U of A point guard recalled fondly by former coach
Badger, who died earlier this month, remembered for his selflessness
Former University of Alberta basketball coach Don Horwood remembers Greg Badger as not only a key ingredient in the Golden Bears’ offence, but as a glue guy who helped create the winning culture on back-to-back national championship teams.
Horwood, like all of Badger’s former teammates, was shocked and saddened to learn that the 47-year-old had passed away earlier this month.
“We had a lot of exceptional players and without any one of them, we wouldn’t have been able to win, but Greg filled a very special role on that team,” said Horwood, who coached the Golden Bears from 1983 to 2009. “I definitely don’t think we could have won without the combination of things he brought to the team at that time.
“We had a lot of good scorers, good inside players, a lot of really talented players, but Greg at the point guard spot brought that one thing that is something missing in a point guard: a pass-first mentality,” he said.
Horwood remembers Badger, who helped the U of A to Canadian titles in 1994 and 1995, as one of those players who was just as happy, if not happier, to see a teammate score than to score himself.
“He took great pride in his ability to get the ball to the right guy at the right time,” said Horwood.
“That special trait that he brought to the team was exactly what we needed at that time. He had the ability to look past his own scoring and look at what was best for the team at the time.
“We didn’t need a point guard who was a great scorer, but we needed a point guard who could score when we needed, and he seemed to know when he needed to take charge and score.”
In five seasons with the Golden Bears, Badger scored 486 points and 291 assists in 174 games, including 99 Canada West games.
That his assist total is the third highest in Golden Bears history sheds a lot of light on the player and his character.
“In sports, like any other part of life, people give off vibrations and other people interpret those vibrations,” said Horwood. “With Greg, the ones that he gave off were that he always put the team first and I believe the guys sensed that, they could feel it.
“And you could see it in his play with his actions. He was never a guy who was looking for his score, he was always thinking ‘Can I head-man the ball, can I make a pass here, can I get the ball to Greg DeVries, can I get it inside to Murray Cunningham or Scott Martell.’
“And he had an on-floor intelligence that most coaches talk about. Greg definitely had that.” The players on most university teams forge a bond that lasts long after their playing careers are over, and on championship teams that bond is even stronger. That’s why Badger’s passing hit the program hard.
“Even subsequent players on the Bears, they all knew Badge,” said Horwood. “He was around, he was around the city, he was part of the alumni. He was always a Golden Bears fan. Many of the players who came after him knew Greg and knew of him.
“Most of them knew of his struggles, they didn’t know the depth of the struggles he was going through, but they knew he was having some issues.
“Despite all those issues he was always the kind of guy who had time for people. He was positive with people, he had a loving heart. He was not the type of guy who would put people down. He was the type of guy who build people up and tell them how good they were and what they could do well.
“He had a reputation with his teammates and the alumni as being a big-hearted guy.”
A celebration of Badger’s life is being held Thursday, July 19 at 3 p.m. in the Enoch Grand Ballroom, Edmonton Marriott at River Cree Resort. As part of Greg ’s legacy, the Badger family is establishing the Greg Badger Memorial Foundation to support U of A basketball athletes, as well as mental health and addiction initiatives.
He was positive with people, he had a loving heart. He was not the type of guy who would put people down. He was the type of guy who would build people up ...