By Mel Greenberg
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Acacia and Erin are sound asleep now, and the Guru returned a little while ago from the libation center off the hotel lobby after joining forces with Women;'s Basketball Hall of Fame induction classmate Andrea Lloyd Curry, her husband, Eric; and a few of her friends and family.
The advanced Guru team, led by the Guru, himself, had a busy day arriving here and getting acclimated.
In a masterful display of aeronautical synching, both the flights carrying Acacia and the Guru from Philadelphia and the one carrying Erin from Boston managed to stay on the runway for inordinate amounts of time before heading to Charlotte.
However, both sections of the team barely made the connector, here, and united just before takeoff.
We were greeted on arrival by our good friend William Ewart, a local photographer who is one of the main shooters for the Tennessee women who is not coached by Pat Summitt.
Here is his first photo of the Guru's arrival, with Acacia and Erin following close behind.
Acacia undertook the transport role to make sure the Guru's new tux and suit arrived without wrinkles.
We took a brief visit to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame next door to the Marriott to report for induction duty and wish basketball relations director Karen Tucker happy birthday,
Then it was off to Litton's, an outstanding hamburger place where Bill took advantage of a photo-op by catching the Guru, Erin and Acacia, pictured here left to right, in a live action shot digesting their meal.
(Incidentally, Jonathan is sound asleep back in Philly, but if these pictures are unclear, he'll deal with it upon resuming consciousness.).
The contingent returned to their hotel headquarters where Acacia and Erin worked on the report listed below.
The group will assemble in the morning to work on honing the Guru's acceptance speech into its seven-minute form.
Acacia and Erin are also chasing the other inductees for in-depth interviews and also more tales about the Guru.
Many tales have the potential to be told during Friday night's storytelling session.
The Guru said his speech will keep up with the theme of the WBHOF by honoring the past, celebrating the present and promoting the future.
- Mel
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