overcome tremendous odds at a young age
By Alan Abrahamson
NBCSports.com
Posted: Nov.11, 2006, 11:54 am ESTLOS ANGELES -- Sometimes, it's true, life really does allow for the possibility of miracles.

Maybe it's a karma thing. Maybe being kind and respectful to others, showing graciousness and humility, wanting to do the right thing by your friends and family -- maybe, in the end, that really does all count for something.

Not even 16 months after open-heart surgeries, his chest cut open the same way a chef might bone a chicken, and not just once but twice, Ronny Turiaf is alive, well, joyful, dancing, scoring, rebounding, living life, giving life.

Two weeks into this NBA season, a season that seemed an impossible dream when, just those few months ago, his heart was stopped for hours on an operating table, Turiaf has emerged as one of the bright young talents on a Los Angeles Lakers team that many had expected to be little more than a purple-and-gold disaster.


Otto Greule Jr./Getty Images
Turiaf notched his NBA career high of 23 points this week in a win over Golden State.
Instead, with 19-year-old Andrew Bynum in the post and Turiaf seeing considerable minutes in most of the team's first seven games, the Lakers are a respectable 4-3.

In the Lakers' second game of the season, Nov. 2 at Golden State, Turiaf poured in 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds. The next night, at Staples Center against Seattle, Turiaf scored 13 amid seven rebounds and three blocks -- two of them spectacular fourth-quarter blocks of Chris Wilcox and Rashard Lewis.

"To think that a second-round pick is going to play big minutes within the first five or six of the games of the year and help you win two games, I think people would say at this time he's ahead of the curve," Laker general manager Mitch Kupchak said.

The emergence of Ronny Turiaf stands in marked contrast to so much else about the NBA early this season, awash in headlines about skyrocketing numbers of technical fouls and, worse, off the court, escalating numbers of players packing guns. Ronny Turiaf says, "Hello," and asks, "How are you?" to secretaries. And janitors. And means it.

"He has such positive energy," said Laker forward Lamar Odom, who added, as so many do when speaking of Turiaf, a message delivered without the slightest touch of irony. "He has a great heart."

Odom paused, then added, "He's someone that you love having around."

Kobe Bryant, asked about Turiaf, said with that famous smile, "Ronny is the man! He's my guy."

Turiaf, for his part, said, "I'm very, very pleased and very thankful."

Any top athlete must possess a champion's will to win. Still, Turiaf said, of course he is respectful -- to teammates, opponents, fans, the game. In a game this week against Minnesota, he and Kevin Garnett collided while going for a rebound. Garnett fell to the floor. The whistle blew. Turiaf reached down to extend a hand to Garnett, to help him up.

"This is how my mom raised me, man," Turiaf said. "You have to take care of others before you take care of yourself. That's how I live my life."

Born in the French territory of Martinique, a Carribean isle, Turiaf hails from a small fishing village called Le Robert; he is the oldest of four, with three younger sisters. On his wrist Turiaf wears a yellow Livestrong-style bracelet with references to Martinique. Underneath the bracelet, tattooed into the inside of his right wrist, is the word "Madinina," a locals' reference to the island, along with "972," the island's postal code in the French system.

In his early teens, Turiaf moved to Paris to attend a French sports school. He played high school ball with current NBA players Tony Parker, Boris Diaw and Johan Petro -- and still plays with them, on the French national team.

It was while playing in a small town in Croatia that he was noticed, by Tommy Lloyd, an assistant coach at Gonzaga.

