Issue date: 6/18/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: none

For Tigers fans, the opportunity to see DeAngelo Williams, Joey Dorsey, Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway and Elliot Perry all in one place may seem like a dream. That dream became a reality two weeks ago when each of them, along with several other former Tigers, returned to Memphis to participate in a charity basketball tournament at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse.

In its second year, the "It's All Good Memphis Weekend" was organized to be a fundraiser and raise awareness for a variety of charities by Scott Robinson, the head graduate manager for The University of Memphis men's basketball team.

The event, presented by the Tiger Gift Shop, was also a tribute by Robinson to his mother, Diane, who suffers from multiple sclerosis and is wheelchair-bound.

Statistics show that approximately 250,000 to 350,000 people in the United States have been diagnosed with MS. It is a disease that affects the central nervous system and can cause problems with muscle control, strength, vision, balance, feeling and thinking.

The proceeds, which Robinson estimated to "about $7,000," will be distributed to various charities such as the MS Society and the Larry Finch Scholarship through Dream 2 Discover You, a non-profit organization Robinson started last year. D2DY, which focuses on teaching life skills to inner-city youth, will also use some of the donations to hold basketball camps and clinics for children in Memphis and other cities.

Though last year's tournament was thrown together at "the last minute," Robinson said, this year he had much more time to organize it and couldn't be happier with the results.

"I'm very pleased with the way it turned out," he said. "Everybody had a lot of fun. We had a lot of former players come back and a lot of fans come out to see them. It was great."

The weekend-long event began June 5 with the "Celebrity of Memphis" game, which featured Williams, Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau president Kevin Kane and Mayor Willie Herenton.

"I have no basketball talent at all, none at all," said Williams, who awed fans with his basketball blunders throughout the night. "But it's fun getting out here and mixing it up a little bit."

Afterwards, the school hosted the "Memphis Legends" game with former Tiger greats Elliot Perry, Andre Turner, Earl Barron, Jeremy Hunt, Rodney Newsom, Bobby Parks, Chris Turner and many more taking the floor.

Continued...

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