New Laettner Article For the Atlanta Hawks' Christian Laettner, playing the game is the easy part. Getting there, however, is another issue altogether. Just leaving the house this season has been a chore for Laettner, a first-time father whose attachment to 10-month-old daughter Sophia is harder to shake than Karl Malone. Laettner, whose Hawks came up short to the Hornets in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, will be playing for gold at this summer's World Championship in Athens. This, of course, is contrary to the ornery reputation Laettner admittedly has fostered over the years. This is the same guy who once stepped on a player's chest during a sparkling career at Duke, who has been notoriously chilly with the media, who lashed out at the Minnesota Timberwolves, igniting a 1996 trade to Atlanta. And there were other transgressions, real or imagined. All that, and it turns out Christian Laettner is a cream puff. At least when it comes to his little girl. "It's hard to go on the road when it's a week-long trip. Shoot, it's hard to leave home any time," Laettner said. "I miss her for even the shortest time away. My wife [Lisa] and I have only been married a few years, so it's still brand new to us. Like any other happily married man, you miss your wife and baby when you're away. It's tough." In a year or so, Laettner expects that little Sophia will aid him in going to work. "When she starts talking and says stuff like, 'Daddy, play hard,' she'll be more motivational," he said. "But right now, she's just making me miss her." | |
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