VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Brandon Adair has enjoyed his second season so far as an NBA official despite it being cut short by the coronavirus outbreak that has gripped the world. It seemed like yesterday the Virginia Beach native was the Division III National Player Of The Year as a junior as he led Virginia Wesleyan to their first ever national title in 2006. "It's actually a joke with a lot of my friends; I told y'all I was going to make it to the league", he kidded. "But then the quote stops there. It wasn't a goal of mine like I was going to be an NBA referee.", he laughed.
While at Wesleyan, his hangout spot was Hot Tuna restaurant in the Beach. It was there he became good friend with the eventual co-owner in Riley Street. "Just through the years, he'd come in. Great guy. He'd always say hi to me. We got introduced and we just kind of kept the relationship" he said.
They kept in contact over the years and when the pandemic outbreak occurred in March, Street like many restaurants had some tough financial decisions to make. Little did he know, his old friend would reach out to him. Adair texted Street. "He said he was getting by", according to Adair. "What can I do? I knew that was a tough question for him to answer. He's not the kind of person who goes out asking for stuff." The 34 year old had already helped out a local school financially with their lunch program, and reaching out to assist a close friend just made sense. "I was absolutely speechlees", said Street.
Because of the kind gesture, it was a key moment for the friends. "If you've got something to give and you want to give it don't be scared to do it" says Street who was able to keep health insurance on his employees. Some are single parents who were thrilled by the gift from Adair. "Brandon doesn't even know all the lives he's touched". Adair is about doing the right thing. "I always had that mindset that I will try to take care of others before I take care of myself." A great call by an NBA official that everyone can agree with.