David Robinson (basketball)

David Maurice Robinson (born August 6, 1965) is a retired American NBA basketball player, who played center for the San Antonio Spurs for his entire NBA career. Based on his prior service as an officer in the United States Navy, Robinson earned the nickname "The Admiral". He and teammate power forward Tim Duncan were nicknamed "The Twin Towers". Robinson was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame along with Michael Jordan, John Stockton, Jerry Sloan, and C. Vivian Stringer on September 11, 2009. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers in NBA history.

Early life
David Robinson was born in Key West, Florida, the second child of Ambrose and Freda Robinson. Since Robinson's father was in the Navy, the family moved many times. After his father retired from the Navy, the family settled in Woodbridge, Virginia, where Robinson excelled in school and in most sports, except basketball. He was 5 feet, 9 inches tall in junior high school so he tried his hand at basketball, but soon quit. Robinson attended Osbourn Park High School in Manassas, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C., where Robinson's father was working as an engineer after retiring from the Navy. By his senior year in high school he was 6 feet, 7 inches tall, but he had not played organized basketball. When the coach added the tall senior to the basketball team, Robinson earned all-area and all-district honors but generated little interest among college basketball coaches. Robinson scored a 1320 on the SAT, and he chose to go to the U.S. Naval Academy, where he majored in mathematics.

College basketball career and military service
David Robinson is widely considered to be the best basketball player in U.S. Naval Academy history. He chose the jersey number 50 after his idol Ralph Sampson. By the time he took the court in his first basketball game for the Navy Midshipmen men's basketball team, he had grown to 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), and over the course of his college basketball career he grew to 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m). In Robinson's final two years, he was a consensus All-America and won college basketball's two most prestigious player awards, the Naismith and Wooden Awards as a Naval Academy first classman (senior). Robinson played his first three years for the Midshipmen under Paul Evans (who left Navy to coach at Pitt) and under former University of Georgia interim Head Coach Pete Herrmann during his senior season. Upon graduation, he became eligible for the 1987 NBA Draft and was selected by the San Antonio Spurs with the first overall pick; however, the Spurs had to wait two years because he had to fulfill his active-duty obligation with the Navy.

Robinson was 6 ft 8 in when he was admitted to the Naval Academy, two inches above the height limit, but received a waiver from the Superintendent of the Academy. Robinson considered leaving the academy after his second year, before incurring an obligation to serve in active duty. He decided to stay after discussing with the Superintendent the likelihood that his height would prevent serving at sea as an unrestricted line officer, hurting his naval career, and might not make it possible for him to be commissioned at all. As a compromise, Secretary of the Navy John Lehman placed Robinson in a program for training civil engineers for the Naval Reserves that reduced his active-duty obligation to two years. After graduating from the Naval Academy, Robinson became a civil engineering officer at the Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay in Georgia. He was regularly featured in recruiting materials for the service. Despite the nickname "Admiral", Robinson's actual rank upon fulfilling his service commitment was Lieutenant, Junior Grade.

NBA career
Although there was speculation that Robinson might choose not to sign with the Spurs and to become a free agent once his Navy commitment ended, Robinson decided in the end to come to San Antonio. Robinson joined the Spurs for the 1989–90 season, and led the Spurs to the greatest single season turnaround in NBA history at the time (a record the Spurs themselves broke in 1997-98, after drafting Tim Duncan, which was then broken by the Boston Celtics in the 2007–08 NBA season). The Spurs went from 21–61 in the 1988–89 season to 56–26 in 1989–90, for a remarkable 35 game improvement. They advanced to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs where they lost in seven games to the eventual conference champion Portland Trail Blazers. Following the 1989–90 season, he was unanimously named the NBA rookie of the year, and subsequently Sega produced a game featuring him entitled David Robinson's Supreme Court.

The Spurs made the playoffs seven more seasons in a row, but never advanced further than the Western Conference finals. Robinson also made the 1992 US Olympic Dream Team that won the gold medal in Barcelona. During the 1993–94 season, he became locked in a duel for the NBA scoring title with Shaquille O'Neal, scoring 71 points (breaking George Gervin's single-game franchise record of 63 on the final day of the 1977-78 NBA season) against the Los Angeles Clippers to win it.

Robinson went on to win the MVP trophy in 1995, and in 1996 he was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. Still, from 1991 to 1996, Robinson was thwarted in his quest to claim the one prize that had eluded him: an NBA title. During that span the Spurs were eliminated from the playoffs by the Warriors, Suns (twice), Jazz (twice), and Rockets. The loss against the Rockets was particularly painful for Robinson because it occurred in the Western Conference Finals with Robinson playing head-to-head against his chief rival, Hakeem Olajuwon. By his own admission, Robinson was outplayed by Olajuwon in the series, their only meetings in post-season play.

