FAYETTEVILLE -- Corliss Williamson and Bobby Portis aren't related, but the former Arkansas All-American and the Razorbacks' current star player couldn't be any closer.
Williamson, the Russellville native who led Arkansas to the 1994 national championship, began coaching Portis in AAU basketball when he was in the second grade.
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"He was really emotional," Williamson said Wednesday night when he was honored at Walton Arena. "Even if I was talking to him, sometimes he would break down and cry, but I came to find out that it was just the love that he felt between us.
"To me, I've always looked at Bobby as another son. That's the relationship we've had and will continue to have."
Portis, a sophomore forward from Little Rock Hall, has been raised by his mother, Tina Edwards, and said he grew up without his father. Williamson filled that void.
"Every year our relationship got stronger just because I really didn't have a father in my life," Portis said. "Corliss stepped in and helped me out a lot. He tried to teach me the ins and outs of basketball and in life."
Portis said Williamson's coaching style also could bring him to tears.
"Coach Corliss used to push me a lot in practice," Portis said. "He used to get in my face and would try to get something out of me."
With Williamson watching Arkansas play Missouri on Wednesday night, Portis had 16 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocked shots in the No. 18 Razorbacks' 84-69 victory.
Portis is averaging is 17.6 points and 8.7 rebounds and is shooting 56.4 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line.
So what does Coach Corliss think about his former player now?
"I'm not quite sure about what I can and can't say about Bobby with NBA rules," said Williamson, an assistant coach with the Sacramento Kings. "But I'm very happy and proud of him. He's a great young man.
"I'm more proud of him as a young man than as a basketball player."
Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson, an assistant with the Razorbacks during Williamson's playing days, said he sees a lot of Williamson in Portis. Both were McDonald's High School All-Americans who chose to stay home and play for the Razorbacks.
"Bobby's mentality is very similar to Corliss," Anderson said. "Corliss was a great player coming out of high school and obviously did some great things here, but he was one of the most humble guys you have ever seen.
"You would never have known he was that great a player. He never talked about himself. He always talked about his teammates.
"Bobby was mentored by this guy, and I see some of those same characteristics in Bobby."
After Portis opened the conference season by scoring 24 points and hitting 9 of 11 shots in Arkansas' 97-79 victory over Alabama, he deflected questions about his game and called himself a role player.
"As good of a player as he is and as good as he is playing, he's about this team and winning," Anderson said. "If he scored two points and we won, that's all that matters.
"He's doing a yeomen's job for our basketball team. He's setting the tone from a leadership standpoint and how he plays and he is vocalizing it as well."
The Razorbacks were in the locker room at halftime Wednesday night when Williamson was honored on the court and presented with a framed banner of his No. 34 jersey, then saw a larger version unveiled in the Walton Arena rafters.
Even though Portis wasn't on the court, he understood the significance of the ceremony.
"That's a crazy honor to have your number raised in the gym," Portis said. "He's one of the greatest Razorbacks to ever play here.
"I'm happy for him. I'm proud of him, too, because he represented the state of Arkansas well."
Sports on 02/20/2015