The journey that a basketball player embarks upon often aligns with superstardom. Shoot for the stars, aim for the moon and perhaps your hard work, talent and luck will land you in the NBA. For those familiar with 518 basketball, certainly you’ve heard the name Tiki Mayben.
Tiki Mayben had this entire area in a vice grip with his raw ability and productive playing style. His valiant efforts landed him several D-1 offers and he went on to play college basketball at Umass and Binghamton. Off the court issues troubled him and the media made those issues twice as dastardly.
As most NY hoopers do – Tiki had his eyes set on Syracuse. He was verbally committed to play for the Orange as the point guard on the 2005 Freshman class featuring Eric Devendorf and Arinze Onuaku. He was aligned to attend CBA Syracuse, increase his academic output and fast track his way to Big East competition. Instead, local media publicized the hell out of this intent-to-transfer visit which led several CBA alums to voice their opinion on the matter.
“It was the worst thing I ever saw in my life.”
-Jim Hart, AAU Coach [City Rocks]
Tiki’s distrust of the media mainly stems from the smear campaign that local publications like the Times Union continued to propagate during his basketball career. If you’re great – you will receive hate. Many individuals couldn’t accept the fact that he was insanely talented with the highest court caliber ever seen in the 518 area. The most egregious misrepresentation occured when local media caught wind of his intent to attend CBA Syracuse. By making this visit public knowledge, the Times Union reveled in the fact that they helped create an admission denial. And for what?
God forbid a young man growing up in the tenements of high-risk areas carry himself like a soldier. The difference between Tiki Mayben and Caron Butler is incredibly minimal. Caron Butler had run-ins with the law in Racine, WI which included a CI planting narcotics in his locker. It is difficult to conclude the entire reason why Butler made it to the league and Mayben didn’t. Many indication signs seem to point to the political climate of the respective areas. Perhaps local Midwest media weren’t as concerned with defaming the name of a teenager as the pretentious elites in NYS?
Mayben was audacious, unapologetic and carried himself with a sense of poise that rubbed some the wrong way. The amount of politics that seeps its way into Section 2 basketball proves unhealthy. Since the Capital Region is generally political, this amplifies the voice of local media sources.
Everyone has free will – what a shame it is that local media chose to defame the strongest star that ever lived in the 518. They could have just said nothing and let the situation run its course. Instead, they bashed an adolescent from the tenements further contributing to the vicious cycle. Instead of the area’s first NBA star, the 518 received more negativity from the powerful elites who control media narratives and further propagate the adversity faced by disenfranchised youth.
Regardless, the Mayben name is nowhere near finished ballin’! Tiki’s son – Hasai – won 3 Section 2 titles and one state championship during his tenure at Green Tech High School in Albany, NY. Sii currently plays for Darrow School and will be eligible for college ball soon.
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