'Almost shed a tear': Inside OKC Thunder guard Lu Dort's emotional return to Montreal
MONTREAL — When French explorer Jacques Cartier approached the Island of Montreal in 1535, menacing rapids in the St. Lawrence River deterred Cartier from venturing further. Montreal, carved by the swirling waters of the Hochelaga Archipelago, had a natural defense.
It’s fitting that such a place would produce a basketball player like Luguentz Dort — a chiseled defender comfortable playing on an island, daring the NBA’s best to get by him.
Most who try, however, face Cartier’s fate of being turned away.
Dort is Montreal through and through. A French-speaking son of Haitian immigrants who’s proud of his city’s culture, from the cobblestone streets of the historic Old Port to Montreal-Nord, the hardscrabble neighborhood where Dort grew up.
That’s why the Thunder’s preseason game Thursday night in Montreal meant so much to Dort. It was a coronation of sorts for the hometown kid.
“I used to go to those games in Montreal when I was young,” said the 24-year-old Dort. “I never thought I would bring a team over here. It’s really huge, it really touched me and I’m grateful for it.”
A sellout crowd at Bell Centre, the cavernous home of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens, went berserk as Dort scored a team-high 24 points in the Thunder’s loss. The building shook with every Dort 3-pointer, but the most touching moment came before the game when Dort addressed the 21,000 in attendance.
Dort had practiced his speech the night before and was repeating it in his head when he grabbed the microphone at midcourt. But the Montreal crowd didn’t let him speak. Fans drowned him out with cheers and “Luuuuuus,” sharing their thanks before he shared his.
“I almost shed a tear, if I’m being honest,” Dort said. “I had to hold myself together.”
Dort spoke in French, his first language and that of nearly 70% of Montreal residents.
“I just told them that we were honored to be here,” Dort said, “and as a Montreal guy, it was an honor for me to bring my team here and play in front of them.”
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'We get the love a lot when we go back home'
Dort was swarmed with autograph and photo requests as he exited the court, and when he finally made his way into the postgame press conference room, he had two red jerseys draped over each shoulder. On his right shoulder, a Canadiens jersey. And on his left, a Montreal Alouettes Canadian Football League jersey.
Both had the No. 5 with “Dort” on the back. Meanwhile, hundreds of fans in the stands had worn No. 5 Thunder jerseys bearing Dort’s name.
Some were his family and friends. Most weren’t.
Montreal is the largest city in the province of Quebec, and at 1.78 million people, it’s the second-largest city in Canada behind Toronto.
Montreal is a cosmopolitan city known in part for its fine arts, fashion and cuisine. It blurs cultures, a French city that sprouted in North America. Some say that behind Paris, more French is spoken in Montreal than any other city in the world.
Among a group of Montreal NBAers that includes Indiana’s Bennedict Mathurin, Toronto’s Chris Boucher, San Antonio’s Khem Birch and Dallas rookie Olivier-Maxence Prosper, Dort is the most established.
When Dort grew up, Joel Anthony and Samuel Dalembert were his role models for making it to the NBA from Montreal.
“Now to see a lot of Montrealers in the NBA is huge,” Dort said. “We get the love a lot when we go back home. Wherever we go, people recognize us, and that really touches us.”
Dort is also a fan favorite in Oklahoma City for his tenacious style of play and his performance in elimination games, from a breakout Game 7 against the Rockets in the bubble to his 27 points last season in the Thunder’s play-in victory against the Pelicans.
As an undrafted two-way signee out of Arizona State, Dort became a full-time starter by the end of his rookie season. He’s now entering his fifth season with the Thunder and is set to make $15.3 million this year on a contract that could keep him in OKC through the 2026-27 season.
Dort said he found out a year ago that the Thunder and the NBA were planning the preseason game in Montreal.
“For them to give me this chance to be the face, to be a Canadian player from Montreal and going over there, that’s huge,” Dort said.
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Dort's unique past highlighted by Griot, soccer
Dort and some of his teammates dined Wednesday night at Gibbys, a famous steakhouse in downtown Montreal, but the best food Dort can get in Montreal is home-cooked griot — chunks of pork shoulder, braised then fried, served with rice, salad and a fried plantain.
Griot is a staple of Haitian cuisine.
“That’s my go-to,” Dort said. “Every time I go back home I tell my mom I need my griot ready.”
When asked where to eat griot, Dort pointed me to Restaurant Goûter Caraïbes in Montréal-Nord, where he grew up.
The restaurant was on a busy street in a shopping mall, but it stood out with its orange and yellow signage and palm tree logo. Spécial Griot, for $9.99 Canadian ($7.32 US), was advertised on a large sign to the left of the door.
The meal was delicious. The pork was crispy on the outside and tender in the middle. Everything exquisitely spiced. I washed my griot down with an appropriate drink — a can of Canada Dry ginger ale.
While in Montreal-Nord, I walked to Parc Saint-Laurent. Surrounded by a swimming pool, soccer fields and tennis courts were two basketball courts that Dort grew up playing on. It was a chilly, misty Montreal day, but a couple of kids were getting shots up.
The soccer fields were much busier. And were it not for a few of his childhood friends, Dort might’ve made a career on the pitch instead of the court.
“I was really good,” Dort said. “I was a goalkeeper. I always tell my people, if I would’ve kept playing soccer I would be overseas right now.”
Really, though?
Dort was serious.
“I was young and I was playing two or three years up because of my size,” he said. “I was developing and getting better every year. God knows.”
The soccer what if doesn't hurt as much knowing what he made of basketball.
When he was 11 or 12, Dort’s mom told him to choose between the two sports. Most of Dort’s friends were basketball players, so that’s what he picked.
“At first it was just fun playing outside the park and playing in those little tournaments, and then when I started playing AAU some college coaches started noticing me and started reaching out to my AAU coaches,” Dort said. “I really seen that I had a chance to at least go Division-I when I went against some of the top players in my class and I seen that I was giving them work.”
That work traces back to the hours Dort spent at Parc Saint-Laurent, where a soccer player honed his basketball skills.
Dort and his friends would ride their bikes to the park and play until late at night, much to his mother’s dismay.
The courts have been renovated since Dort played on them, but being there offers a window into Dort’s past.
“That’s where I got the love for basketball,” he said.
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'We just wanted him to take full advantage of the moment'
The celebration for Dort never stopped Thursday.
Not after his pregame address, not after his first 3-pointer, not after his two handed-slam.
It was not only a special night for Dort, but also for his Thunder coaches and teammates.
Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander took a step back, serving as a supporting actor to Dort’s lead role.
“I know how it feels to play at home, and it’s a special feeling, almost indescribable,” said Gilgeous-Alexander, who plays an annual homecoming game in Toronto against the Raptors. “And Lu comes back to Toronto, but it’s not where he grew up. Obviously this is a little bit more special to him, and we just wanted him to take full advantage of the moment, and I think he did so.”
Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder raved about the reception they got in Montreal.
“The NBA should put a team here,” SGA said.
Added Thunder coach Mark Daigneault: “We loved it up here, although we like when they root for us. I don’t want to play a road game here.”
It wouldn’t be a road game for Dort, though. Montreal is his city.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com. Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Thunder: Inside Lu Dort's emotional return to Montreal
