Black coaches to honor John Thompson by wearing towel over shoulder this week

Washington

Report: Black coaches to wear towel in John Thompson tribute

/ by Ryan Wormeli

Washington

The death of the legendary John Thompson Jr., just days before the longtime Georgetown coach's 79th birthday, shocked the college basketball world in August.

Thompson is a titanic figure in the landscape of college basketball, both on the court as a brilliant coach who won the NCAA Tournament in 1984, and off the court as a crusader for the rights of African-American players and coaches.

multiple black coaches to wear towel draped over right shoulder to honor the late john Thompson during opening games this week.
— Dick Weiss (@HoopsWeiss) November 23, 2020

Thompson was known for draping a towel over his shoulder when coaching, and as a tribute to his memory, a number of Black coaches will be doing the same during the opening week of the college basketball season.

According to ESPN, multiple coaches are planning to honor Thompson by wearing a towel over their shoulder for the entire 2020-21 season.

In an upcoming memoir about his life, Thompson said he started wearing the towel as a tribute to his mother who wore one over her shoulder when she worked in the kitchen.