duncan228
09-11-2009, 01:49 PM
David "The Admiral" Robinson earned his new rank - Basketball Hall of Famer - at Navy, San Antonio and Olympics (http://www.masslive.com/basketball-hall-of-fame/index.ssf/2009/09/david_the_admiral_robinson_ear.html)
by The Republican Sports Desk
By Ron Chimelis
His nickname was "The Admiral," though David Robinson's rank in the Navy was actually Lieutenant, Junior Grade. He was a math major in college, but his impact on basketball is impossible to calculate, for it involved dignity as much as dunks. But when all was said and done, the 7-foot-1 San Antonio Spurs center was most of all a winner, which was all he really wanted.
"I think any player will tell you that individual accomplishments help your ego, but if you don't win, it makes for a very, very long season," Robinson once said. "It counts more that the team has played well."
Picking a signature moment for Robinson's career, which will be capped by induction to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, is imprecise and difficult. He won NBA titles with San Antonio in 1999 and 2003. Individually, he was a superstar who scored 71 points in a 1994 game against the Los Angeles Clippers.
A Spurs guard in that game was Springfield's Vinny Del Negro, who had six assists while Robinson was putting on his electrifying performance. Robinson had played against Del Negro in college. The 1987 Hall of Fame Tip-Off Classic saw Del Negro's North Carolina State team edge Navy 86-84 in Springfield.
Two months prior to his 71-point game, Robinson had 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 blocked shots against Detroit. It stands as one of four quadruple-doubles in NBA history, and the most recent.
For college fans, though, Robinson's debutante moment probably came in the second round of the 1986 NCAA tournament. That game, perhaps more than any other, established Robinson's greatness against the best competition.
Seeded seventh in the East Region, the Midshipmen had ousted No. 10 Tulsa by 19 points. The end was expected to come against Syracuse, the No. 2 seed. Gliding through the paint at will, Robinson scored 35 points - 21 on free throws - and led the Middies to a 97-85 victory that was as decisive as it was revealing. Navy then won a 71-70 squeaker over Cleveland State before falling by 21 to Duke and missing the Final Four by one game.
Robinson was an anomaly at Navy, though a wildly popular and respected one. He entered Annapolis at 6-foot-7, one inch below the service academy's height limit. The academy does not dismiss students who grow past that limit while in college, though.
Late blooming was a Robinson specialty. He played for the last U.S. States Olympic team made up entirely of amateurs, the 1988 bronze medalists, and didn't win gold until the 1992 Games with the Dream Team. That team included all three 2009 Hall of Fame player inductees - Robinson, Michael Jordan and John Stockton.
Robinson waited two years after college to play in the NBA, due to a military commitment that was initially five years, but shortened with the Navy's approval. He did not win his first NBA title until he was 33. He second came in his final NBA season.
Only now is "The Admiral" getting his just due without waiting. He is entering the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
*********************
Career highlights
* Won NBA titles with San Antonio Spurs in 1999, 2003
* Only NBA player to win all six of the following honors: Most Valuable Player (1995), Defensive Player of the Year (1992), Rookie of the Year (1990), rebounding leader (1991), blocked shot leader (1992), and scoring champion (1994)
* Selected as one of NBA's top 50 all-time players
* Member of 1992 U.S. Dream Team
* Olympic gold medalist (1992, 1996)
* 10-time NBA All-Star
* National College Player of the Year (Navy, 1987)
by The Republican Sports Desk
By Ron Chimelis
His nickname was "The Admiral," though David Robinson's rank in the Navy was actually Lieutenant, Junior Grade. He was a math major in college, but his impact on basketball is impossible to calculate, for it involved dignity as much as dunks. But when all was said and done, the 7-foot-1 San Antonio Spurs center was most of all a winner, which was all he really wanted.
"I think any player will tell you that individual accomplishments help your ego, but if you don't win, it makes for a very, very long season," Robinson once said. "It counts more that the team has played well."
Picking a signature moment for Robinson's career, which will be capped by induction to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, is imprecise and difficult. He won NBA titles with San Antonio in 1999 and 2003. Individually, he was a superstar who scored 71 points in a 1994 game against the Los Angeles Clippers.
A Spurs guard in that game was Springfield's Vinny Del Negro, who had six assists while Robinson was putting on his electrifying performance. Robinson had played against Del Negro in college. The 1987 Hall of Fame Tip-Off Classic saw Del Negro's North Carolina State team edge Navy 86-84 in Springfield.
Two months prior to his 71-point game, Robinson had 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 blocked shots against Detroit. It stands as one of four quadruple-doubles in NBA history, and the most recent.
For college fans, though, Robinson's debutante moment probably came in the second round of the 1986 NCAA tournament. That game, perhaps more than any other, established Robinson's greatness against the best competition.
Seeded seventh in the East Region, the Midshipmen had ousted No. 10 Tulsa by 19 points. The end was expected to come against Syracuse, the No. 2 seed. Gliding through the paint at will, Robinson scored 35 points - 21 on free throws - and led the Middies to a 97-85 victory that was as decisive as it was revealing. Navy then won a 71-70 squeaker over Cleveland State before falling by 21 to Duke and missing the Final Four by one game.
Robinson was an anomaly at Navy, though a wildly popular and respected one. He entered Annapolis at 6-foot-7, one inch below the service academy's height limit. The academy does not dismiss students who grow past that limit while in college, though.
Late blooming was a Robinson specialty. He played for the last U.S. States Olympic team made up entirely of amateurs, the 1988 bronze medalists, and didn't win gold until the 1992 Games with the Dream Team. That team included all three 2009 Hall of Fame player inductees - Robinson, Michael Jordan and John Stockton.
Robinson waited two years after college to play in the NBA, due to a military commitment that was initially five years, but shortened with the Navy's approval. He did not win his first NBA title until he was 33. He second came in his final NBA season.
Only now is "The Admiral" getting his just due without waiting. He is entering the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
*********************
Career highlights
* Won NBA titles with San Antonio Spurs in 1999, 2003
* Only NBA player to win all six of the following honors: Most Valuable Player (1995), Defensive Player of the Year (1992), Rookie of the Year (1990), rebounding leader (1991), blocked shot leader (1992), and scoring champion (1994)
* Selected as one of NBA's top 50 all-time players
* Member of 1992 U.S. Dream Team
* Olympic gold medalist (1992, 1996)
* 10-time NBA All-Star
* National College Player of the Year (Navy, 1987)