A Heart of a Hawk

Thomas Robinson, a Forward for the number three ranked Kansas Jayhawks, has endured a lot in the past year, and not just on the court.

Robinson, now a Junior, had to somehow deal with losing both his beloved grandparents in a span of just three days during the middle of his sophomore season.  Then, the unimaginable happened. Just five days after the passing of his grandfather, his mother, Lisa, died unexpectedly, leaving Robinson in charge of his nine year old sister Jayla, who lived half way across the country.

Thomas managed to somehow play against Texas the day after his mother passed. Not much was expected as he only scored two points, and the emotions could be seen as he accumulated four fouls in just eight minutes played.

Kansas coach, Bill Self, was very supportive of his player during those dark times.   He was there when Robinson's grandparents died, he was there shortly after Robinson got the call from Jayla that their mother had collapsed, and he was there for the funeral.

Sometimes Self would notice that Robinson was distracted in practice.  But Self knew that he could not let himself get distracted in the challenges Robinson was facing.

"I thought if I do really care about him and want him to live out the dreams he has for himself and his family, then I owe it to him not to budge," Self said. "I told him at the beginning of the season (2011-2012), I'm not going to budge. I am not going to kiss your butt."

During the summer after his sophomore season, Robinson, a hard worker by nature, was fueled by the need to provide for his sister.  He averaged three workout sessions per day that including one with himself, one with the big men and one with the guards. 

Now, the same player who averaged eight points a game and six rebounds as a sophomore is now averaging 18 and 12 respectively. Robinson is also a front-runner for the National Player of the Year this season, and with all that he's gone through, the sky is the limit for he and the Kansas Jayhawks.