Early in the 1997 season, Robinson's dreams of becoming a champion seemed to vanish when he was seriously injured. Robinson hurt his back in the preseason. He did return to play, but six games later, suffered a broken foot in a home game against the Miami Heat, and ended up missing the rest of the regular season. As a result of the injury to Robinson and other key players, the Spurs finished the season with a dismal 20–62 record. However, his injury proved to be a blessing in disguise: due to their dismal record in 1997, the Spurs enjoyed the first pick in the next year's NBA draft, and with it they selected Tim Duncan out of Wake Forest University, who was, after a few years, the final key to Robinson's quest for an NBA title.

Champion
Before the start of the 1998–99 season, the NBA owners and the NBA commissioner David Stern locked out the NBA Players' Association to force negotiations on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. This lockout lasted for 202 days, well into the regular NBA season, before an agreement was finally reached. After playing a truncated 50-game season, the Spurs finished with an NBA-best record of 37–13, giving them the home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Spurs blitzed through the first three rounds of the NBA playoffs, beating the Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Lakers, and Portland Trail Blazers by a combined record of 11–1. In the NBA finals, the combination of Robinson in the post and second-year, 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) Tim Duncan proved overpowering, the Spurs beat the underdog New York Knicks in five games to become the NBA champions for the first time. Duncan was named Finals MVP.

Champion again
Robinson announced he would retire from basketball after the 2002–03 campaign.

On June 15, 2003, in the finale to Robinson's career, the Spurs sealed another NBA title with an 88–77 victory over the New Jersey Nets in Game 6 of the 2003 NBA Finals. Turning back the clock, Robinson scored 13 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in his final game for the Spurs. He and the year's regular season and NBA Finals MVP Tim Duncan shared Sports Illustrated magazine's 2003 Sportsmen of the Year award.

Robinson averaged 21.1 points per game, 10.7 rebounds per game, 3 blocks per game, and 2.5 assists per game over 987 games in his NBA career. Also, he is one of only a very small group of players to have scored over 20,000 career points in the NBA, as well as being one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double (with 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, and 10 blocks against the Detroit Pistons on February 17, 1994), and one of the only five players to record more than 70 points in a single game (with 71 points against the Los Angeles Clippers on April 24, 1994), only Elgin Baylor (71 points), Wilt Chamberlain (70, 72, 73 twice, 78, 100 points), David Thompson (73 points), and Kobe Bryant (81 points) have scored more than 70 points. Robinson is also noteworthy for his harmonious relationship with Tim Duncan. Sportswriter Chris Sheridan noted that it was rare for someone like Robinson to have welcomed and mentored Duncan as willingly as he did.

Personal life
He is married, and he and his wife have three sons, David Jr., Corey and Justin. He readily identifies his religious affiliation as Christian. In March 2012, Corey Robinson announced that he would be attending Notre Dame to play football.

International career
David Robinson was a member of the United States men's national basketball team at the 1986 FIBA World Championship, the 1988 Summer Olympics, 1992 Summer Olympics, and the 1996 Summer Olympics. He won the gold medal at all games except the 1988 Summer Olympics, where he won a bronze medal.

Career awards/accomplishments
His list of awards and accomplishments is long and includes a number of records as well as sharing a number of distinctions with very few other luminaries of the game; for his on-the- court play, he was named among the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.


 * Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2009
 * NBA Champion (1999, 2003)
 * NBA MVP (1995)
 * NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1992)
 * NBA Rookie of the Year (1990)
 * All-NBA First Team (1991, '92, '95, '96)
 * All-NBA Second Team (1994, '98)
 * All-NBA Third Team (1990, '93, 2000, '01)
 * All-Defensive First Team (1991, '92, '95, '96)
 * All-Defensive Second Team (1990, '93, '94, '98)
 * 10-time NBA All-Star
 * NBA Sportsmanship Award (2001)
 * Fourth player ever to score 70+ in an NBA game
 * 3-time Olympian (1988, '92, '96)
 * One of 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996)
 * Led NBA in Scoring (1993–94 season) - 29.8 ppg
 * Led NBA in Rebounding (1990–91 season) - 13.0 rpg
 * Led NBA in Blocked Shots (1991–92 season) - 4.49 bpg
 * Holds record for most IBM Awards (1990, '91, '94, '95, '96)
 * His 2,954 blocked shots are the most by any player wearing a San Antonio Spurs jersey.
 * Gold Medal in 1986 FIBA World Championship.
 * Member of Dream Team #1 during Olympic Games at Barcelona.
 * Elected to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Class of 2008
 * Ranked #25 in SLAM Magazine's 2009 revision of the top 50 greatest players of all time (published in the August 2009 issue)
 * Received the Silver Anniversary Award for recognition of his myriad athletic and professional accomplishments from the NCAA in January 2012.

