Spud Webb's height is only 5 feet 7 inches but his heart is a lot bigger. Born on July13, 1963 in Dallas Texas, Anthony "Spud" Webb was part of a large family with five brothers and sisters. Spud began playing basketball as a young kid and had always dreamed of playing professionally in the NBA. The problem was, he was much shorter his friends. However, he did have some advantages which were his quickness and big vertical jump.
Spud Webb had to constantly earn the respect of his coaches when he was growing up, even though he was quick and could dunk the ball he was usually overlooked. When trying out for the basketball team in junior high he was told to sit in the stands because he was too small to compete. Even though he was a little discouraged upon hearing this, he refused to let his height keep him from reaching his goals. Spud Webb eventually convinced his coach to let him play and he scored 20 points in his first game.
At Wilmer-Hutchins High School, where Spud Webb attended, he was not selected to play on the varsity team because of his size. Upon hearing this Spud considered quitting basketball for good but decided against it and worked on developing his game even further. Spud Webb would eventually make the varsity team and he had an immediate impact averaging 26 points per game. He made his first dunk in a school game his senior year standing at only 5 feet 6 inches.
Along with this, he made the All-State team and was chosen as the Player of the Year. Unfortunately, even though he had excelled in high school basketball, Spud was not heavily recruited at the college level because of his height. So, Spud Webb decided to play for Midland Junior College and he led his team to the junior college national title in 1982. His leadership and play at Midland College gathered national attention when Sports Illustrated wrote an article about him.
Shortly after, North Carolina State assistant coach Tom Abatemarco watched Spud play at his junior college in Texas. He suggested to head coach, Jim Valvano, that Webb should visit the campus on a recruiting trip. As the story goes, the two coaches went to the airport to meet him. When a little guy came walking towards the coaches, Valvano supposedly said to Abatemarco, "If that's Spud Webb you're fired." During the visit Valvano was so impressed with Spud that he offered him a scholarship. Spud went on to lead the team to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
Spud Webb had an impressive college career, however, he was not selected in the NBA draft because of his size. He practiced and continued to work on his game and in 1985 he was chosen by the Detroit Pistons in the fourth round. Although, his success was short-lived because he was eventually cut from the team.
After this, he was picked up by the Atlanta Hawks and it worked out well for both parties. Spud Webb averaged 10 points and 5 assists per game throughout his career. In 1986, he shocked the NBA world when he beat out Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan to win the title in the Slam Dunk competition.
Spud Webb retired from basketball in 1997 and now spends his time with his business adventures and playing golf. One thing can be said for sure: Spud Webb's height may not be very big but his heart and determination definitely are.
Spud Webb had to constantly earn the respect of his coaches when he was growing up, even though he was quick and could dunk the ball he was usually overlooked. When trying out for the basketball team in junior high he was told to sit in the stands because he was too small to compete. Even though he was a little discouraged upon hearing this, he refused to let his height keep him from reaching his goals. Spud Webb eventually convinced his coach to let him play and he scored 20 points in his first game.
At Wilmer-Hutchins High School, where Spud Webb attended, he was not selected to play on the varsity team because of his size. Upon hearing this Spud considered quitting basketball for good but decided against it and worked on developing his game even further. Spud Webb would eventually make the varsity team and he had an immediate impact averaging 26 points per game. He made his first dunk in a school game his senior year standing at only 5 feet 6 inches.
Along with this, he made the All-State team and was chosen as the Player of the Year. Unfortunately, even though he had excelled in high school basketball, Spud was not heavily recruited at the college level because of his height. So, Spud Webb decided to play for Midland Junior College and he led his team to the junior college national title in 1982. His leadership and play at Midland College gathered national attention when Sports Illustrated wrote an article about him.
Shortly after, North Carolina State assistant coach Tom Abatemarco watched Spud play at his junior college in Texas. He suggested to head coach, Jim Valvano, that Webb should visit the campus on a recruiting trip. As the story goes, the two coaches went to the airport to meet him. When a little guy came walking towards the coaches, Valvano supposedly said to Abatemarco, "If that's Spud Webb you're fired." During the visit Valvano was so impressed with Spud that he offered him a scholarship. Spud went on to lead the team to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
Spud Webb had an impressive college career, however, he was not selected in the NBA draft because of his size. He practiced and continued to work on his game and in 1985 he was chosen by the Detroit Pistons in the fourth round. Although, his success was short-lived because he was eventually cut from the team.
After this, he was picked up by the Atlanta Hawks and it worked out well for both parties. Spud Webb averaged 10 points and 5 assists per game throughout his career. In 1986, he shocked the NBA world when he beat out Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan to win the title in the Slam Dunk competition.
Spud Webb retired from basketball in 1997 and now spends his time with his business adventures and playing golf. One thing can be said for sure: Spud Webb's height may not be very big but his heart and determination definitely are.
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