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Hoop Dreams

The ongoing NCAA basketball tournament must remind Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D) of his time as governor of West Virginia. During those days, Rockefeller made a habit of challenging top high school basketball players to join him for pick-up games at the governor’s mansion — although the dress codes may have prevented some of the players from showing off their skills. Among those standouts invited to a May 1981 game was Princeton (W.Va.) High School’s Jimmy Miller, who was named the top player in the state that year. The teenager did his best to contain the governor, who in the above photo puts a spin move on Miller. Despite intense lobbying from the governor to attend the University of West Virginia, Miller opted to play for the University of Virginia, where he turned in a distinguished basketball career.

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