"He saw me, we hugged, and I said, 'I know you're …

Ron Naclerio was one of the people who appeared in court in November to show support for a man he met nearly three decades earlier. The legendary coach of Benjamin Cardozo High in Queens first met Billups when he was a star point guard coming out of Colorado and trained him for the 1997 NBA draft. "He saw me, we hugged, and I said, 'I know you're going through hell, but just keep going,'" Naclerio told ESPN. "Then his lawyer came over to me and thanked me for showing up." As Billups and his family exited the courtroom, throngs of cameras and people followed as Billups went to post his $5 million bail. "It was overwhelming," Naclerio said. "I mean, it's obvious for a guy that used to get stopped to do interviews for winning an NBA championship or the Hall of Fame announcement, to get bombarded for something like this. I just said, 'Wow, the bombardment now is such a low compared to the highs that he's had.'"

ESPN

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: "He saw me, we hugged, and I said, 'I know you're …