As Martin Luther reminds us, the thirst for glory is not ended by satisfying it, but by extinguishing it (paraphrase). Few men have had that thirst more publicly and painfully extinguished than Darko Milicic, the 2nd pick in the 2003 NBA Draft – right after Lebron. And before All-Stars Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Josh Howard, David West and two others whom you can go look up if you like. Milicic is widely considered the greatest NBA bust of all time, a joke and cautionary tale. Imagine carrying that burden – Biggest Failure of All Time – everywhere you go, forever. Ouch.
All of which is why I was drawn to a recent article on Darko. Turns out he’s doing pretty well. As he puts it:
I kind of feel like Old Darko died. Like, when I think about myself, or myself when I was playing, I feel like I’m sort of thinking about someone who is dead.
Yes, he still has a sizable portion of the 50+ million dollars he made playing basketball (I chose the wrong profession), but he also has assets infinitely more valuable: a loving family, a sense of humor, something to live for, and some perspective. I won’t spoil the ending, but Jesus figures prominently in this man’s ability to accept himself as-is. May we all be so blessed, whether we succeed or fail.
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3 responses to “Downer Darko”
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The full article is amazing and well worth the read!
Men who are able to see beyond their professional sports careers to life’s broader priorities (including why we are here in the first place) will almost inevitably find themselves in a much better long-term position than those who live for the game, acclaim, professional competition, or the money.
Happy for him.
(As a side note, I’d be humbly willing to serve as an NBA bust and joke for a mere tenth of his $52 m…)
Somehow, I think Darko came out the other side very well. The ESPN article is bookmark-worthy.
Very happy for him.