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.

I love a good cancer comeback story -- like the story of Phil Kessel and his courageous return to the NHL.

Kessel, 19-year-old Bruins forward and fifth overall draft pick for 2006, was diagnosed with testicular cancer last month. He underwent surgery and has been recovering off the ice until just recently -- when he was recalled to Boston from its farm team in Providence.

It's back to life and back to work for Kessel -- who is winning his match against cancer.

Kessel, a Wisconsin native, was the second Boston athlete this year diagnosed with cancer. Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester was diagnosed in August with lymphoma.

The University of Miami's first basketball All-American and member of the school's Athletic Hall of Fame died Friday of esophageal and colon cancer. Dick Hickox, a 5-6 guard who led the 1959-60 Hurricanes to a 23-3 record and a No. 8 ranking -- still the school's highest -- was 68 years old.

Hickox never meant to play basketball at UM. He went to Coral Gables with a friend who was homesick and who threatened to leave unless coach Bruce Hale brought in Hickox and a another friend. Hale agreed -- and had no idea what he was getting. Hickox averaged 22.1 points that season and went on to make history. He was named second All-American, alongside Providence guard Lenny Wilkens. Hickox drew crowds of 5,000 and celebrities -- like actors Burt Reynolds, George Hamilton, and then-Cassius Clay -- often cheered him on from under the basket.

Hickox spent his adult years working in the Dade County Public School system and was the business manager of the South Miami High athletic department. In March, he attended the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., and received a Legends Award. It was the best basketball weekend of his life, one friend said.

Hickox is survived by his wife, his son, and his daughter.