Ben "Benji" Wilson
(b. March 18, 1967 in Chicago, Illinois - d. November 21, 1984)
Ben Wilson was a highly talented basketball player, who was shot on the eve of his senior season in high school. He was widely regarded as the best high school player in the U.S. (Class of 1985). Wilson led Simeon Vocational High School of Chicago to the Illinois State Championship 1984.
If you followed High School basketball in the mid '80's, particulary in Chicago, you knew who Benji was. One of the first big wing players to ever step on the court, Ben was a 6-8 small forward who handled and passed like a guard, but could score and defend in the paint. As a junior, he helped Simeon Vocational win the Boy's State Championship. His combination of size and skill certainly paved the way for late '80's phenoms Marcus Liberty, Billy Owens, Sean Higgins, and for current players such as Antoine Walker, Tracy McGrady and Tim Thomas.
One out of every five black men dies before they reach the age of twenty-five. ... That was Benji's number. Benji was the first in Chicago history to ever be named top high school player in the nation, right before he was gunned down (in 1984) But you know what? Benji's not dead: Benji's spirit lives on in every jump shot. Remember: Shoot over brothers, not at them.
"Even today, we miss (Wilson) and wonder what he could have become, how good he could have been,'' said Bobby Tribble, a teammate of Wilson's on Simeon's 1984 state championship team.
Before his senior year, the 6-8 Wilson attended Vaccaro's Nike camp and emerged as the No. 1 prospect in the nation. On the eve of Simeon's season opener, he was walking near the school when he was shot and killed by a gang member who attempted to rob him. He was 17. A wounded but conscious Wilson was rushed to the hospital but died soon thereafter.
Former Orlando Magic player Nick Anderson wore the number 25 his whole career in honor of his friend Ben Wilson. "My high school teammate (Ben Wilson), I watched him die. He got shot twice in the stomach, and I saw it.
"I was right there, no more than 25 feet away." Anderson said.
It was one of the largest funerals in Chicago history. The Rev. Jesse Jackson and Mayor Harold Washington spoke at a funeral service. An estimated 10,000 mourners attended a seven-hour visitation in Simeon's gymnasium.
Wilson was buried in his No. 25 jersey.
"People talked about him as the next Magic Johnson, a 6-8 kid who could do so many things,'' Simeon coach Bob Hambric said.
"People talk about Kevin Garnett being the best player ever to come out of the city,'' said Bankston, now head basketball coach at Thornton Fractional North in Calumet City. "I think Ben would have been better.''
