Donnie Walsh, Warrior

It takes a special kind of perseverance to battle the New York media and cancer at the same time.

As reported in the New York Post by Peter Vecsey:

Four days after last June's draft, the Knicks' president, 67, entered Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and went under the knife for one hour. An uncontrollable 50-year urge to smoke vanished along with the cancerous part of his tongue.

"My doctor says he got it all," Walsh said. "Luckily, it was caught quickly before it could spread. Numerous pre- and post-op scans of his head and neck concurred it had been contained.

Physically, Walsh is almost back to normal. His mouth remains a little numb and his speech only betrays him when a conversation becomes lengthy.

"It's like I have marbles in my mouth. But you can't really tell there's something missing unless I stick out my tongue."

It's worth reading the entire piece.  Vecsey reports that even Walsh's wife didn't know about his cancer until hours before the surgery - because he didn't want to worry her.

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Walsh has taken care of business with the Knicks throughout the summer while battling the cancer, unbeknownst to nearly everyone in his life.  He has now all but beaten it and is looking forward to his first season in the Sizable Apple. 

That the guy was somehow able to stay focused on his day-to-day life while questions about his health hung in the balance is stunning.  That he looks well on his way to emerging victorious over the disease is simply wonderful and likely an inspiration for anyone fighting medical issues of their own.  Way to stay strong, Donnie.