In the heart of Vin Baker rests a simple but transformative truth: hope is stronger than any obstacle, and winning the day begins with looking up.
That theme resonated throughout Concordia University Wisconsin’s Christian Leadership Series on Thursday, Nov. 20, as Baker—Milwaukee Bucks assistant coach, four-time NBA All-Star, and recovery advocate—shared a raw, faith-filled testimony of redemption and purpose.
More than 200 business and community leaders gathered at the River Club of Mequon for the semi-annual event, sponsored by PWSB, where Baker’s keynote—“Hoops to Hope: Life’s Lessons in Perseverance”—delivered laughter, honesty, and a deeply personal call to embrace each day as a gift.
From the moment Baker stepped to the microphone, he brought a warmth and authenticity that immediately connected with the room.
“I don’t go far into my story without telling you exactly why I’m here,” he said. “It’s by God’s grace, favor, and His mercy that I’m standing before you today.”
In April, he will mark 16 years of sobriety—a milestone he described not as an accomplishment, but as a miracle.
A Journey Marked by Triumph—and Collapse
Baker shared the improbable arc of his life: from a ninth-grader who was actually cut from his basketball team to averaging 28 points per game as a senior at the University of Hartford; from the No. 8 pick in the 1993 NBA Draft to a four-time NBA All-Star, Olympian, and Jordan Brand athlete.
But 1997 marked a turning point—not upward, but downward. Following a playoff run with the Seattle SuperSonics, Baker picked up alcohol “and couldn’t put it down.” In the span of a few years, he went from one of the most respected players in the game to a man losing everything: his career, finances, reputation, and health.
“In 2006, I was done playing basketball,” he said. “I was a full-blown alcoholic, and I was out of the league. No one wanted me around. In 2014, I was working at Starbucks. I had lost essentially everything except God.”
He described the lowest moment of his life: standing in a bathroom, weak from addiction, asking God simply to save his life—not his image, not his career—just his life. That prayer led him to detox, then to recovery, then to an unexpected door cracking open.
The Slow, Steady Climb Back
Baker’s return to the Milwaukee Bucks began humbly. A former teammate, Jason Kidd, brought him on to assist part-time with the team and with broadcasting. Eventually, Baker transitioned fully onto the coaching staff, where he now works with players—including NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, whom he affectionately called “like a son.”
The Bucks’ historic 2021 NBA Championship run was an incredibly proud moment, but even that ring, he told the audience, was not his proudest moment.
“Outside of my kids, my most crowning moment as a human being was being able to open up the Vin Baker Recovery Center,” he said. “There’s nothing like being able to pay forward what God has blessed you with. I often say that coaching the Bucks is my day job. Recovery is my mission and my passion. I’ve been there where the patients are.”
The center, launched in 2024 as part of his Bouncing Back Foundation, provides compassionate treatment and mentorship to people battling addiction.
Hope as the Path Forward
Throughout his remarks, Baker returned to a simple but profound theme: winning the day.
Sobriety, he said, isn’t built in years—it’s built in moments, in small victories, in choosing hope over despair again and again.
“If you only carry one thing throughout your entire life,” he told the audience, “let it be hope. Let it be the hope that better things are ahead. Hope is what got me here today.”
He tied the idea to Scripture, reading from Psalm 121—“I lift up my eyes to the mountains. Where does my help come from?”—and then illustrated his point with a story about a buzzard, a bat, and a bumblebee, each trapped not by walls but by habit. People, he said, often do the same.
“We struggle with all our problems and frustrations, never realizing that all we have to do is look up,” he said. “The escape route and the solution to any problem is to look up at God. Sorrow looks back, worry looks around, but faith looks up.”
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Concordia’s Christian Leadership Series is a signature, semi-annual event that exists to recognize and encourage ethical leadership principles and provide networking opportunities for business and community leaders to come together in a dynamic, Christian, higher education environment.