40 point games
Robinson scored 40 or more points 22 times in the regular season and once in the playoffs.

Regular season
Fourth (and most recent) player in NBA history to record a quadruple-double in a game: San Antonio Spurs (115) vs. Detroit Pistons (96), 1994-2-17
 * 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, 10 blocked shots (and 2 steals) in 43 minutes
 * Nate Thurmond, Alvin Robertson and Hakeem Olajuwon are the only other players to achieve this.

Fourth player in NBA history to score 70 or more points in a game: 71, at Los Angeles Clippers,April 24 1994
 * Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain and David Thompson also achieved this. Kobe Bryant has achieved this since then.

One of two players in NBA history to lead the league in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots  during his career
 * Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the first player to achieve this.
 * Hakeem Olajuwon led the league in blocks thrice, and in rebounding twice, but the closest he came to a scoring title was second place, both in (Shaquille O'Neal) and  (Michael Jordan).

Second player in NBA history to win Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Most Valuable Player during his career
 * Michael Jordan was the first player to achieve this.
 * Hakeem Olajuwon won Defensive Player of the Year and Most Valuable Player during his career, but finished second in Rookie of the Year voting to Jordan in.

Only player in NBA history to lead the league in scoring, rebounding, and blocked shots and win awards for Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Most Valuable Player during his career
 * Kareem Abdul-Jabbar achieved all of these except for Defensive Player of the Year, an award which did not exist for most of his career.

Only player in NBA history to rank among top five players in the league in rebounding, blocks and steals in the same season:
 * Ranked first in blocks (4.49 bpg), fourth in rebounding (12.2 rpg) and fifth in steals (2.32 spg).
 * Hakeem Olajuwon ranked first in rebounding, fourth in blocks and sixth in steals in.

Only player in NBA history to rank among the top seven players in the league in five statistics in the same season:
 * Ranked seventh in scoring (23.2 ppg), fourth in rebounding (12.2 rpg), first in blocks (4.49 bpg), fifth in steals (2.32 spg) and seventh in field-goal percentage (.551)

Playoffs
Highest field goal percentage, game (minimum 8 made): 1.000 (8—8), vs. Phoenix Suns, 2003-4-19 (OT)
 * Tied with many other players

Part of second trio of players in NBA history to score 30 or more points in the same game: San Antonio Spurs (130) vs. Golden State Warriors (121), 1991-4-25
 * Willie Anderson: 38 points
 * Rod Strickland: 30 points
 * Robinson: 30 points

All-Star
Personal fouls, quarter: 4 (1991)

Charitable efforts
In addition to his lengthy NBA career, Robinson is also remembered for his charitable work.

In 1991, Robinson visited with fifth graders at Gates Elementary School in San Antonio and challenged them to finish school and go to college. He offered a $2,000 scholarship to everyone who did. In 1998, proving even better than his word, Robinson awarded $8,000 to each of those students who had completed his challenge. In perhaps his greatest civic and charitable achievement, David and his wife, Valerie, founded the Carver Academy in San Antonio, which opened its doors in September 2001. To date, the Robinsons have donated more than $11 million to the school.

In March 2003, in recognition of his outstanding contributions to charity, the NBA renamed its award for outstanding charitable efforts in honor of Robinson. Winners of the NBA's Community Assist Award receive the David Robinson Plaque, with the inscription "Following the standard set by NBA Legend David Robinson who improved the community piece by piece." The award is given out monthly by the league to recognize players for their charitable efforts. Robinson is also the recipient of the William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership.

In 2011, in recognition of his philanthropic efforts with the Carver Academy, Robinson received the Children's Champion Award from the charitable organization Children's Hunger Fund.

Business career
In 2008 Robinson partnered with Daniel Bassichis, formerly of Goldman Sachs and a board member of The Carver Academy, to form Admiral Capital Group. Admiral Capital Group is a private equity firm whose mission is to invest in opportunities that can provide both financial and social returns. Robinson's primary motivation in starting Admiral Capital was to create a source of additional financial support for The Carver Academy. Admiral has made several investments to date, primarily in the real estate and hospitality industry, including a stake in Centerplate, one of the nation's premier food services companies. Admiral Capital Group also partnered with Living Cities to form the Admiral Center, a non-profit created to support other athletes and entertainers with their philanthropic initiatives.

NBA

 * Quadruple-double
 * List of National Basketball Association top rookie scoring averages
 * List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association season scoring leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association season rebounding leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association season blocks leaders
 * List of National Basketball Association players with most points in a game
 * List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game

College

 * List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 13 or more blocks in a game
 * List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 2000 points and 1000 rebounds
 * List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season blocks leaders
 * List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders