Syracuse, N.Y. ― Danny Schayes is anxiously looking forward to a return to his hometown and the chance to see his legendary father, Dolph, on the mural going up on the side of a building in downtown Syracuse.
On the Inside Syracuse Basketball podcast, Danny Schayes, who played at Syracuse University and then logged 18 years in the NBA, recalled how his father was born and raised in the Bronx but made Syracuse his home after spending 14 years with the NBA’s Syracuse Nats.
Schayes said it was a special honor to have his father featured on the mural, which also includes former Nat Earl Lloyd, Syracuse native and former SU basketball player Manny Breland and Breanna Stewart, the Cicero-North Syracuse High School star who went on to win four NCAA titles at Connecticut and is currently in the WNBA.
The mural, featured on the Monroe Building at 333 East Onondaga Street, will be dedicated at a ceremony on June 22.
Danny explained how his dad wound up in Syracuse. After starring at NYU, Dolph signed with Syracuse as the Nats outbid the New York Knicks, offering him $7,500 compared to the Knicks’ $5,000 offer.
Schayes said his father kept Syracuse as the family’s home despite finishing his career in Philadelphia and later coaching both the Philadelphia 76ers and the Buffalo Braves.
Schayes’ stories include riding in a car with his father and Syracuse Nats owner Danny Biasone, for whom Danny is named, along with a friend as the ashes from Biasone’s cigar flew into the backseat and onto his friend. He also told how both his dad and Biasone despised Red Auerbach of the Boston Celtics.
He talked about how his father, who had also been the NBA’s supervisor of officials, would come to Danny’s NBA games and chastise the referees, “I can’t believe I hired you!’'
Danny bristled at the comments made recently by ESPN NBA analyst J.J. Redick, calling players of Dolph’s era “plumbers and firemen.’'
Schayes, a member of the Naismith Hall of Fame, was a 12-time All-Star. He retired as the NBA’s second-leading scorer. He led the Nats to the 1955 NBA championship. He took the Nats to the playoffs in 15 of his 16 seasons. He has been named to the NBA’s 25th, 50th and 75th anniversary teams.
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