What Really Happened to John Brisker?

Is John really dead? This is the question the Seattle Times asked a few years back.

A talented, yet volatile two-time ABA All-Star during his playing days. Former teammates, the FBI, and fans alike are all still wondering, what really happened to John Brisker, basketball’s original badass who disappeared without a trace in 1978.

Straight Out The Projects

By all accounts, John Brisker was a paradox.

A tough guy, from a tough place – the outskirts of Detroit. He averaged better than 20 points for his entire six-year career and pulled down 6.5 boards per game, which was and still is a cut above for a 6-foot-5 guard.

On the other hand, he was the first player to bring a gun into the locker room long before Gilbert Arenas did it and was nicknamed “the heavyweight champion of the ABA” for getting ejected from more games than a kid with a fake ID from a strip club.

Per Loose Balls, his first team, the ABA’s Pittsburgh Pipers/Condors even brought in a football player who was supposed to keep him in line during one training camp.

This didn’t exactly pan out, as after the two bruisers went at it on the court for a bit, the coach had to call off practice after the they ran off the court in different directions, threatening to get their handguns and shoot each other.

There are tons of similar anecdotes I could share about Brisker, like the two seperate on-court fistfights in which he busted up guys so good, they required facial reconstructive surgery (sadly no video footage of these exist).

But, by far, the most interesting thing about John Brisker, is what happened to him (or didn’t) after his playing days were over.

The Hot Hand That Went Cold

The last time anyone heard from John Brisker was April 11, 1978, when he called his girlfriend.

He was already three years removed from his last professional game by this point and dealing with newfound responsibilities – he and his girl had a daughter. Apparently, Brisker was also coming off a few failed business ventures.

Against this backdrop, many men have packed up what little belongings they have and left. Rather than face the indignation of not being able to provide for their family.

This is one possibility.

Another hypothesis is a lot more enticing.

According to former Seattle SuperSonics teammate Spencer Haywood, who played alongside Brisker during the last few years of his career and spent some time with him after he retired. Brisker liked to wear a dashiki and personally told him he was “interested in going back to his roots.”

This meant returning to Wakanda.

John Brisker’s brother “Rapid Ralph” has stated on the record that John did indeed go to Africa in 1975 and purchased land in Nigeria.

However, he hasn’t seen or spoken to his brother since 1976.

This also doesn’t match up with the timeline of John Brisker being Stateside as late as 1977.

Number One Fan

Still, other teammates, such as 7 foot 2 Yeti Tommy Burleson say Brisker was invited to Uganda as a personal guest of basketball-loving cannibal Idi Amin.

As the story goes, when Amin’s regime was toppled in 1979, John Brisker was killed by a firing squad of revolutionaries along with many of the dictator’s other cronies and accomplices.

Other theories include, Brisker being on the run from the mob, that he got kidnapped by Liberian freedom fighters while in Africa, and that Amin’s own government killed John after they didn’t believe his coaching of the Ugandan national basketball team was up to par.

At this point, the only things we know for sure are:

• The U.S. State Department has no record of John Brisker traveling to Africa and as late as the 80s, didn’t consider him dead.
• An FBI spokesperson in typical FBI fashion has cryptically said they “cannot conclusively say” whether John Brisker is deceased or not.
• John Brisker’s immediate family and friends have not heard from him since the late 70s.

We may never know if John Brisker is alive and living under an assumed alias in the States, in Africa chilling with Tupac, or a victim of some type of foul play.

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