Athletes - Latrell Sprewell

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	Athletes - Latrell Sprewell

Latrell Fontaine Sprewell (born September 8, 1970 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) also known as "Spree", is an American professional basketball player. A guard/forward who built his career around his athleticism and versatility, he is currently a free agent. Known for his unrelenting slashing style, Michael Jordan referred to Sprewell as "one of the top two guards in the game" (in the 1990s). Sixers superstar Allen Iverson was once asked which player's game he most relishes, and Iverson responded with "Latrell Sprewell."

Sprewell entered the league in 1992 out of the University of Alabama, where he was a teammate of future NBA player Robert Horry. He was drafted 24th overall in the first round by the Golden State Warriors. Sprewell made an immediate impact, starting 69 of the 77 games he played in during his rookie season and scoring 15.4 ppg.

Though a four-time All-Star, Sprewell's career has been permanently overshadowed by an incident on December 1, 1997, in which he attacked Coach P. J. Carlesimo during a Warriors practice. When Carlesimo yelled at Sprewell to make crisper passes, Sprewell responded that he wasn't in the mood for criticism and told the coach to keep his distance. When Carlesimo approached, Sprewell threatened to kill him and dragged him to the ground by his throat, choking him for 10-15 seconds before his teammates pulled Sprewell off his coach. Sprewell returned about 20 minutes later and landed a glancing blow at Carlesimo before being dragged away again.

Sprewell was suspended for 10 days 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 expelled him from the league. Sprewell took the case to arbitration, and, as a result, the contract voiding was overturned and the league suspension was reduced to the remainder of the season. Sprewell did not play again until January, 1999, after the Warriors traded him to the New York Knicks for John Starks, Chris Mills and Terry Cummings.

Many pundits felt that signing the volatile Sprewell was too big of a gamble for the Knicks to take, but Sprewell himself vowed that he was a changed man. As soon as Sprewell arrived in the Big Apple, he won the hearts of New York fans with his trademark intensity, quickly becoming one of the most popular players on the Knicks. Although New York narrowly qualified for the 1999 playoffs, making the field as the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference, New York shocked the NBA as they navigated past Miami, Atlanta, and finally Reggie Miller's Indiana Pacers en route to becoming the first 8th seed to make it to the NBA Finals, where they met the San Antonio Spurs. The Knicks were short-handed in the series due to an injury to Patrick Ewing, so small forward Larry Johnson was forced to guard Spurs center Tim Duncan, and they eventually succumbed to the San Antonio in 5 games, though Sprewell enjoyed a good series for the most part, scoring 35 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in the Knicks' 78-77 Game 5 loss.

Over the next few years, Sprewell's popularity and appeal went global and his jersey became one of the top 10 selling NBA jerseys until 2004. Sprewell and teammate Allan Houston represented the Knicks during the 2001 All-Star Game in Washington D.C., where the East defeated the West in a remarkable late-game surge. After 10 years of service, the fan-favorite was still piling up the points, averaging 19.5 ppg and setting his own career high in the 2002 season, when he notched 49 points against the Boston Celtics. That season, Sprewell hit for 40-plus points on three occasions.

In 2003, Sprewell made NBA history as he connected 9 of 9 from the three-point arc, making the most three pointers without a single miss en route to a season-high 38 points versus the LA Clippers. After the season, Sprewell was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a 4-team trade involving Keith Van Horn, Glenn Robinson, and Terrell Brandon. During that regular season, Sprewell became part of the league's highest-scoring trio, alongside League MVP Kevin Garnett and point guard Sam Cassell. Sprewell helped the team earn the first seed in the Western Conference playoffs, but Minnesota's franchise-record playoff run drew to an end when they were defeated by the Lakers in 6 games in the Western Conference Finals.

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