Al Menendez, former NBA scout from West Hempstead, dies at 80

For a basketball junkie, Al Menendez had the perfect job.

The longtime West Hempstead resident  spent decades as an NBA scout, working mainly for the Indiana Pacers, traveling the country hoping to find the next big thing in the sport he adored.

If there was a player worth knowing, Menendez knew him. If there was a game worth recalling, Menendez remembered it — down to the most minute detail.

“He had such a passion and a sense of pride about it,” said Dick Vitale, the Hall of Fame college basketball analyst who worked with Menendez in the Pistons organization. “It was his life, it was his marriage, it was everything to him. He used to eat, sleep, drink and breathe going to see players. I was always impressed with that.”

Menendez, who spent time in the Nets' scouting department when the team was located in New Jersey and last worked in the NBA as a consultant with the Philadelphia 76ers in the late 2000s, died April 29 at NYU Langone Hospital-Long Island  in Mineola after a battle with various health problems, said friends Jacqueline and Chris Guerra of West Hempstead. He was 80.

Alberto Menendez  was born in Cuba and came to the  United States as a child. He served in the Army before beginning his career in basketball, the Guerras said.

“He had an incredible mind and an incredible memory for things that you or I just wouldn’t remember,” said Chris Guerra, 57. “He could see talent in almost every sport. He could watch a lacrosse game and say, ‘This guy is going to be a good player,’ or, ‘The talent level isn’t there.’ He had the ability to see talent in different people.”

His rise toward the NBA began in Uniondale, where he served as the boys basketball coach and taught Spanish at Maria Regina High School, which closed in 1984  and was later replaced by Kellenberg Memorial High School. Menendez occupied the role for only a few years but was quickly building a powerhouse program.

“We had kids that got scholarships that didn’t start when coach Menendez was there,” said former player Mike Rouse, 69, of Lynbrook. “He wasn’t a fiery or emotional guy. He almost reminded me of coach [John] Wooden at UCLA. He was very stoic and had a philosophical look on his face. He was smart and knew exactly what the other team was doing . . . He was a master of strategy. He knew how the game flowed.”

Menendez’s success and reputation as a high school coach led him to opportunities on the collegiate level. He served as an assistant under Lou Carnesecca at St. John’s University, then was on the same staff as Rick Pitino and Pete Gillen at the University of Hawaii, before working for Jerry Tarkanian at UNLV, said friend and fellow scouting professional Courtney Witte.

“In environments where it’s all about winning, coaches can quickly see through someone that’s not sincere or someone who is trying to do harm to their program or their player,” said Witte, who worked with Menendez in the Pacers' scouting department and later served as director of player personnel with the 76ers and director of scouting with the Phoenix Suns.

“Al had that unbelievable ability to be wholesome and honest in a sport where hundreds of millions of dollars [come through],” Witte said. “It’s such a competitive field. But, Al was very liked.”

Witte said that Menendez’s organization set him apart. In the days before computers and digitized scouting, it was an artistic flair that made his scouting reports sing. 

“He would use different types of inks, different markers,” Witte said. “That sounds so rudimentary now, but back then, people didn’t do that. It was really fascinating to see the amount of detail that he put into his work.”

Menendez’s knowledge and passion made him a trustworthy source for high-ranking executives. Scouts make their living as knowledgeable sources for executives who can’t be everywhere at once. Menendez fit that bill.

“If you asked him to go and see a player, and then asked him if he thought he was good enough and why, he would give you the right answer,” said Donnie Walsh, the longtime Pacers general manager who later served in the same role with the Knicks.

Menendez, who was pre-deceased by his parents and a brother, was buried at St. Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale, the Guerras said.