Gene Ransom
Horace Eugene Ransom II, better known as Gene Ransom (21 Jan. 1957 - 4 Feb. 2022), was a prominent basketball player for the University of California, Berkeley, Golden Bears from 1975 to 1978. Ransom moved as a young boy from Fresno, California, to Berkeley, where he became a "three-sport legend" at Berkeley High School, excelling in baseball, football, and basketball.[1][2]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 21, 1957 |
| Died | February 4, 2022 (aged 65) Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Listed height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Berkeley (Berkeley, California) |
| College | California (1975–1978) |
| NBA draft | 1977: 1977 NBA draft, 9th round round |
| Selected by the Golden State Warriors | |
| Playing career | 1977–1977 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Career history | |
| 1977–1977 | Golden State Warriors |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career statistics | |
| Points (Cal) | 1,185 (14.8 ppg) |
Ransom emulated the basketball style of Berkeley High School basketball stars Phil Chenier, Doug Kagawa, and Carl Shelton. Ransom "shadowed Chenier... trying to pick up on his game."[1]
When Ransom started playing for the Jackets his sophomore year at BHS, he quickly garnered the attention of the local and regional press, filling stadiums with local fans eager to watch the kid play.
“Gene is the only person that I know that they could sell out the Oakland Coliseum for a high school basketball game,” said Harris, a filmmaker who has captured Ransom’s accomplishments, along with those of many other athletes, on camera. Sports journalists started calling the rising Berkeley star a nickname that followed him throughout his career: Gene “the Dream” Ransom.[1]
Ransom averaged 14.8 points per game in his college career, and led Cal's Golden State Bears in assists all three years that he played.[3] In one game for Cal, Ransom was on the court for all but the final 90 seconds of a five-overtime game against Oregon, ultimately won by the Bears. Ransom played 63 1/2 minutes, which as of 2001 remained the Pac-10 record for most minutes played in a game.[4]
Ransom was inducted into the California Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001.[3]
Later life
After his time as a player, Ransom later served as a basketball coach at Berkeley High School, leading the freshman boys team to a 27-0 record, and served as a youth mentor in other ways. He worked with the nonprofit Athletes United for Peace,[5] which provided healthy alternatives for youth caught up in street violence.[1] With his stepson Jonathon Smith, Ransom also started Dynasty Basketball, an Amateur Athletic Union summer team for promising high school players.[6] As described in the Berkeley Daily Planet in 2002,
Ransom coached the freshman team at Berkeley High during the 2000-01 season, but decided to step away after his proposals for study programs and community service for the players fell on deaf ears. With the budget getting tighter every year at BHS, the support system for younger players can be lacking. In fact, with the newest set of budget cuts, the freshman team has been eliminated for the upcoming school year. So when Davis asked Ransom to help organize a team for him and his friends, Ransom jumped at the chance. While taking classes at the New College of California in San Francisco, he had written a proposal for a comprehensive program for high school athletes, complete with study sessions and community service as equal components with practice and games. Dynasty Basketball is the beginning stages of that vision. [6]
Ransom explained that
They asked me (to coach) because they knew I’m a coach that’s concerned with them as true student-athletes... My kids didn’t feel as if they were getting enough from their high schools. They know I’m about them, not about myself.... These kids were overlooked, and now they’re getting a chance to show how good they are.[6]
Following the occupation of his father, Ramsom also worked as a longshoreman.[1] Having not completed his degree at the University of California, Berkeley, Ransom eventually completed his undergraduate coursework and obtained a college degree from New College of California.[1]
Death
On Friday, February 4, 2022, at about 5:08pm, Ransom was killed in a freeway shooting in Oakland, California.[7] [1][2] The killing appeared to be a murder motivated by road rage.[1][2] The freeway was shut down for several hours.[8] A 25 year old man was arrested the next day, and was later charged with murder.[9][10]
References
- Markovich, Ally (February 9, 2022). "Gene Ransom, basketball star killed in freeway shooting, was shaped by youth in Berkeley". Berkeleyside. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
- Faraudo, Jeff. "Former Cal Basketball Dynamo Gene Ransom Killed in Oakland Freeway Shooting". Sports Illustrated Cal Bears News, Analysis and More. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
- "Gene Ransom (2001) - California Athletics Hall of Fame". California Golden Bears Athletics. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
- Crumpacker, John (March 18, 2001). "Former Bears Star Has A Life After Basketball". SFGATE. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
- "Welcome to Athletes United for Peace". Athletes United for Peace (www.athletesunitedforpeace.org). Retrieved August 9, 2022.
- Green, Jared (June 1, 2002). "More than just basketball". Berkeley Daily Planet (www.berkeleydailyplanet.com). Retrieved August 9, 2022.
- Ferrannini, John (February 8, 2022). "San Francisco man will be arraigned on murder charges after I-880 shooting". KRON4. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
- "Fatal shooting shuts down northbound I-880 at Broadway in Oakland, official says". ABC7 San Francisco. February 5, 2022. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
- "California man arrested in college basketball star's death". AP NEWS. February 6, 2022. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
- Gartrell, Nate (February 8, 2022). "San Francisco man charged with murdering Cal basketball star Gene Ransom". The Mercury News. Retrieved August 8, 2022.