"Here was this kid. He was only 6-7 then, with the braids

Date Opponent TIME TV Location Results
Dec 2 @ Clippers 10:30PM ET LA Staples Center
Dec 4 Pacers 10:30PM ET FxI Staples Center
Dec 6 Hornets 10:30PM ET NO Staples Center
Dec 8 Hawks 10:30PM ET TSN Staples Center
Dec 10 Spurs 9:30PM ET NBA Staples Center
Dec 12 @ Rockets 8:30PM ET LA Toyota Center
Dec 13 @ Mavericks 9:30PM ET ESP American Airlines Center
Dec 15 Rockets 10:30PM ET ESP Staples Center
Dec 17 Wizards 9:30PM ET NBA Staples Center
Dec 19 @ Bulls 8:30PM ET NBA United Center
Dec 20 @ Timberwolves 8:00PM ET LA Target Center
Dec 22 @ Nets 7:30PM ET LA Continental Airlines Arena
Dec 25 @ Heat 2:30PM ET ABC AmericanAirlines Arena
Dec 27 @ Magic 7:00PM ET LA TD Waterhouse Centre
Dec 29 @ Bobcats 7:00PM ET LA Charlotte Bobcats Arena
Dec 31 76ers 9:30PM ET PHI Staples Center
January
Date Opponent TIME TV Location Results
Jan 4 @ Kings 10:30PM ET TNT ARCO Arena
Jan 5 Nuggets 10:30PM ET ALT Staples Center
Jan 7 Mavericks 9:30PM ET NBA Staples Center
Jan 9 @ Grizzlies 8:00PM ET LA FedExForum
Jan 10 @ Rockets 8:30PM ET LA Toyota Center
Jan 12 Magic 10:30PM ET SUN Staples Center
Jan 15 Heat 10:00PM ET TNT Staples Center
Jan 17 @ Spurs 9:00PM ET ESP AT&T Center
Jan 18 @ Mavericks 9:30PM ET TNT American Airlines Center
Jan 20 @ Hornets 8:00PM ET LA Ford Center
Jan 22 Warriors 10:30PM ET FxB Staples Center
Jan 26 Bobcats 10:30PM ET MyC Staples Center
Jan 28 Spurs 3:30PM ET ABC Staples Center
Jan 30 @ Knicks 7:30PM ET LA Madison Square Garden
Jan 31 @ Celtics 7:30PM ET LA TD Banknorth Garden
February
Date Opponent TIME TV Location Results
Feb 2 @ Pacers 7:00PM ET LA Conseco Fieldhouse
Feb 3 @ Wizards 7:00PM ET LA Verizon Center
Feb 5 @ Hawks 7:00PM ET LA Philips Arena
Feb 8 @ Pistons 8:00PM ET TNT The Palace of Auburn Hills
Feb 9 @ Raptors 7:00PM ET LA Air Canada Centre
Feb 11 @ Cavaliers 3:30PM ET ABC Quicken Loans Arena
Feb 13 Knicks 10:30PM ET NBA Staples Center
Feb 15 Cavaliers 10:30PM ET TNT Staples Center
Feb 21 Trail Blazers 10:30PM ET POR Staples Center
Feb 23 Celtics 10:30PM ET FxN Staples Center
Feb 25 @ Warriors 6:00PM ET LA ORACLE Arena
Feb 26 @ Jazz 9:00PM ET LA Delta Center
March
Date Opponent TIME TV Location Results
Mar 2 Kings 10:30PM ET ESP Staples Center
Mar 4 @ Suns 3:30PM ET ABC US Airways Center
Mar 6 @ Timberwolves 8:00PM ET LA Target Center
Mar 7 @ Bucks 8:00PM ET LA Bradley Center
Mar 9 @ 76ers 7:00PM ET NBA Wachovia Center
Mar 11 Mavericks 9:00PM ET ESP Staples Center
Mar 15 @ Nuggets 10:30PM ET TNT Pepsi Center
Mar 16 Trail Blazers 10:30PM ET POR Staples Center
Mar 18 Timberwolves 9:30PM ET FNo Staples Center
Mar 22 @ Grizzlies 8:00PM ET LA FedExForum
Mar 23 @ Hornets 8:00PM ET LA New Orleans Arena
Mar 25 Warriors 9:30PM ET FxB Staples Center
Mar 27 Grizzlies 10:30PM ET FMS Staples Center
Mar 30 Rockets 10:30PM ET FSW Staples Center
April
Date Opponent TIME TV Location Results
Apr 1 Kings 9:30PM ET NBA Staples Center
Apr 3 Nuggets 10:30PM ET ALT Staples Center
Apr 4 @ Clippers 10:30PM ET ESP Staples Center
Apr 6 @ SuperSonics 10:30PM ET LA Key Arena
Apr 8 Suns 3:30PM ET ABC Staples Center
Apr 9 @ Nuggets 9:00PM ET NBA Pepsi Center
Apr 12 Clippers 10:30PM ET TNT Staples Center
Apr 13 @ Suns 10:30PM ET ESP US Airways Center
Apr 15 SuperSonics 9:30PM ET FNW Staples Center
Apr 18 @ Kings 10:00PM ET LA ARCO Arena

me Position Height Weight Birth Date College
1 Smush Parker Point Guard 6'4" 180 6/1/1981 Fordham
2 Aaron McKie Shooting Guard 6'5" 209 10/2/1972 Temple
3 Shammond Williams Point Guard 6'1" 201 4/5/1975 North Carolina
4 Luke Walton Small Forward 6'8" 232 3/28/1980 Arizona
5 Jordan Farmar Guard 6'2" 180 11/30/1986 UCLA
6 Maurice Evans Shooting Guard 6'5" 220 11/8/1978 Texas
7 Lamar Odom Forward 6'10" 230 11/6/1979 Rhode Island
10 Vladimir Radmanovic Power Forward 6'10" 234 11/19/1980 None
17 Andrew Bynum Center 7'0" 275 10/27/1987 None
18 Sasha Vujacic Guard 6'7" 195 3/8/1984 None
21 Ronny Turiaf Forward 6'10" 249 1/13/1983 Gonzaga
24 Kobe Bryant Shooting Guard 6'6" 220 8/23/1978 None
31 Chris Mihm Forward-Center 7'0" 265 7/16/1979 Texas
43 Brian Cook Power Forward 6'9" 258 12/4/1980 Illinois
54 Kwame Brown Forward-Center 6'11" 248 3/10/1982 None