Athletes - Chris Webber

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	Athletes - Chris Webber

Mayce Edward Christopher Webber III, better known as Chris Webber (born March 1, 1973 in Detroit, Michigan), is an NBA basketball player, most notably with the Sacramento Kings and currently with the Philadelphia 76ers.

College career

After graduating from Detroit Country Day School (where his number, 44, is retired) and playing for the Yellow Jackets, he went to college at the University of Michigan for two years. While at Michigan, Webber led the group known as the Fab Five, which included himself, Juwan Howard, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson. This group, all of whom entered Michigan as freshmen in the fall of 1991, took the basketball team to the NCAA finals twice. The Fab Five, sporting long, baggy shorts and black shoes, became immensely popular as they were seen as bringing a hip hop flavor to the game. Four of the Fab Five (Webber, Rose, Howard, and King) made the NBA, and three of them (Webber, Rose and Howard) are still playing today.

On April 5, 1993, at Michigan's second consecutive championship game, Webber infamously called a time-out with 11 seconds left in the game when his team, only behind by two points, did not have any remaining, resulting in a technical foul that effectively clinched the game for North Carolina.

Webber was convicted of perjury in 2002. During the trial he admitted to accepting large amounts of cash from a Michigan booster during his college career. This caused the NCAA to negate all of the Wolverines accomplishments from his two seasons.

NBA career

In 1993, Webber was selected first in the NBA draft by the Orlando Magic, who immediately traded him to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for Anfernee Hardaway and three future first round draft picks.

He had an outstanding first year, averaging 17 points and nine rebounds per game and thus winning the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. He was instrumental in leading the Warriors back into the playoffs. However, he had a long-standing conflict with his coach, Don Nelson. Nelson wanted to make Webber primarily a post player, despite Webber's superb passing ability and good ball handling skills for someone his size at 6'10" (2.08 m) tall. By the 1994 offseason, Nelson felt that he could no longer coach Webber.

Webber was traded in his second year to the Washington Bullets, where he was reunited with his college teammate and friend, Juwan Howard. He spent the next three years with the Bullets (later renamed the Washington Wizards), although in the 1995-96 season injuries limited him to 15 games. Webber rebounded from the injury and was named to his first All Star team in 1997. In 1997, Webber lead the Bullets into the playoffs for the first time in 9 years, but they were swept by the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.

On May 14, 1998, Webber was traded to the Sacramento Kings for Mitch Richmond and Otis Thorpe. Webber did not want to go to Sacramento, as they were a perennial losing team. When Webber arrived, the Kings also signed center Vlade Divac and drafted point guard Jason Williams. The Kings quickly became an exciting team, and also NBA title contenders. He was named to the All Star team in 2000 and 2001 while cementing his status as one of the premier power forwards in the NBA. Webber peaked in the 2000-01 season where he averaged a career-high 27.1 points and 10 rebounds.

On July 27, 2001 Webber signed a $127 million, seven-year contract with the Kings. However, he drew controversy from Sacramento fans through his large salary, frequent injuries, and the team's overall good performance while he was on the bench. However, in 2002, Webber led the Kings to the Western Conference Finals, against the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Kings put up a good fight against the Lakers, eventually bowing out in 7 games. It was the high point of Webber's stint in Sacramento.

In the second game of the 2003 Western Conference Semifinals against the Dallas Mavericks, Webber suffered a career-threatening knee injury that forced him to miss nearly a year of action. After microfracture surgery, he returned for the final 25 games of the 2003-2004 season, but his athletism, agility, and mobility had been visibly diminished. Nevertheless, Webber is still considered one of the better players in the league, averaging 22.1 points per game and 10.2 rebounds per game in his career.

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Athletes - Chris Webber

College career

NBA career

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