American former basketball player Mike Gminski recently detailed his career, struggles with alcoholism, and journey to Christ. Gminski, 64, who played four years at Duke from 1976 to 1980 and was named the ACC Rookie of The Year, appeared on the UNPACKIN’ it podcast last month, where he addressed a variety of topics, including sharing his testimony.
During the interview, he shared that his relationship with drinking began when in college, but at the time, it wasn’t a full-blown addiction.
“When I had my first beer, and I was with a bunch of older guys on the team, I was starting with the varsity and hanging out with them, and you know, it wasn’t an everyday thing for sure, you know, weekends, maybe after a game after a win or something, but it did start then, “Gminski said, adding that alcoholism runs in his family so it was something he was familiar with growing up.
At the same time, he said that drinking alcohol during college wasn’t something negative that impacted his life until later on during rough seasons of his life, such as the divorce of his first wife in 2011, whom he had been married to since 1981 and the loss of his second wife, Sarah, years ago due to a “massive internal hemorrhage.”
“What happened was her liver stopped being able to clot her blood, and she went into cardiac arrest twice more after the EMTs got there,” he explained. “They got her stabilized, and she went to the hospital. She had two more cardiac arrests, each for an extended three minutes.”
Gminski added that while she was placed on life support, she was ultimately taken off when doctors said she was brain dead. Regarding his alcoholism, he shared that his drinking became worse even when his friends tried to stage an intervention on his behalf. It was at this point that Gminski began to drink vodka regularly.
The turning point for Gminski came when he was living with his son Noah, who offered to help him overcome the addiction.
“I walk in the door, and at the kitchen table, there are all these filthy leaf-colored dirty vodka bottles with a note in front of it that said, ‘Dad, I love you. I want to help you’ and just brought me to my knees and shame and cried, and then he and I started having conversations,” he said, adding that his son would do an intervention for him.
Gminski added that his son’s intervention entailed a video call from two guys from the Florida-based program called Rebound as well as a woman, Leanne Miller, who ironically was the maid of honor at his first wedding, and that she had been in recovery for 13 years.
During the call, Gminski said he knew Jesus was in the room as he had this “amazing sense of calm” during the call. Afterward, Gminski traveled to Florida, where he would join the recovery program at Rehab for the next 60 days. Today, Gminski is 4 years sober and is entirely devoted to walking with Christ.
“I just passed three years 11 months in my recovery, “he said. “Four years ago right now, you wouldn’t have recognized, and that’s just four years ago. I tell people I said you know, you don’t think there are Miracles that happen now. I’m one, and I know it, and I know what He’s worked in my life.”
On Gminski’s LinkedIn, he honored God as he celebrated his three years of sobriety last year.
“So blessed to celebrate three years of sobriety with my son, Noah, and the staff at Sana Recovery. I would not be here without him and the love and support of friends and family,” he said. “God has performed many miracles in my life. I’m so fortunate to be on this walk with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! I look forward to sharing my story with anyone who feels it may benefit them or someone close to them! Grace and Peace to all!”
In addition to playing for Duke University, Gminski played for the New Jersey Nets after being drafted in the first round of the 1980 NBA draft, 7th overall. He would go on throughout his 14-year NBA career, playing for the 76ers, Hornets, and Bucks. After retiring from basketball, Gminski became a long-time analyst for the Hornets, CBS Sports, Raycom Sports, and Fox Sports Net and regularly contributed to WFNZ.
WATCH: Mike Gminski Talks J.J. Redick, Duke Basketball, Vodka, Addiction, and Jesus | UNPACKIN' it Podcast
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Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.