Latrell Sprewell

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Latrell Sprewell
Personal information
Born (1970-09-08) September 8, 1970 (age 53)
Washington
(Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
College
NBA draft1992: 1st round, 24th overall pick
Selected by the Golden State Warriors
Playing career1992–2005
PositionShooting guard / small forward
Number15, 8
Career history
1992–1998Golden State Warriors
1999–2003New York Knicks
2003–2005Minnesota Timberwolves
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points
16,712 (18.3 ppg)
Assists3,664 (4.0 apg)
Steals1,294 (1.4 spg)
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at Basketball-Reference.com

Latrell Fontaine Sprewell (born September 8, 1970) is an American former professional

NBA All-Defensive Second Team selection. He helped the Knicks reach the 1999 NBA Finals and the Timberwolves to the 2004 Western Conference finals. Sprewell's career was overshadowed by a 1997 incident in which he choked and punched then-Warriors coach P. J. Carlesimo
during practice, which resulted in a 68-game suspension.

Early life

Sprewell attended

Milwaukee, Wisconsin
.

College career

Sprewell played competitively with the

Three Rivers Community College Raiders Basketball Team in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, from 1988 to 1990, and from 1990 to 1992 for the Alabama Crimson Tide, where he was a teammate of future NBA players Robert Horry, Jason Caffey, James Robinson, and Marcus Webb.[citation needed
]

Professional career

Golden State Warriors (1992–1998)

Sprewell was selected 24th overall in the

playoffs. They lost in the first round to the Phoenix Suns
in three games.

1997 choking incident

A significant blemish on Sprewell's career occurred on December 1, 1997, when he attacked head coach

two-by-four, and reportedly threatened to return with a gun.[2] In a 1993 practice, Sprewell fought with Byron Houston, who was 50 pounds heavier than Sprewell and had what many teammates described as a Mike Tyson-like demeanor and physique.[3]

Sprewell was suspended for 10 games without pay. The next day, in the wake of a public uproar, the Warriors voided the remainder of his contract, which included $23.7 million over three years, and the NBA suspended him for a year. Sprewell took the case to arbitration and the contract voiding was overturned, but the league suspended him for the rest of the season without pay, which amounted to 68 games. He sought to vacate the arbitration contract under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement. His case went through all appeals, and was remanded. During the time he was serving his suspension, Sprewell was charged with reckless driving for his role in a 90-mile-per-hour accident that injured two people. He spent three months under house arrest as part of a no-contest plea.[2][4]

Sprewell's 68-game suspension was the longest suspension given by the NBA until

Ron Artest was suspended for the remainder of the 2004–05 season (including the playoffs), totaling to 86 games, due to his involvement in a brawl in Detroit
.

New York Knicks (1999–2003)

Due to the

John Starks, Chris Mills, and Terry Cummings
. Sprewell played 37 games for the Knicks that season, playing off the bench in all but four games.

Many pundits felt that trading for the allegedly volatile Sprewell was too big a gamble for the Knicks, but Sprewell vowed he was a changed man.[

SLAM Magazine
.

Sprewell moved into the Knicks' starting lineup for the 1999–2000 season at small forward, and averaged 18.6 points, helping the Knicks to a 50–32 record, good enough for the third seed in the Eastern Conference, led by Sprewell, Ewing and shooting guard Allan Houston. The Knicks navigated past the Toronto Raptors in three hard-fought games and the Miami Heat in seven even harder-fought games in the first two rounds of the playoffs, en route to the Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers. But their quest for back-to-back NBA Finals appearances came to an end when they lost to the Pacers in 6 games in the Eastern Conference Finals. Sprewell averaged 19.7 ppg in the series, and the Knicks gave him a five-year $62 million contract extension.[2]

The

playoffs
for the first time in 15 years.

Before the 2002–03 season, Sprewell reported to training camp with a broken hand, which he claimed occurred when he slipped on his yacht; the Knicks fined him a record $250,000 for failing to report the incident. He then sued the New York Post for claiming he had broken his hand in a fight.[2] Sprewell lost the lawsuit.

That season, Sprewell made NBA history as he hit 9 of 9 three-point shots in one game, making the most three-pointers without a single miss for the first time en route to a season-high 38 points versus the

playoffs for the second year in a row, Sprewell was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a four-team trade involving Keith Van Horn, Glenn Robinson, and Terrell Brandon
.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2003–2005)

In the

2004 playoffs as the top seed in the Western Conference. They navigated past the Denver Nuggets in five games and the Sacramento Kings in seven in the first two rounds of the playoffs. In the Western Conference Finals they met the Los Angeles Lakers
, who defeated them in six games, still the Timberwolves' only appearance in the conference finals. Sprewell finished third in team scoring at 16.8 ppg, behind Garnett's 24.2 and Cassell's 19.8.

On October 31, 2004, the Minnesota Timberwolves offered Sprewell a three-year, $21 million contract extension, a substantial pay cut. Claiming to feel insulted by the offer, he publicly expressed outrage, declaring, "I have a family to feed." He declined the extension and the Timberwolves offered him nothing more. Having once more drawn the ire of fans and sports media, Sprewell had the worst season of his career in the final year of his contract. In the summer of 2005, the Denver Nuggets, Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets all expressed interest in signing Sprewell, but none ended up signing him. His final NBA game was on April 20, 2005 against the eventual champion San Antonio Spurs.

One month into the

mid-level exception
, calling that amount "a level beneath which [Sprewell] would not stoop or kneel!"

In March 2006, Sprewell was offered contracts by the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs, both of which were considered at the time strong favorites to win the NBA Championship, but Sprewell failed to respond and remained a free agent as the season closed. The Los Angeles Lakers also showed some interest in him at the start of that season, but nothing came of it.

Over the course of his career, Sprewell started 868 of the 913 games he played in, averaging 18.8 ppg, 4.2 apg, and 4.1 rpg with playoff career averages of 19.7 ppg, 3.4 apg, and 4.3 rpg. He was an

All-NBA First Team
selection at the end of his second season and made the All-NBA Defensive second team that same season.

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
* Led the league

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1992–93
Golden State
 77 69 35.6 .464 .369 .746 3.5 3.8 1.6 .7 15.4
1993–94
Golden State
 82 82 43.1* .433 .361 .774 4.9 4.7 2.2 .9 21.0
1994–95
Golden State
 69 69 40.2 .418 .276 .781 3.7 4.0 1.6 .7 20.6
1995–96
Golden State
 78 78 39.3 .428 .323 .789 4.9 4.2 1.6 .6 18.9
1996–97
Golden State
 80 79 41.9 .449 .354 .843 4.6 6.3 1.7 .6 24.2
1997–98
Golden State
 14 13 39.1 .397 .188 .745 3.6 4.9 1.4 .4 21.4
1998–99
New York
 37 4 33.3 .415 .273 .812 4.2 2.5 1.2 .1 16.4
1999–00
New York
 82 82* 40.0 .435 .346 .866 4.3 4.0 1.3 .3 18.6
2000–01
New York
 77 77 39.2 .430 .304 .783 4.5 3.5 1.4 .4 17.7
2001–02
New York
 81 81 41.1 .404 .360 .821 3.7 3.9 1.2 .2 19.4
2002–03
New York
 74 73 38.6 .403 .372 .794 3.9 4.5 1.4 .3 16.4
2003–04
Minnesota
 82 82 37.8 .409 .331 .814 3.8 3.5 1.1 .3 16.8
2004–05
Minnesota
 80 79 30.6 .414 .327 .830 3.2 2.2 .7 .3 12.8
Career 913 868 38.6 .425 .337 .804 4.1 4.0 1.4 .4 18.3
All-Star 4 1 19.3 .486 .125 .529 3.8 2.5 1.3 .0 11.0

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1994
Golden State
 3 3 40.7 .433 .348 .667 3.0 7.0 .7 1.0 22.7
1999
New York
 20 8 37.2 .419 .160 .850 4.8 2.2 1.0 .3 20.4
2000
New York
 16 16 43.8 .414 .333 .784 4.4 3.6 1.1 .3 18.7
2001
New York
 5 5 42.4 .407 .214 .760 3.0 3.4 1.0 .2 18.4
2004
Minnesota
 18 18 42.8 .421 .385 .779 4.4 4.0 1.6 .7 19.8
Career 62 50 41.1 .418 .330 .803 4.3 3.4 1.2 .4 19.7

Personal life

In October 1994, Sprewell's four-year old daughter was mauled in the family backyard by one of two pet pit bulls, having an ear bitten off and suffering bites to her face.[10] Sprewell has nine children.

