Growing up, Marquez Price was always being asked if he knew who exactly his father, Delano Price, and his “surrogate uncle,” Hoegie Simmons, were in the city of Tucson.
It’s safe to say he did, but now he has chronicled the two Tucson basketball legends’ stories in his newest book, “The Backcourt.”
“The Backcourt” tells the interlaced stories of Delano and Simmons, from their high school basketball days to college and playground hoops. The tale is a story of legacy, redemption and community strength that also provides commentary on topics such as the Great Migration and its lasting impact, the crack epidemic of the 1980s and its effects, the prison industrial complex’s influence and the role of entertainment perpetuating gang-related narratives in the 1990s.
Since its release in late January, the book has already become a bestseller on Amazon in three separate categories.
While Price has authored multiple bestselling books, this one meant more to him.
“It’s a legacy piece,” Price said. “I’ve been working on it my entire life, and that’s more figurative than literal, but it’s a story that I’ve had the backseat to since I was a child.”
Price’s father and Simmons are two of the best basketball players to ever call Tucson home.
Delano moved to Tucson from Gary, Indiana and Simmons from Monroe, Louisiana and the two met in the neighborhood of Sugar Hill as children.
Both played key roles in Tucson High School’s last state championship win in 1969. That season, Delano was named first team all-city, first team all-state and an All-American honorable mention. Simmons earned his share of accolades, being named second all-city and all-state.
From there, Delano became an all-conference player at Phoenix College and could have gone to colleges like the University of Kansas, but Delano’s high school sweetheart got pregnant, so he finished school at the University of Arizona and became a teacher administrator.
Simmons began his college career at Glendale Community College before he took his talents to Texas A&M, where he averaged 30 points and was a two-time All-American.
After their college days, the two settled back down in Tucson and became forces in the local playground basketball community.
“When they finished their collegiate play, they returned to Tucson and they just really became like the gatekeepers of playground basketball at that time,” Price said.
Price said he interviewed basketball players such as Fat Lever, Bob Elliott and Sean Elliott, who all told Price that Delano and Simmons belong in the upper echelon of basketball players to hail from Tucson.
“I have interviews with…Fat Lever, Bob Elliott, Sean Elliot, that all saw my father and Hoagie Simmons firsthand, and they corroborate the legend of them being the preeminent players of Tucson, Arizona, even back to Ernie McCray, who has the standing record at the University of Arizona with 46 points in a game,” Price said.
While the basketball careers of both men are talked about extensively, the book also touches on how they made it to Tucson. Price said the book dives into the causes all the way back to the Great Migration.
“There’s family history in this book,” Price said. “It talks about the Great Migration when African Americans went from the South to the Midwest in search of jobs to escape the deep segregated South and how they came here out West.”
The book also provides social commentary on the crack epidemic in the 1980s and media propaganda in the 1990s with gang-related narratives.
The themes played an important role in Delano and Simmons’s story. While Delano became an administrator and public figure in Tucson, Simmons slipped into “street life.” Despite the dichotomy, Price said that never got in between his father and Simmons’s friendship.
“Their brotherhood remained intact,” Price said. “They both had their different lives, but they still met each other on the basketball court a couple times a week. And they were dominating the city, so that’s what makes it more intriguing as well.”
Price said it was important to include those topics because he wanted the story to be more than a sports biography.
“I didn’t want it merely to be just a sports biography,” Price said. “And that’s where I kind of wanted to reel readers in, as far as, it’s way more. It’s way beyond when the sweat dries from the play of the game,” Price said.
Price’s father and Simmons have both had a chance to read the manuscript of the book. He said both were excited by how it turned out.
“(My father) was elated,” Price said. “When I sent him the manuscript, I was sending it to him as I finished the chapters. And I’d be up until the wee hours of the morning and I’d wake up the next day and I’d have like 10 messages from him. He’d be so excited, and so he really loved it. And Hoagie started to read it and he’s already calling me as well.”
Price said he wants readers to understand the importance of legacy. He said the readers will each take something different from the story, but it will tap into everyone’s emotions the same.
“We all have a story, a testimonial, and it’s a story of inspiration, redemption (and) learning,” Price said. “So everyone will get something different, but you will get something that will either galvanize you or it’s going to be heartwarming. Every emotion within the spectrum of emotion will be tapped into.”
Price will be hosting a book signing and conversation with Delano and Simmons on Sunday, March 9, from noon to 3 p.m. at Tucson High School.
