<div align="center"></div> <div align="center"><font size="6">Never Was:</font></div> <div align="center"><font size="4">The Legend of Swee' Pea</font></div> Lloyd Daniels, who anointed the next Magic, the first Pippen, and a miniature Kareem at the same time, was arguably one of the first of his kind. He was a prototypical 6'7 forward who had game like a point guard. Some of the experts even went so far as to compare him to Magic Johnson with a jump shot, who was capable of bringing the ball up the court and settin' it off like his 'Next' namesake. But like so many other things in this life, it wasn't meant to be. All of us have our demons, but some of us can't get away until it's too late.... The man who would one day be called Swee' Pea because of his uncanny likeness to the baby in the Popeye cartoons was born September 4, 1967. From the very beginning, the cruel hand of destiny may have given the world a preview of the path his life was going to take, because shortly after giving birth, Lloyd's mother contracted uterine cancer and passed away when Lloyd was only three years old. So overcome by the loss of his wife, Lloyd's father succumbed to the bottle and quickly vanished from the radar. These losses left Lloyd in the care of his paternal grandmothers but ultimately left him in the care of the game. Coming up, Daniels' life was the life of any other street kid. On all sides were the dangers of the 'hood: drugs, alcohol, and violence. School wasn't his answer because he was suffering from undiagnosed Dyslexia; so he sought solace in the game. It didn't matter whether it was night or day; Lloyd practiced his craft by himself, sneakin' out after dark to go to the courts. Shootin', dribblin', and passin' off the fences and taking comfort in the one thing he could control, Lloyd's game flourished. Lloyd was dubbed a playground legend before age 15. Lloyd's game continued to flourish by taking over games on courts from Hollis to Brooklyn. He did nothing but work on his game and worry about his next meal. School was an afterthought (he took the 8th grade twice, making it to class 94 out of 364 days during those two years), but the lack of formal education was a blessing to his game. Hours and hours of going toe-to-toe with the best players the playgrounds had to offer honed his game to a razor's edge. <div align="center"><font size="4">"He's the best Junior alive, dead, or yet unborn.? - Howie Garfinkel</font></div> At 17, despite having played little to no actual prep ball because of academic trouble, an ankle injuries and multiple transfers; Daniels went to the Five-Star player camp in the summer of '85 and gave himself a national name. He earned Most Outstanding player honors. His game was mature beyond comparison for a soon-to-be high school Junior. Howie Garfinkel marveled at Lloyd Daniels' game. For someone who had never given himself over to much formal coaching, he was heads and shoulders above the other players. He made plays that people his size had never made before and people double his size rarely made. He found guys with passes even before most of them knew they were open, he pulled up and hit jumpers from all over the court, and he drove the lane with authority. Amazingly enough, Lloyd managed to stay out of trouble and complete an entire season for Andrew Jackson High in Queens; he dominated. Dropping numbers like 31.2 ppg, 12.3 rpg, and 10.3 apg while earning Parade All-American honors and also drawing the attention of one Jerry Tarkanian who says that Daniels was the best high school player he had ever seen and Daniels could do everything better than anyone. The kid had a mystical feel for the game which was made even more amazing by his lack of fundamental coaching and basic instruction. But just as things were starting to turn for the better, Lloyd dropped out of school after the end of his junior year for the gang and drug lifestyle. The people that once touted him as 'Next' largely gave up on him as his life went out of control. But one still believed, Tarkanian wanted this kid to be successful and do what he was destined to do. Through the magic of back-door politics, Tark? got him admitted to Mount San Antonio Junior College in California. Lloyd was well on his way to faking the required for graduation and admittance to be a Runnin? Rebel, but it all ended before it even started. On a weekend visit to UNLV, Daniels was arrested in a Las Vegas crack-house. The event was caught on camera and ultimately televised, ending his D-1 career before it got off the ground. Having nowhere else to turn, Lloyd began a professional career by signing to play in the CBA and then later played ball in New Zealand. But again his demons caught him and ended his professional foray. However, it looked promising when he acknowledged his problems and entered rehab facility and successfully completed the program. <div align="center"><font size="4">"My life is played out like a jheri curl, I'm ready to die.." - Biggie Smalls</font></div> Just like the Biggie lyric, Lloyd's life seemed to be taking a fatal path and the fatality of it all almost came to pass. After getting out of rehab, his treatment didn't last long and within three months he was back in the city, running the streets of Hollis and living the gang life. Then on the moring of May 11th, 1989, it finally happened. A mix-up at a local crack-house gave him three point-blank gunshot wounds to the chest. The doctors had a grim outlook, saying death was the next logical step because of the severity of the wounds. But somehow he survived the inevitable fate of becoming another victim, another case of throwing away other worldly gifts for the streets. After