Greivis Vasquez

via images.ballhype.com

Len Bias. Juan Dixon. Joe Smith. Steve Francis. They all may have been better players than Greivis Vasquez. They may have had more skills and more natural ability than Vasquez. They may all have been better NBA prospects than Vasquez. They all definitely made fewer stupid plays than Greivis. But who would you want bringing the ball up the court with ten seconds left in the game?

I know I don't post a whole lot here, so here is some background on me. I have been a Maryland fan my entire life, and have lived in the state for 24 of my 26 years. I estimate that I have been to at least 85% of the home basketball games since 1991 when my dad first got season tickets. I am a UMD grad, and I went to every single home basketball game my last three years of college (2002-2005). I bleed UMD basketball.

I have seen a lot of players go through UMD, but no one was like Greivis. No one was like Greivis at all. As recently as December I can remember sitting in the stands at Comcast Center and telling my dad that I would be glad when Greivis Vasquez graduated. He took too many dumb shots. He didn't run the offense. He made bad decisions on the basketball court. I actually believed that Maryland, as a whole, would be a better team without him. In December!

Much more recently than that there were times that I hoped Gary would take Greivis out of the game when he would lose control and begin making dumb play after dumb play. No one would make Terps fans as angry or as dumbfounded as often as Vasquez did, particularly in his first three and a half years here. Even at the end, I can remember a few terrible passes in the Michigan State game. I can remember some confounding shots in the Houston game.

But I don't think I have ever missed a player as much as I already miss Greivis Vasquez.

Greivis made up for every bonehead decision with his spirit and leadership. I have never enjoyed watching a player mature as much as Greivis. Watching the training videos before the season, it was obvious that he was taking the reigns as the leader of the team. He would tell the younger players why the conditioning program was important. He was always positive. After every foul that got called on one of our freshman or sophomores, it seemed that Greivis would run over and explain to them why the foul got called. He took every opportunity to try to pass his experience and knowledge to the younger players.

In a time when 'senior leadership' is mentioned by announcers so often that it has become a cliche phrase that means nothing, Greivis actually showed real senior leadership that isn't seen in college basketball.

More than that, he took us on one of the most unbelievable rides that I can ever remember over the last few months of the season. He started playing smarter. His defense improved. The team began to gel. After we got blown out by Duke we got huge win after huge win. I will never forget the four game stretch - Georgia Tech, Clemson, @Va Tech, Duke. I think that any of us wouldn't have been upset by 2-2 in that stretch, but we went 4-0.

I don't think our team was particularly talented. Hayes and Milbourne are nice players, and important in their own right, but were never great. Mosley and Williams have the talent to be special, but they aren't there yet. Vasquez is a point guard who isn't a great outside shooter and probably turns the ball over a little too much. His defense is hit or miss. We do not have 13-3 talent, period. But Greivis wouldn't let us lose.

His performance in second halves late in the season were amazing. He single handedly won two games I will never forget - the North Carolina game from last year and the Virginia Tech game this year. I don't want to sound like I am full of hyperbole, and I don't make statements like this often, but I KNEW that with twelve seconds left yesterday, and Greivis dribbling down the floor, that we were going to score. Greivis was going to drive to the basket, and put up some some off balance shot, and it was going in. I think every Maryland fan knew. And if that isn't the definition of greatness, I don't know what is.

The best thing about Greivis is that he wore his emotions on his sleeve. You knew that no matter how much you cared about the team, he cared more. When there is so much perceived player apathy about team performance, particularly at the professional level, what more can you ask for? Greivis Vasquez is an all time Maryland great. And while he may not have been better than the players I mentioned above, I am going to miss him more than any player than I can ever remember.

via voices.washingtonpost.com

So from the bottom of my heart, all I can say is that I will miss you Greivis. Thanks for the good times, and best of luck in the future.