Bakari Akil Hendrix (born May 23, 1977) is a retired American
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
player. He was a standout player at
Gonzaga University
Gonzaga University (GU) () is a private Jesuit university in Spokane, Washington. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. Founded in 1887 by Joseph Cataldo, an Italian-born priest and Jesuit missionary, the ...
and played professionally in eleven countries.
Hendrix, a 6'8"
power forward
The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to centers. When on offense, they typically play with their ba ...
from
St. Patrick-St. Vincent High School
St. Patrick-St. Vincent High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Vallejo, in the U.S. state of California. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento.
Background
St. Patrick-St. Vincent High School's long history be ...
in
Vallejo, California
Vallejo ( ; ) is a city in Solano County, California and the second largest city in the North Bay region of the Bay Area. Located on the shores of San Pablo Bay, the city had a population of 126,090 at the 2020 census. Vallejo is home to th ...
, played collegiate basketball at
Solano Community College (1994 to 1995) and
Gonzaga (1995 to 1998). At Gonzaga, Hendrix faced a tough start as he fractured his ankle in his sophomore year - limiting his season to just nine games. However, the next two years Hendrix was named first team All-
West Coast Conference as a junior and senior and was the 1998
WCC Player of the Year after averaging 19.8 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.
Following the close of his college career, Hendrix was not drafted by the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
(NBA). Hendrix instead went to
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
to play for
Türk Telekom B.K. This began a basketball odyssey for Hendrix that led him to play for 14 teams in eleven counties from 1998 to 2009. Hendix played professionally in
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
, the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
,
Australia and
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
. Hendrix also had stints in the United States with the
Quad City Thunder
The Quad City Thunder was a Continental Basketball Association franchise that was based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. They played in the CBA from the 1987–88 season until the CBA folded in 2001. The Thunder were successful on the c ...
of the
Continental Basketball Association (where he was named the league's rookie of the year in 1999) and with the
Huntsville Flight
Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...
and
Colorado 14ers
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
of the
NBA Development League (NBDL).
Hendrix played the 2007 season for the
Wellington Saints
The Wellington Saints are a New Zealand basketball team based in Wellington. The Saints compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at TSB Bank Arena.
Team history
The Wellington Saints were founded in 1981. In 1 ...
in New Zealand. During that time, he had a well-reported brawl with
Casey Frank
Casey Frank (born October 23, 1977) is an American-New Zealand former professional basketball player who spent the majority of his 17-year career in the New Zealand NBL and Australian NBL. After playing four years of college basketball for Nort ...
of the
Auckland Stars
The Auckland Stars were a New Zealand basketball team based in Auckland. The Stars competed in the National Basketball League (NBL) and played their home games at ASB Stadium.
Team history
The Auckland Stars, then known as Auckland Metro, were ...
after one of the games. When Hendrix left New Zealand, he left one pair of his size 18 sports shoes behind along with the instruction to "find a kid that needs some shoes". A year later, the shoes were handed to a shy 14-year-old who had moved to
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...
to study at
Scots College, but who could not find shoes large enough to train for basketball;
Steven Adams would later become a top international prospect for the NBA.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hendrix, Bakari
1977 births
Living people
American expatriate basketball people in Australia
American expatriate basketball people in France
American expatriate basketball people in Greece
American expatriate basketball people in Italy
American expatriate basketball people in Lebanon
American expatriate basketball people in New Zealand
American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines
American expatriate basketball people in Portugal
American expatriate basketball people in South Korea
American men's basketball players
Basketball players from Portland, Oregon
Besançon BCD players
Colorado 14ers players
Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball players
Huntsville Flight players
Irakleio B.C. players
Junior college men's basketball players in the United States
Power forwards (basketball)
Powerade Tigers players
Quad City Thunder players
S.L. Benfica basketball players
Seoul Samsung Thunders players
South Dragons players
Sportspeople from Vallejo, California
Wellington Saints players
Yakima Sun Kings players
Philippine Basketball Association imports