Ham’s inspiring story

Talk ‘N’ Text import Darvin Ham didn’t start playing basketball until his senior year in high school. While on an athletic scholarship at Texas Tech, Ham’s father Howard died in a car accident at 42 in 1992. His mother Wilmer was left with two sons in college and a seven-year-old daughter.

They were hard times for the Hams.

"I don’t know how I got through those times, I was numb," said Wilmer, quoted by Joanne Gerstner of The Detroit News. "We were all numb. But I clung to my children. I knew I had a job to do. I clung to my faith and God saw me through."

Wilmer, who struggled to earn a Master’s degree in education while bringing up her children and holding a job, was an inspiration to her community. Today, she is in her second term as mayor of Saginaw, a Michigan city of over 60,000. Wilmer plans to eventually run for Congress.

As for Ham, he, too, battled adversity in achieving his goal of playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was never drafted by an NBA team and toiled in Spain and the minor leagues before his dream came true.

Ham, 32, wound up playing for six teams in eight NBA seasons. The high point in his pro career came when he saw action for the 2003-04 champion Detroit Pistons. Although he averaged only 2.7 points in the NBA, Ham made a name for himself as a valuable role player who was always ready to check in and contribute.

"Darvin brought us real spark, I really liked that about him," said former Detroit coach Larry Brown. "He was ready to contribute every time his name was called. And that’s a real tribute to his preparation and professionalism. He was consistently one of our best players in practice. He’s a very hard worker."

Ham’s attitude prolonged his stay in the majors.

"I’m always going to be ready to go, no matter if they want me to play the whole game or just a few minutes," said Ham who majored in Therapeutic Recreation at Texas Tech. "Would I prefer to be playing more? Sure. No lie there. But I know I have a job to do and I’m always going to be ready to do it. No excuses. They want me to come in and be a spark for this team (Detroit) and that’s exactly how I want to play."

Ever since he was a boy, Ham had visions of playing in the big leagues. He would take hangers from the closet, untwist the hook and extend the wire to form a hoop tacked to a tree in the family’s frontyard.

"That boy thought he could do anything and I never ever wanted him to stop believing in any dream," said Wilmer. "I can’t explain it. I know that it sounds like I’m just being his mom but he’s always been a special, special boy."

Ham was known as a hard-nosed defender and rebounder in the NBA. Offense wasn’t his strong suit–not even in college where he never averaged in double figures. But his eight-year stint in the NBA is a testament to what else he could do on the floor, other than score points.

In the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), however, Ham is expected to do a lot of everything as an import.

As Ham lived his dream in the NBA, he made it a personal commitment to always give back to the community. It was his way of saying thanks to the Lord for the chance to play at the highest level of the game.

Once, Ham gathered kids in his Saginaw hometown and told them a story.

"Reach up, pretend to grab a star out of the sky and hold it in your hand," he said. "Whenever somebody says something mean or something bad happens, remember that you are special. You have a star in your hand. You are a star."

Ham was touched by the kids’ reaction.

"The kids just looked at me and smiled and I realized that I had taught them something," said Ham. "They got it. That’s when I knew–I have to keep this going. This is too important not to. My life has been too blessed not to share this."

Now, Ham’s dream is to start a foundation that will be his vehicle in institutionalizing camps for kids.

For the moment, his focus is to deliver a championship for Talk ‘N’ Text. He’s certainly got the background for it because he was part of the Pistons title team in 2003-04.

It’s not often that the PBA is able to recruit an import with NBA championship experience.

Since the PBA opened its doors to imports in 1975, only 14 of over 500 have played on NBA title squads. They were Glenn McDonald, Mike McGee, David Thirdkill, Wes Matthews, Billy Thompson, Adrian Branch, Dennis Hopson, Larry Robinson, Tim Breaux, Dickey Simpkins, Scott Burrell, Brandon Williams, Tremaine Fowlkes and Ham.

Some of the players, like Williams and Fowlkes, were not on their teams’ playoff rosters when they topped the Finals but are considered members of championship squads because they had contracts during the season.

Two forgettable imports with title credentials are Hopson and Breaux who both played only a game in the PBA. Hopson saw action on Chicago’s 1990-91 championship team and came for Purefoods in 1996. Breaux wasn’t in Houston’s playoff roster when the Rockets won in 1994-95 but is in the record books as part of the championship team. He played a game for Shell in 2003.

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