Oakland

Mack’s Paul Goree: “Deacon for Defense”

Published

8 years ago

September 8, 2017

Pauline and Paul Goree at the 2016 100th Anniversary of the Center Street Missionary Baptist Church, pastored by Allen C. Langston, Jr.

Paul Goree was a substitute point guard on the 1958/ 1959 McClymonds (Mack) Warriors basketball team.

From 1958 through 1962 Mack won 110 games and lost only once and was considered to be the greatest high school basketball team in the country. That team will be honored with a celebration organized by Virtual Murrell and Joe Ellis October 11 at Scott’s in Jack London Square.

Goree, who stands just 5’ 6”, stood out tall amongst his peers and teammates because the “strength of my game was that I was the fastest and my defensive skills kept us ahead and we held on to our leads when I substituted for the great Aaron Pointer or the dominant Cha-Cha McKinney.”

Laughingly he said “you could call me a deacon for defense since I now serve as a deacon at the Center Street Missionary Baptist Church in West Oakland where Pauline Teasley, my high school sweetheart and wife of 57 years, sings in the choir. She also sang in Mack’s choir when we were students.”

Goree sees a definite parallel between his Mack Warriors team and the present-day Golden State Warriors. He compared the strength of their coach Paul Harless who taught us competitiveness, a fast-pace style and a merciless defense, with Steve Kerr’s emphasis on the same selfless passing approach to the game. “We won the most games, like Golden State did because everybody got along and there were no ego struggles. But, his own ego and self-confidence remains today, even if he expresses it in a tongue-in-cheek manner. Instead of comparing him to NBA standouts Mugsy Bogues, Spud Webb or Nate Robinson, all his size or shorter, he jokingly said he wishes he could play like Stephen Curry.

Goree, who hails from Rustin and Arcadia, La., where sugar cane grows abundantly, understands the historical significance of his family name. President Obama visited Goree Island off the coast of Senegal, the place where Africans passed through “the door of no return” and were sold as slaves and shipped to America.

He served 4 ½ years in the US Air Force and was stationed in Africa during part of his duty. He worked as a welder for C&H Sugar Company in Crockett before retiring.

Pauline Teasley’s family hails from Pine Bluff, Ark., and she is still an active entrepreneur operating “Pauline’s Creations” beauty salon at 3811 Macdonald Avenue in Richmond, not far from their home in El Cerrito.

Paul and Pauline have three sons and four grandchildren, all residing in the Bay Area.

Ron Linzie, an assistant pastor at Goree’s church, and a former basketball player, said “Paul Goree would have been a starter on any other team but he was blessed to have played with an all-star lineup that had the strength of numbers from 1958-1962 that included Ray Freeman, John Brumfield, Aaron Pointer, Howard Foster, Edward Thomas, James Hadnot, Paul Silas, Joe Ellis, Charley Lomack, Richard Cartwright, Charles “Cha Cha” McKinney, David Reed, Charles Aikens, Fritz Pointer, John Aikens, Wendell Hayes, Woodson Foster, Howard Foster, James Tolliver, A.C Taylor and Therlo Watson.”

“During my four years at Mack I only remember losing one game,” said Goree. “I enjoy visiting today’s NBA Warriors games because they resemble us and play like our great teams.”

Game recognizes game.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 7 – 13, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 7 – 13, 2025

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7 days ago

May 9, 2025

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Oakland Post: Week of April 30 – May 6, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 30 – May 6, 2025

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Barbara Lee Accepts Victory With “Responsibility, Humility and Love”

“I accept your choice with a deep sense of responsibility, humility, and love. Oakland is a deeply divided City,” Lee said in an April 19 statement. “I answered the call to run to unite our community, so that I can represent every voter, and we can all work together as One Oakland to solve our most pressing problems.”

Published

3 weeks ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Barbara Lee. File photo.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌,
California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌

As a candidate for mayor, former U.S. Representative Barbara Lee released a “10-point plan” last week to reassure residents that she will tackle Oakland’s most pressing challenges.

Now that she has edged out her competitors in the ranked-choice special election with 50% or more of the vote, the former Congresswoman, who represented parts of the Bay Area in the U.S. House of Representatives, can put her vision in motion as the city’s first Black woman mayor.

On Saturday evening, Taylor conceded to Lee. There are still about 300 Vote-by-Mail ballots left to be verified, according to county election officials. The ballots will be processed on April 21 and April 22.

“This morning, I called Congresswoman Barbara Lee to congratulate her on becoming the next Mayor of Oakland,” Taylor said in a statement.

“I pray that Mayor-Elect Lee fulfills her commitment to unify Oakland by authentically engaging the 47% of Oaklanders who voted for me and who want pragmatic, results-driven leadership.”

The influential Oakland Post endorsed Lee’s campaign, commending her leadership on the local, state, and federal levels.

Paul Cobb, The Post’s publisher, told California Black Media that Lee will bring back “respect and accountability” to the mayor’s office.

“She is going to be a collegial leader drawing on the advice of community nonprofit organizations and those who have experience in dealing with various issues,” Cobb said. “She’s going to try to do a consensus-building thing among those who know the present problems that face the city.”

Born in El Paso, Texas, Lee’s family moved to California while she was in high school. At 20 years old, Lee divorced her husband after the birth of her first child. After the split, Lee went through a tough period, becoming homeless and having to apply for public assistance to make ends meet.

But destitution did not deter the young woman.

Lee groomed herself to become an activist and advocate in Oakland and committed to standing up for the most vulnerable citizens in her community.

Lee traveled to Washington, D.C. to work for then U.S. Congressman Ron Dellums after receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mills College in Oakland in 1973. Lee later won a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) fellowship to attend the School of Social Welfare, and she earned a Master of Social Work from the University of California-Berkeley in 1975.

Lee later served in the California State Assembly and State Senate before she was elected to Congress in 1998.

After serving in the U.S. Congress for more than 25 years, Lee ran unsuccessfully for California’s U.S. Senate in the 2024 primary election.

Lee joins current Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass and former San Francisco Mayor London Breed as Black women serving as chief executives of major cities in California over the last few years.