Wherever Wayman Tisdale went, whatever he was doing, chances were he was smiling.
Tisdale was a three-time All-American at Oklahoma in the mid-1980s before playing a dozen years in the NBA and later becoming an accomplished jazz musician.
But those who knew Tisdale, who died Friday at a hospital in his hometown of Tulsa, Okla., recalled not only his professional gifts but a perpetually sunny outlook, even in the face of a two-year battle with cancer that took his life at 44.
“I don’t know of any athlete at Oklahoma or any place else who was more loved by the fans who knew him than Wayman Tisdale,” said Billy Tubbs, who coached Tisdale with the Sooners. “He was obviously a great, great player, but Wayman as a person overshadowed that. He just lit up a room and was so positive.”
Jeff Capel, the current Sooners coach, noted Tisdale’s “incredible gift of making the people who came in contact with him feel incredibly special.”
After three years at OU, Tisdale played in the NBA with the Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings and Phoenix Suns. The 6-foot-9 forward averaged 15.3 points for his career. He was on the U.S. team that won the gold medal in the 1984 Olympics.
Tisdale learned he had a cancerous cyst below his right knee after breaking his leg in a fall at his home in Los Angeles on Feb. 8, 2007. He said then he was fortunate to have discovered the cancer early.
“Nothing can change me,” Tisdale said last June. “You go through things. You don’t change because things come in your life. You get better because things come in your life.”
His leg was amputated last August, and a prosthetic leg that he wore was crimson, one of Oklahoma’s colors. He attended an Oklahoma City Thunder game April 7 and later that month was honored at the Greenwood Cultural Center in Tulsa. During the ceremony, he spoke about his cancer, saying, “In my mind, I’ve beaten it.”
He recently told Tulsa television station KTUL he had acute esophagitis, which prevented him from eating for about five weeks and led to significant weight loss. Among the causes of that condition are infections, medications, radiation therapy and systemic disease.
Last month, Tisdale was chosen for induction into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the first freshman to be a first-team All-American since freshmen were allowed to play again in the 1971-72 season. He also was one of 10 three-time All-Americans. Patrick Ewing and Tisdale were the last to accomplish the feat, from 1983-85.
As a musician, Tisdale recorded eight albums. A bass guitarist who often wrote his own material, his most recent album, “Rebound,” was inspired by his fight with cancer and included guest appearances by several artists, including saxophonist Dave Koz and country star and fellow Oklahoma native Toby Keith.
Wayman Tisdale
In college: Three-time All-American at Oklahoma. He is the 12th-highest scorer in NCAA history with 2,661 points.
Drafted: Selected No. 2 overall in the 1985 NBA draft by the Pacers (Patrick Ewing was No. 1).
In the pros: Averaged 15.3 points and 6.1 rebounds in 12 NBA seasons from 1985-97 (for Indiana, Sacramento and Phoenix).
Internationally: Won a gold medal at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics for Team USA.
Finished his NBA career with:
• 12,878 points
• 5,117 rebounds
• 1,077 assists
