Jack Twyman and Maurice Stokes, whose storied friendship transcended their on-court Hall of Fame accomplishments, will be permanently honored with an annual NBA award in their names that recognizes the ideal teammate, the league announced today.
“What better way to honor the life-long bond that developed between Jack Twyman and Maurice Stokes than by naming this award after them,” said NBA Commissioner David Stern. “The Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award recognizes friendship and selflessness among teammates and celebrates the legacy of Jack and Maurice.”
NBA players have selected Chauncey Billups of the Los Angeles Clippers as the recipient of the inaugural Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award. As part of its support for the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award, the NBA will make a $25,000 donation to the charity of Billups’ choice. A panel of NBA Legends nominated six players from each conference for the award, which recognizes the NBA player deemed the best teammate based on selfless play, on and off-court leadership as a mentor and role model to other NBA players, and his commitment and dedication to his team.
"Chauncey Billups defines what this award was designed to recognize, a player committed to his club, his teammates and his community,” Stern said. “He has mentored and guided countless young players to adopt his selfless attitude, dedication, passion for our game and to respect the history and example of players like Jack Twyman and Maurice Stokes.”
Twyman and Stokes were friends and teammates on the Rochester/Cincinnati Royals from 1955 to 1958. In the last game of the 1957-58 regular season, Stokes suffered an on-court injury that led to him falling into a coma days later, leaving him permanently paralyzed. Diagnosed with posttraumatic encephalopathy, a brain injury that damaged his motor-control center, Stokes was supported for the rest of his life by Twyman, who became his legal guardian and advocate.
Twyman helped organize the NBA's Maurice Stokes Memorial Basketball game, held at Kutsher's Hotel and Country Club in Monticello, N.Y., which raised funds for Stokes's medical care and, following his death in 1970 at age 36, for other players in need. In 2004, after years of lobbying by Twyman, Stokes was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Twyman, who was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 1983, died in 2012.
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Photo Credit: NBA.com
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