recovering, Lloyd just bounced from place to place, sometimes playing ball and sometimes just messing around with no clear road of life until John Lucas came calling and gave him a shot on the Miami Tropics. Not only a basketball team but an aftercare program for recovering addicts and abusers. Whether a miracle or a testament to the program, Lloyd finally freed himself of his demons. The successful USBL stint and another in the Global Basketball Association earned him an invitation to the San Antonio Spurs training camp by the team's new coach and someone who never stopped believing, Jerry Tarkanian. Even though Tark? didn't last as coach, Lloyd thrived and was a solid contributor for two seasons. Despite being offered a third year contract by the Spurs, Daniels opted to test the market but was never offered anything close to the Spurs offer. The rest of Lloyd Daniels? professional career was spent with short term contracts with the Sixers, Lakers, Kings, Nets, and finally the Raptors. The Raptor's stint ended bad. Late for practice, he was dismissed and hasn't seen the NBA since. Despite being 10 games away from the League's pension plan, it's not about the money but about another chance to prove he belongs. Today Lloyd Daniels is content with his life. He is a happy man, happy to be alive, and happy to be enjoying a family he thought he would never have. Now a family man of 10 years, he's satisfied with his lot in life. He has a 4,000 foot house in Colt's Neck, New Jersey; a '98 Mercedes; a new Lexus truck; and the love of a happy household. He never attained the level of wealth many had predicted in his youth, but he is rich with things money can't buy. Now Lloyd runs a summer basketball camp for the youth and tries to steer others away from the things that knocked him off course. Despite being pleased with his current life, Lloyd Daniels knows his legacy isn't of basketball glory, wealth and fame, but one of the things that never were.
:thumbsup: Thats a really well written bio. Its so sad that he had to go through all that but atleast hes content with his life now
Looking at the title, I thought it was an article about Pernell Whitaker...he has the same nickname.. anyways...good well written piece...I actually remember Lloyed Daniels from his short stint in Los Angeles as a Laker...I think he had a couple of 10-day contracts...played mostly in the CBA...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting notMuchgame:</div><div class="quote_post">Looking at the title, I thought it was an article about Pernell Whitaker...he has the same nickname..</div> Sweet Pea Whitaker's story wouldn't be too much better...well the end result anyway..but at least Pernell was a world champion in his sport.. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting notMuchgame:</div><div class="quote_post">anyways...good well written piece...I actually remember Lloyed Daniels from his short stint in Los Angeles as a Laker...I think he had a couple of 10-day contracts...played mostly in the CBA...</div> Man,I wish we coulda seen Lloyd play in the NBA in his prime...Hell,I'd just liked to have seen him runnin' along side Larry Johnson,Greg Anthony and Stacey Augmon at UNLV....too bad we'll never know how good he coulda been...
Nice article, a touch of scoop jackson is there with the Biggie quote. I never knew about this guy until this article. I remember him being tried out by the Raptors but nothing past that. Its a shame too, I would have loved to watched this talent play in the league. I guess for every Kevin Garnett there is a Lenny Cook or Lloyd daniels out there too.
Swee Pea was well known back in Queens. He looked just like the cartoon character in Popeye. I went to the same H.S he went to (Andrew Jackson). I was a few years ahead of him, but he was a legend back then. When you spoke about B ball, his name was always mentioned. Way before Kobe, Daniel's was suposed to go from H.S. right to the NBA. He was just not cut out for school and couldn't stay enrolled for any length of time. This guy could have had it all, but some bad choices changed all that. Thank god he's still alive and hopefully able to steer others in the right diection.
Another great player that never was, was Len Bias. He was going to be draft to the celtic with Larry Bird an awesome player but just before it happened he died due to drugs.
well written, sad story... I remember him playing for the Spurs, he was pretty good... too bad he didn't last in the league... As CourtVision mentioned Lenny Cooke... basically the same story... great talent, wrong environment, bad choices... although I still hope to see him in the NBA one day...
Like they say, when you're talking about the top .001 percent of the hooping population there's a lot of luck involved. Daniels may not have been what people think he should have or could have been, but cominng from where he came from I'd have to say he's a success. He certainly doesn't need anybody to feel sorry for him.
another guy who didnt pan out was Ronnie Fields, he was on the same team as KG in High school and averaged 32 points a game and he had a 48 inch vertical if it werent for a car accident and bad decisions he would definately be the man but like Mr. Daniels is is no more than a CBA star now still trying to make it too the league. Also Schea Cotton who was a beast and to me was the best player to come out of California in the mid 90's almost as good as Jason Kidd but off teh court troubles killed his career before it ever started. Sad to see so talented players go down like that but i guess thats what life is all about. "The reason that i talk with my fists is cuz every muthafucka understands it?"----