Legal issues

On August 30, 2006, Milwaukee police investigated a claim by a 21-year-old female that she and Sprewell were having consensual sex aboard his yacht when Sprewell began to strangle her. Police allegedly observed red marks on her neck. Police investigating the allegation searched Sprewell's yacht for evidence.[11] On September 6, police declined to press charges. Sprewell then sought a restraining order along with "civil remedies" against the accuser.[12]

On January 31, 2007, Sprewell's long-term companion sued him for $200 million for ending their relationship agreement. She claimed Sprewell agreed to support her and their four children through college.[13]

On August 22, 2007, Sprewell's $1.5 million 70 ft (21 m) yacht was repossessed by a federal marshal. He had failed to continue paying for and insuring the vessel, for which he reportedly still owed approximately $1.3 million.[14] In February 2008, the yacht was auctioned for $856,000 after Sprewell defaulted on the mortgage.[15] Three months later, a Milwaukee-area home Sprewell owned went into foreclosure status.[16][17] In July 2009, a Westchester County, New York mansion Sprewell owned went into foreclosure status,[18] but that action was dismissed on motion of another party's attorney.[18]

In 2011, Sprewell owed the state of Wisconsin $3.5 million in unpaid income taxes. On January 1, 2013, he was arrested for disorderly conduct after police received numerous complaints about loud music.[19] According to his Instagram bio, Sprewell is now doing "community relations" work with the Knicks.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Report: Sonics set to make Spurs assistant Carlesimo coach". CBSSports.com. July 3, 2007. Archived from the original on December 12, 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d ESPN Classic - Sprewell's Image Remains in a Chokehold
  3. ^ "Video". CNN. December 15, 1997. Archived from the original on May 1, 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2011.
  4. ^ AP, March 18, 1998; AP, July 28, 1998
  5. ^ "Sprewell can't save Knicks". Associated Press. February 6, 1999.
  6. ^ "Sprewell breaks record for 3s without miss (9-for-9)". ESPN. February 4, 2003. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  7. ^ "Gordon 9-for-9 from 3-point range as Bulls beat Wiz". ESPN. April 15, 2006. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  8. ^ "Pistons' Ben Gordon makes all 9 3s, ties NBA record in loss to Nuggets". ESPN. Associated Press. March 22, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  9. ^ "Jalen Brunson goes for career-high 50 as Knicks take down Suns". Deadspin. December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  10. ^ "SPORTS PEOPLE: BASKETBALL; Sprewell's Daughter Is Mauled". The New York Times. Hayward, California. October 27, 1994. Archived from the original on February 4, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  11. ^ Bob Purvis and Charles Gardner (August 30, 2006). "Sprewell questioned in alleged assault". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved August 30, 2006.
  12. ^ Bob Purvis (September 6, 2006). "No charges against Sprewell". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved September 7, 2006.
  13. ^ Ostler, Scott (August 23, 2007). "Captain Spree should remain a landlubber". The San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018.
  14. ^ "U.S. marshal seizes Sprewell's $1.5M yacht". msnbc.com. MSNBC. August 22, 2007. Archived from the original on August 24, 2007.
  15. ^ David Doege (February 8, 2008). "Sprewell yacht sold at auction". The Business Journal of Milwaukee. Archived from the original on May 24, 2015.
  16. ^ Marie Rohde (May 12, 2008). "Latrell Sprewell's home foreclosed". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 13, 2008. Retrieved May 13, 2008.
  17. ^ "Ex-NBA star Latrell Sprewell $1.5 million yacht, home could be foreclosed". ESPN. Associated Press. February 11, 2008. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020.
  18. ^ a b Westchester Supreme Court Index No. 09-16447
  19. ^ Rutledge, Raquel (January 1, 2013). "Former NBA star Latrell Sprewell arrested in Milwaukee over loud music". jsonline.com. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved January 9, 2020.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Latrell_Sprewell&oldid=1218054014"