"Losing It All" Former Celtic Speaks Out

You don't have to be an athlete to understand how it feels to fall from grace at the pinnacle of one's career. You just have to be human. Groton-Dunstable High School's "Call to Excellence" program will feature a presentation by former Boston Celtic player Chris Herren whose addictive habits plagued him along the road to greatness and ultimately pushed him down to depths which nearly made it impossible for him to return to any semblance of normalcy. The presentation will be given Tuesday, Oct. 30 at the Performing Arts and is free of charge for adults and students in grade nine and above. Seating is limited to the first 800 people to arrive.

Herren is a Massachusetts native and played high school basketball at Durfee High School in Fall River in the 1990s. He had 2,073 career point in his high school years and was a Boston Globe Player of Year in 1992 through 1994. He was also named to the McDonald's All American team in 1994. He was one of the top Division 1 prospects in the country for college and attended Boston College in his freshman year. He later transferred to Fresno State in California, where he played for legendary coach Jerry Tarkanian. At Fresno State, Herren was named to the All-WAC first team in 1996 and 1997 and set records for the college in assists and steals.

His stellar college career hid a nagging addiction problem which followed him throughout college and eventually into the pro ranks. Described on his website as a "nighmare of addiction," Herren went from alcohol to cocaine and then to heroin. The addictive behavior probably affected his performance on the basketball court in college despite achieving some impressive goals. In 1999 Herren was drafted by the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the NBA draft and 33d pick overall. He played for Denver for one year and