NEW YORK, NY – It was a few weeks ago that the basketball world lost a playground legend when former University of Nevada – Las Vegas forward Richie Adams passed away. The thought that came to my mind immediately was, what a waste of talent! This was a guy who couldn’t let go of the street mentality, a guy who got caught up as a drug abuser, which led to crimes that supported his habit.
The Washington Bullets took a gamble and picked him in the 4th round of the 1985 NBA Draft. The next day, Adams was arrested for auto theft. The team then basically told their Bronx bred pick to get lost. His UNLV coach, the legendary Jerry Tarkanian, tried to help out his former player. He sent him plane tickets to Vegas, possibly to put Adams on his staff. Adams sold the tickets. Adams then graduated to bigger crimes to support his drug habit. In 1988, he robbed a woman by an ATM machine at gunpoint. That got him a 4-year prison sentence.
After his release, Adams returned back to the Bronx at his mom’s apartment inside the Jackson Houses. There he took interest in 15-year-old Norma Rodriguez. The 33-year-old Adams, nicknamed “The Animal,” because of his intensity on the court, did everything he could to gain Rodriguez’s interest. He constantly stalked and harassed her to the point where the demons took action.
It was in the housing projects hallway where once again Rodriguez rebuffed Adams. The 6 foot 9 inch former forward got so frustrated that he violently kicked Rodriguez across her chest. The high schooler, upon getting Bruce Lee’ed, fell down a flight of steps where she succumbed to neck and head injuries along with her chest being caved in from the force of the blow.
Adams found his way back to Rikers Island, where he was housed in the 7 Lower dorm at the Otis Bantum Correctional Center. I was the housing officer for most of Adams’ stay. Being there on a steady basis and seeing the same faces on a daily basis, I developed a rapture with these menaces of society. As huge of a human that Adams was, he showed a gentle giant side while he was locked up.
He told me about how Denver Nuggets coach Doug Moe always had his back during pre-draft workouts. Ironically, Moe passed away two days before Adams’ death.
Adams would share the off the court antics of his Running Rebels teammates involving Las Vegas’ powerful, gaming executive Steve Wynn’s daughter. He portrayed her as a slut who got down with almost every team member. He also shared with me how he got busted for Rodriguez’s death by way of his Adidas size 13 ½ footprint being on the front of her shirt, which matched his footwear.
Adams was never a problem for me as he always greeted me with a smile and a wave. The fact of the matter is that gentleness behind bars means jack-sh!t for the crime he committed. He was convicted of manslaughter and served 27 years.
The internet blew up when it was announced that Adams passed on. Reading most of the comments was mind-blowing to me, as they centered around Adams basketball prowess and how he’ll be missed. Not one mention of Norma Rodriguez.
In a universe where victims don’t matter and a thug, which Adams described himself as, gets glorified for bouncing a basketball on a court, all I can say is, what a stupid society this has turned into!
