. This was Vanessa, a good girl, who had the strictest parents, who often came home from school, went into the house and did not resurface until the bus arrived the next morning. The type of girl that had great parenting, McGrady said. Shoot her? Who would shoot her? "You love a woman," McGrady said. "You want to marry her. Things get bad. So you shoot her? It's crazy, man. Crazy." After McGrady joined the Magic, he bought the mansion of deceased golfer Payne Stewart, a private home tucked away in southwest Orlando. He also learned his stepmother, Jaclyn, was dying of cancer. He offered to take care of his brother, Chance, Jaclyn's child. He became big bro and guardian. The dying mother gushed over her stepson's generosity and love. McGrady became a star that year. He led the Orlando Magic in scoring and verve. By the time the 2000-2001 season ended, McGrady was one of the brightest young talents in basketball. Two weeks later, Jaclyn died. McGrady and his brother, Chance, had prayed for her to make it to Mother's Day. But the cancer would not allow it. Less than two weeks later, police found Corey Bess' body in Fort Myers. A Fort Myers man, Derek Davis, allegedly killed him. A robbery attempt had turned bad. Corey and Adrin McGough, a Winter Haven native, tried to run. Bullets struck Corey in the back and leg. McGough was shot in the arm, but he survived. The Hill seemed faceless now. McGrady had escaped, but Corey, Ryan T. and Vanessa had exited, too. Corey -- CB -- was the glue. Everyone used to show up at his place. He had the basketball goal. He had the latest video games. He shared with all. "CB made sure we were straight," McGrady said. "He just took care of us." CB, Ryan T. and Tracy. They were a clique. They were a rhyme. They were now extinct. McGrady rides through The Hill and remembers them riding bikes through the neighborhood. Or maybe they're teasing Vanessa on the way home from school. They're all memories now of a different time, of a misplaced time. "It's not the same," he said. "It's not the same at all. Everybody who's come out of there, they're off doing their own thing. They're locked up. They're dead. That's basically it. Or they're probably on drugs. "All the cats I grew up with, they're not even around there. None of them. Nobody." Slowly, Hayden's amnesia lifted. Why it happened, not even the doctors can say for certain. But after McGrady's visit, Hayden began to improve. This much is fact: McGrady came to see Hayden. The family took pictures. The family used those pictures to make Hayden want to remember. Eventually, Hayden remembered. Hayden's father, Barry, is a pastor. His strongest beliefs go beyond medicine. That day with McGrady was uplifting, and everyone in the room felt it. That day sparked Hayden. "We're not going to give all the glory to T-Mac," Barry said, "but the Lord, he works through people." McGrady led the NBA in scoring last season. He averaged 32.1 points per game, but it was the ease in which he scored that astonished. Some nights, there was just no defense for him. He was untouchable in those games, and people could tell from his first shot. Last March, with the MVP chants at their loudest, he stared at a room full of silent friends. They had all gathered at his mansion, but no one wanted to tell McGrady the truth. Eric Anderson was dead. His guy, his point guard at Auburndale High School, took a bullet to the chest while watching a fight in a McDonald's parking lot. Lil' E was gone at 25. He and McGrady had been playing phone tag, and this is what hurt the most. McGrady had been trying to convince Lil' E to move to Orlando. McGrady wanted Lil' E to use his college degree and find a job near him. Eric agreed, but he didn't want to live off McGrady. If he was going to make the move, he didn't want to use his friend for assistance. At the same time, he sensed that he needed to leave Polk County as soon as he could. "There's nothing good for me here," he would tell friends. On the night he died, Eric planned to stay home with his girlfriend. He went out late. At a club, a 7-year-old incident regurgitated itself. A fight ensued, and Eric's brother, Curtis Crossley, was involved. This quarrel drifted to a McDonald's restaurant in Lakeland, about 5 miles from the club. Lil' E went to look after his brother. But as the group headed toward McDonald's, he called his girlfriend and asked her to come get him. The 7-year-old feud turned into a brawl at McDonald's. The participants raged