‘Will I ever see my family again?’: Former Shocker’s harrowing escape from Ukraine
The knees of the 6-foot-5 professional basketball player were tucked against the seat in front of him.
Space was cramped in the tiny van transporting Toure’ Murry and four others, but no one was thinking about legroom as the vehicle hurtled down the one-lane highway in a harrowing attempt to escape Ukraine.
The week before, the former Wichita State star was one of the top scorers in the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague. On this day, however, he was a refugee.
Less than 24 hours earlier, Russian forces had invaded Ukraine, the country where he was playing his 10th season of professional basketball before Europe’s largest ground war since World War II started.
Murry woke up that morning to a 7 a.m. text message from his basketball team informing him they were sending a driver to help him escape. He packed his passport, laptop and one bag of essential clothes, leaving behind all of his other belongings. He didn’t recognize the driver, but didn’t ask questions and hopped in the crowded van also carrying three other basketball players and a Ukrainian woman fleeing her homeland.
All he could think about was making it home to see his family, including a newborn son. For the first time in his life, he wasn’t sure he would.
“At that moment, you’re going crazy. ‘Will I ever see my family again?’” Murry told The Eagle. “We didn’t know where the Russians were. They were shooting innocent civilians that were just driving on the road. They’ve got tanks. They’ve got bombs that were dropping out of nowhere. There was no telling what was going to happen. There was a lot of panic.”
The van initially headed toward Poland, but the driver received a phone call alerting him the border was overwhelmed with refugees and delays were severe. In the days since, the Polish Ministry reported more than 115,000 refugees have crossed into Poland.
The audible was to instead try to cross the border to Romania, which also offered no guarantee of success.
“Honestly, I had no time to think in that situation,” Murry said. “I was so far from home. It wasn’t like I could just grab all of my stuff and hop in my car and go.”
The tense ride took nearly five hours to arrive at the border, but crossing over to Romania became an all-day struggle. After sitting in traffic for a few hours, Murry said he stood outside in freezing temperatures for 14 hours waiting in line.
What felt like the longest day ever finally ended with Murry gaining entry to Romania and heading to a nearby city called Suceava.
“There was definitely a little bit of relief when I finally got out, but that was just the beginning of getting back home,” Murry said.
After crossing the border, Murry rode a train from Suceava south for seven hours to the capital of Bucharest, where he took a three-hour flight west to Amsterdam. From there, he took an 11-hour international flight to George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston to wrap up nearly two straight days of traveling when he arrived on Saturday, Feb. 26.
He’ll never forget the feeling of seeing his family and pulling them in for hugs.
“It made me realize every day is not promised,” Murry said. “People are dying and there’s a lot of people who are going through a lot of suffering and pain. I think about all of the people and families who have lost family members there. Seeing children and parents separated at the border, it gives you a new perspective on life. I feel incredibly grateful to be able to go home and hug my family.”
It concluded a seven-week, whirlwind experience for Murry in Ukraine, as he joined the club in Ternopil in January after starting the season playing in Kuwait. Murry didn’t particularly enjoy the food in the Middle East, so he was enjoying his return to Europe and was playing rather well in his age-32 season, averaging 18.2 points in his first five games in Ukraine.
But when it became evident the conflict with Russia was intensifying, Murry made it clear to the club in early February his wishes of returning home. Even though the club initially balked at sending him home, Murry was grateful for the team’s help in returning safely home and he has a newfound admiration for the Ukrainian people.
“The Ukrainian people definitely have a lot of pride in their country, Murry said. “They are some fighters, man. They have such strong families and communities. To see them stick together through this war, it shows a lot of courage and a lot of power that they have in their people and in their country.”
Murry’s worldview has changed since becoming a father, especially with his son set to celebrate his first birthday next Wednesday.
For the first time, Murry is now questioning if he should return overseas next season to continue a career he feels like has nothing else to prove. He’s reached the game’s highest level, playing for the New York Knicks in the NBA, he’s won championships, and scored points all over the world. Is the money really worth it?
These are the new questions he’s asking himself. Going through a life-and-death experience will do that.
“It definitely makes you think more now that I’ve got a son,” Murry said. “I’ve got to keep the perspective of not only me, but making sure he can have a father to come home to for a long time. This has definitely impacted me and changed the way I think, but I’m just going to take things day-by-day. We’ll see what’s best for me and my family when the time comes.”
This story was originally published March 4, 2022 at 5:56 AM.
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