Jimmy Walker, former Providence College basketball star and first pick in the 1967 NBA draft, died Monday of lung cancer. He was 63.Walker played three seasons at Providence and held a school record with a total of 2,045 scored points. His record stood for 38 years. Ryan Gomes surpassed his total in 2005.
"He was an amazing phenomenon," says Jim Cox, who played with Walker in 1964. "That he ended up at Providence College was a remarkable development. He was so good, so blessed. He was ahead of his time."
Walker, father of NBA player Jalen Rose -- part of Michigan's Fab Five of the 1990s -- was drafted by the Detroit Pistons and averaged 16.7 points a game in nine NBA seasons. At one time, Walker and Rose held the NCAA Division I record for most career points by a father-son duo.
It's been a rough road for former Boise State basketball player Coby Karl, son of Denver Nuggets coach George Karl. The younger Karl, 23, had his thyroid removed 13 months ago due to papillary carcinoma, a treatable form of cancer. And he returned to the operating room just last week for the removal of cancerous lymph nodes.
Boise State basketball player Coby Karl, son of Denver Nuggets coach George Karl, had surgery 13 months ago to remove his thyroid after he was diagnosed with papillary carcinoma, a form of treatable cancer. And while Karl received chemotherapy to kill off any lingering cancer cells, he must undergo cancer surgery once again.
I love a good cancer comeback story -- like the story of 
Florida safety 