against each other while onlookers encircled them. Then, police say, Aree Spivey, Jason Reid and Patrick Brown pulled out their guns. Crossley's crew was stunned. A fistfight had turned into a pistol-whipping, bullet-flying fiasco. By the time Eric's girlfriend arrived, he was dead. The bystander became the victim. McGrady couldn't believe it. He figured this was the year he wouldn't lose anyone. What happened to untouchable? This was his year. He was unstoppable on the court. Layla, his daughter and the gift that made life comprehensible, was born. He figured there would be no early-morning phone calls, no awkward declarations of death. The season was almost over. He had almost survived. So there was another funeral at Cypress Cathedral, one of the largest churches in town. And on the ride there, McGrady and his friends said, "Every time we come to this church, it's for a funeral. We hate this church, really." And McGrady looked at a dead body again. And tears streamed again. And two men were needed to prop him up again. People knew he had feelings again. He was not untouchable again. Disbelief reigned again. "I think about them every day," McGrady said. "Ryan, I still can't believe that he's dead. I assume that he's down in Auburndale, doing his normal thing. And E, the same thing. I just can't believe that." Shortly after Eric's funeral, McGrady and his trainer, Wayne Hall, came across some old photographs. They were in the Philippines for an adidas promotion and posing with a basketball team of dwarfs. They had been so taken by these guys. They looked so happy in the pictures. Hall looked at McGrady while he stared at those pictures. He was looking at Lil' E with "that look like you'll never see him again," Hall said. McGrady got quiet. His friends know to leave him alone then. "Because I just go into my own little cage," he said. "I go into my own little shell and just clam up. And I'm out of it for a while." At the beginning of this season, McGrady suffered a slump unmatched since he became a star. He cried about the NBA's zone defenses, which he thinks limit him. He watched his team lose 19 consecutive games. He revealed that he considered quitting basketball. It was thought to be the fit of a spoiled superstar. McGrady stuck out his chest, and then in private would think to himself, "Who will I lose this year?" In January, Johnnie, his great aunt, died of heart failure. A key figure in his upbringing was gone. He was saddened but not shocked. By now, he can set his watch to death. McGrady threw a birthday party last month. His daughter, Layla, turned 1. His home turned into a kids' carnival, with family friends and children giggling amid balloons and cake. Worry had ceased. "I can't believe I have a little girl," he said, laughing and shaking his head. "A real girl." Obbe Maldonado, his childhood friend, joined him. They reminisced. They went from men to boys to men in their chat. They reunited at fatherhood. "I told you," Maldonado said. "Didn't I tell you? You'll never know about life until you have your own kid." McGrady nodded. "I sure will," McGrady replied. During that moment, death was not a word to fear. Love resided within the thought of death. "You can't escape it," McGrady said. "Everybody has their time." Such a truth won't stop memories from roiling McGrady. There always will be those weird, quiet moments. He understands this. He would rather have those moments than forget. He will never forget. "There's nothing wrong with that," he said. "I'm hurting, though. I'm really hurting. But I'm alive. So I'll play with this pain. I'll play through this pain. All those people I've lost, they deserve that from me." Before McGrady left the hospital, Hayden needed to know something. He needed to know if his idol was OK. McGrady grinned to calm him. The tenor of this meeting had shifted. It was no longer just about what McGrady could do for Hayden. The boy had touched the icon. They both understood why McGrady had come then. Hayden still needed to know if McGrady was OK. They would part soon, Hayden to rehabilitation, McGrady to the rest of a basketball season. They did not meet to be lifelong friends. They were destined to stop briefly as they passed by each other. And McGrady's assurance would end this encounter. "Well, you just keep working," he said, "and I will, too." Jerry Brewer can be reached at [email protected]. Copyright c 2004, Orlando Sentinel --

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