Erving Asks for Help to Find Son

Former NBA great Julius Erving pleaded for help in finding his 19-year-old son, who has a history of drug problems and has been missing since May 28.

“This bad dream has gone on for 16 days now . . . 16 bad days,” Erving said Tuesday in Sanford, Fla. “We are in dire need of help.”

A $25,000 reward was offered for the safe return of Cory Marvin Erving, last seen by his family when he went to a Lake Mary shopping mall, about 20 miles from Orlando.

Erving spoke at a nationally televised news conference with his wife and their three other adult children.

Sheriff Don Eslinger said Cory might have had a confrontation with someone before he disappeared, but he did not elaborate.

Erving said his son has a “mild form of dyslexia” and has had drug problems since he was 14.

Cory had plans to go to a Memorial Day weekend cookout with his family and was running an errand to pick up bread when he last spoke to his father.

“He called me and said he would be home in 20 minutes,” said Erving, an executive vice president of the Orlando Magic. “That was the last time I talked to him.”

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Praised for his work on the court, Toronto Raptor coach Butch Carter was fired for his actions off it.

Carter’s comments and actions have resulted in criticism from the team’s veterans and perhaps cost the club a chance to re-sign swingman Tracy McGrady.

On Tuesday, Grunwald put an end to the distraction that Carter had become, saying there was no other alternative.

“We have a great team, we have some great guys in our locker room,” Grunwald told a news conference. “We have great ownership. We play in a great arena before some magnificent fans. Our future is very bright.

“I think we’ve lost track of that story a little bit in some of these off-the-court things and I think we need to refocus upon that and keep improving,” General Manager Glen Grunwald said.

There was no immediate word on a successor for Carter, who had signed a three-year, $6-million contract extension in December.

Carter had come under fire for a book written with his brother, Cris, in which he attacked University of Indiana Coach Bobby Knight for his behavior while Butch Carter played there. He also sued former Raptor and current New York Knick Marcus Camby for calling him a liar and then dropped the lawsuit after it received widespread criticism.

Carter made headlines again in the off-season over a report that he had asked for Grunwald’s title. Perhaps the last straw came last week when McGrady cited the veterans’ dissatisfaction with Carter and ensuing turmoil as reasons why he wouldn’t be back in Toronto.

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Portland sent its second-round selection in the June 28 NBA draft to the Detroit Pistons to complete their 1999 trade for Bonzi Wells. . . . Alvin Gentry, a former head coach of the Miami Heat and Detroit Pistons, was added to new Atlanta Hawk Coach Lon Kruger’s staff. . . . Former Laker guard Derek Harper resigned as vice president of business relations for the Dallas Mavericks, only five months after taking the position. . . . The bid by Louisville, Ky., to land the Houston Rockets appears to be doomed after Jefferson County declined to join a three-pronged proposal that would publicly finance a downtown basketball arena.