Florin Funeral Service

Price, who coached the Elk Grove Thundering Herd’s girls basketball team, passed away on Monday, March 12 due to a ruptured artery that burst in his lungs, which caused him to go into cardiac arrest.Aside from basketball accomplishments are the memories he created off the court, including giving money to players in need, being there for his family and lending an ear when needed.  “He was always trying to give,” Cindy Price said on March 14 of her husband. When asked what stood out to her, she answered immediately. “His love for people. He loved giving.”One example of that is when he bought one of his former players a prom dress when she wasn’t able to buy one.Jonathan James met Price nearly 20 years ago when he played basketball with Price’s son Marcus at Valley High School.“Coach Price was a friend, a mentor, and even a father figure to me personally. He always looked out for me, always set me straight; more importantly, he let us know that he was proud of all of us,” said James, now the men’s basketball coach and Professor of Kinesiology at Cosumnes River College. “I can hear him now when I called him, [he’d say] ‘How ya doing? What do you need? What can I help you with?’ I could call him with whatever, whenever, that’s the type of guy he was.”Price was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia in 2014 and, although it went into remission, it came back in 2016.He used a wheelchair when he was coaching and at other times to ease his breathing after chemotherapy caused a problem in his lungs but also walked when he wanted to.He had been battling the lung obstruction since 2016 and eventually decided to use the wheelchair to conserve his lung capacity.Hours spent with his team helped propel his day, Cindy Price said.“He had an energy burst from being around the girls,” she said.It may have been his childhood that motivated Larry Price’s desire to help others.As a child growing up in Detroit, basketball fueled his way out of tough times in his hometown, Cindy Price noted.He went... (Elk Grove Citizen)