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In Part one of the June Gameops.com Interview we were joined by Trailblazer Operations Staff Joe Bivona and Todd Bosma. They discussed the recent retiring of Clyde Drexler's jersey in Portland.

In Part Two we speak with former Vice President of Communications for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Charley Frank, about a rather different presentation. Timberwolf Mailk Sealy lost his life in a tragic car accident on May 20th, 2000 just after the end of the Wolves' season.

In order to provide some closure for Timberwolves fans and the family the Timberwolves honored Malik's life with a ceremony at opening night the following year. Charley Frank played a key role in organizing the tribute and he discusses the issues surrounding the presentation.

Gameops.com: Lets start at the beginning to the early decision to honor Malik.

Frank: The fact that the accident occurred after the team was eliminated meant that the players were scattered around the country and many fans had closed the book on the Wolves for the season. We thought something had to be done for the community and the season ticket holders and fans just for closure. One of the biggest challenges was that our next basketball event in the building would not be until October. Initially we considered doing something in the preseason, but we realized that would not have the proper magnitude or significance.

One of the most important things was providing fans with the chance to grieve. We wanted to reach out to anyone who had any sort of emotional attachment to the tragedy so that they could hopefully experience some closure.

The issue of whether to actually retire the jersey was very complicated, because everyone had a different opinion on what it takes. Some people like Kevin McHale grew up in the Celtics tradition. There aren't any Celtics who have their numbers retired who haven't done so by their performance on the court. While Malik was a tremendous contributor for two years, it was still just two years. So the question became was there something we can do to memorialize what he meant to the team without retiring the jersey. It took much of the summer to even agree that retiring the jersey was the right course of action.

Gameops.com: Once that decision has been made, the focus became more of how to publicly memorialize Mailk?

"We wanted people to know about the ceremony and invite them to join us in paying tribute to the life and legacy of Malik Sealy."
-Charley Frank

The family dynamics were the issues that we tackled first. The last thing you want to do is spring this on them at a time that is not convenient to them. Something of this magnitude and sensitivity needs to be done with as much lead time as possible.

Before it had even been determined exactly what would happen Wolves Community Relations Manager Terrell Battle was in touch with Ann Sealy (Malik's mother) and with Lisa Sealy (Malik's widow) on a regular basis.

As details came up we would discuss it with them. Once the date was confirmed the wheels were in motion and all the family was kept up-to-date and alerted of the timing. We also provided and confirmed all the transportation from their home in New York to the Target Center. We had dinners set-up for them, all in an effort to make them as comfortable as possible. We wanted to ensure that no one ended up scratching their heads over how anything was handled.

Frank: After much deliberation we decided on the pre-game of opening night. One of Coach Flip Saunders' concerns about doing it in-season was all of the inherent emotions associated with it. He was concerned with how this could possibly effect the team.

In fact, Flip first favored the preseason. Ironically our preseason game opponents were Detroit and Indiana, which were both teams Malik played for. So the question was do you do it when you are playing one of those teams so that former teammates could contribute.

Ultimately we came to the decision that doing it pre-season without a full-house would not be doing it right by Malik.

Frank: First of all we went out of our way not to publicize that we were giving away 15,000 commemorative Malik Sealy posters to fans. We agreed that in all of our marketing and communications we would acknowledge the fact we would have a ceremony but never would we try to use it as a way to market or promote ticket sales.

The ceremony included a video and an original song that RL from the Twin Cites- based R&B Group Next had written. We also played a special video that the NBA had produced. Former teammate Joe Smith had also written a song and had recorded it, and it was played. Joe was actually on hand since he had not signed with the Pistons yet at that time. Joe was joined by all of the current Timberwolves and many of the Sacramento players.

Then the family was escorted onto the court. Lisa Sealy was uncertain if she wanted to say a few words or not, ultimately she did. She spoke beautifully as did one of Malik's brothers.

Finally, the entire family pulled a rope that hoisted the jersey up to its permanent position in the rafters.

Frank: Wolves Game Operations Manager, Greg Vanderwilt worked with the NBA, who of course under the circumstances were very accommodating. Greg handled everything from the creation of the banner to the choreography of what happened on the court and he did an outstanding job.

The ceremony was roughly 20 minutes before the game, around 6:50 for a 7:10pm tip. The thinking was the players may need some time between such an emotional ceremony and the game. We also wanted a time frame where Sacramento players would have the option to come out. Once it was finished we wanted to give the players a chance to breathe and collect their thoughts.

Gameops.com: So you managed the balancing act of honoring your player without appearing as if you were attempting in any way to benefit from it?

Frank: There really was a strong sense of anticipation about the ceremony. Marketing-wise we wanted to down-play the event. We wanted to be careful on how we positioned it. We told people to come down and see Sacramento and the home opener. It was mentioned in the advertisement and the TV spots, but we were very careful to make sure it was handled the right way. We wanted people to know about the ceremony and invite them to join us in paying tribute to the life and legacy of Malik Sealy.

Special thanks to Charley Frank for his time and thoughtfulness. This event clearly was a powerful experience for Charley and the Timberwolves staff and family. The teams sensitivity for the family and the feelings of fans certainly helped make this a special night for everyone involved.

I also want to thank Charley for his friendship and support. Charley was an outstanding mentor and friend during my seven seasons with the Timberwolves. It was a pleasure to speak with him again.