New York Knicks center helps Chalmette High coach rebound from devastating loss

CHALMETTE, La. (WVUE) – There are moments in life when everybody needs help. For Butch Stockton, the longtime basketball coach at Chalmette High School, one of those moments was in the fall of 2023. Dawn Stockton, his wife of 31 years, had just passed away from cancer.

Mitchell Robinson, the 7-foot center for the New York Knicks and a former McDonald’s All-American from Chalmette High’s class of 2017, stepped up to comfort Coach Stockton during his time of grief.

“At my wife’s funeral, walking down the aisle, Mitch put his arm around me and we walked down the pew. We sit down and he said, coach, I got you. You don’t worry about nothing,” said Coach Stockton.

During the final days of Dawn Stockton’s life, Robinson was at the hospital bedside. Robinson was one of the biggest and certainly the tallest of her cheerleaders, even though the outcome was understood.

“Sitting there watching, like you know what’s going to happen and you don’t even want to think about that, and there’s nothing you can do about it. It was really tough,” said Robinson.

Robinson’s support extended beyond words.

“I felt like coach would be better off coming and living with me, sitting out the year from work,” said Robinson.

Recognizing his former coach’s need for solace, Robinson kept encouraging his former coach to step away from St. Bernard Parish and live with him in New York. Stockton said yes.

“I was just taking this day by day. Mitchell called and said to come up to New York. It really helped get myself straight mentally and physically too honestly,” said Stockton

Before Robinson came to Chalmette High School, he was struggling academically. The future didn’t seem very clear to him until he met Coach Stockton. That laid the foundation for their relationship that continues to this day.

“I was just trying to make something of myself, and he helped me out a lot to get to where I am now. So, when I had the chance to give back to him, I was like I’m not going to miss this chance on anything. Next thing you know, I brought him in with me and we got him moving and got him rolling,” said Robinson.

For several months, Stockton lived and traveled with Robinson. On the road or at Madison Square Garden, Stockton was in the stands watching Robinson play. St. Bernard Parish is slightly slower than New York City, so coach had a bit of a learning curve in the Big Apple.

“I guess one of the hardest things, believe it or not, was the first time I got on the subway and trying to get on the right train from one spot to the other,” said Stockton.

Robinson returned to St. Bernard Parish on July 15 for his MR23 Foundation, which organizes basketball camps for underprivileged communities in Florida, New York, and Louisiana. Naturally, Coach Stockton was by Robinson’s side helping to run the free hoops clinic.

“A lot of times we hear so many negative things about people, about NBA players, NFL players but we never hear the good side about them. The one thing that I’ll say about Mitchell Robinson, he has always been there for me since day one,” said Coach Stockton.

Stockton’s time living in New York apparently benefited Robinson, too. Robinson says coach helped him deal with an ankle injury that sidelined him for 50 games last season. Stockton plans to coach again at Chalmette High this year. It’s a comeback story with Mitchell Robinson in a familiar position, right at the center of it all.

“I want to thank Mitch so much and his family for being there for me during a very hard time in my life,” said Stockton.

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