Dean Tolson was one of the top prep basketball players in Missouri. He went on to play for the University of Arkansas. Tolson eventually got drafted by the Seattle Supersonics. After his sports career ended, he realized it was time to go back to school. He was illiterate until he was 32. He is telling his story in his book, Point Forward: My Journey from Illiterate NBA Player to a Magna Cum Laude Master’s Degree.
Tolson spoke with rolling out about the book, education, and his personal life.
What do you want this book to do for young athletes?
My story is that challenge for that child. I hope it is brought to them in the correct way. Education was sold as a myth, not as a benefit to me growing up. My job was to put butts in the seats and fill the bleachers every night. Not an education. Dean Tolson was a star in every level, high school, college, pro, NBA, and international basketball for 11 years. I put butts in the seats, and I want the child to know that’s not his or her mission.
When did you decide that it was time to go back to school?
I was illiterate up until the age of 32 and my mother brought it to my attention that I needed to dial in to fix that, and I listened to her. I did not want to listen to her but I was happy because I was seeing the world for free. I’m making money. I’m traveling. I’m playing ball and doing what I love. I went back to college to prove that anybody can do this. I’m the first professional athlete in American history, a matter of fact in the entire world, to ever pull this off, and I’m proud of that.
Why is education important?
People think that you tell kids to go to school just to get an education; that’s only the beginning. What do you do with it? If you don’t do anything with it, what good is it? On the flip side of getting an education, what kids don’t realize is getting that education will demonstrate to yourself who you are as a human being and what’s going on inside of you. Forget about the world, education, and getting a job. What about knowing who you are as a person and as an individual? Isn’t that important? That’s besides getting the education. Wouldn’t you like to know that this is me? This is who I am. This is what I can do. This is what I cannot do. You find out all of that and then decide what you’re going to do. That’s the most important thing in the world to me. I found out who Dean Tolson was for real, all the way to a master’s degree magna cum laude, who went from a straight F student to a straight A student. I got 10 A’s and a B in my entire master’s program and graduated magna cum laude. I found out who I am through that process.
What valuable advice did you receive from Bill Russell while he was coaching?
The only thing that I learned from him was politics and that’s what caused me to stop playing basketball and go back and get my education. He was a politically controversial figure and I did not want my story and my situation to be political and controversial. I wanted to orchestrate mine in such a way that it helps people understand this so they can survive in a 21st century challenging society.
