Cory Hightower (born July 30, 1979) is a professional basketball player who was selected by the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...

in the second round (54th pick) in the 2000 NBA draft. He played two years as a guard/forward with

Indian Hills Community College Indian Hills Community College (IHCC) is a public community college in Iowa with campuses in Ottumwa and Centerville. IHCC serves both traditional residential students and commuter students, primarily from a ten-county area in southeast Iowa as ...

, and had committed to play at

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples ...

, but decided to leave early to declare for the draft. While at Indian Hills, Hightower was named NJCAA Tournament MVP his freshman year, and was named a First Team NJCAA All-American his sophomore year. His draft rights were traded by the Spurs to the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

on the day of the draft. Hightower averaged 17 points per game for the Lakers in NBA Summer League and pre-season, but was eventually cut from the NBA Championship team to make room for a point guard. Although Hightower's professional basketball career lasted 12 years, he never played a game in the NBA, making him 1 of 8 players from the 2000 NBA Draft to never play in the league. Hightower and fellow 2000 NBA Draftee

Chris Carrawell Chris Carrawell (born November 25, 1977) is a retired American professional basketball player who is best known for his All-American college career at Duke University. He is currently an assistant men's basketball coach under Jon Scheyer. High ...

were the only players that the Spurs drafted that year, and neither one of them ever played a game in the league. Flint natives

Morris Peterson Morris Russell Peterson Jr. (born August 26, 1977) is an American retired professional basketball player who played eleven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Michigan State University, where in ...

Mateen Cleaves Mateen Ahmad Cleaves (born September 7, 1977) is a retired American basketball player. He played parts of six seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was an All-American college player for Michigan State, where he led the Sparta ...

, and other Flint NBA Legends, confirm that Cory Hightower is the greatest player ever to come out of the basketball hotbed. He split the 2000–01 season in the CBA with the

Gary Steelheads The Gary Steelheads were a professional basketball team. They played in the International Basketball League, Continental Basketball Association, and the United States Basketball League. They were based in Gary, Indiana, United States, and played ...

before joining the

Harlem Globetrotters The Harlem Globetrotters are an American exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, and comedy in their style of play. Created in 1926 by Tommy Brookins in Chicago, Illinois, the team adopted the name ''Harlem'' because of i ...

. Participated in training camp with the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division, and pla ...

in 2001 before being released. He returned to the CBA in 2002 and played once again with the Gary Steelheads and later, the

Rockford Lightning The Rockford Lightning was a basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association. They were based in Rockford, Illinois. History The Lightning were the oldest team in the CBA, originally existing as the Lancaster Red Roses fro ...

. Hightower would continue to leap around the CBA for the next few years, playing for the

Great Lakes Storm The Great Lakes Storm was a basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association for three seasons, beginning in 2002 and ending in 2005. They were based in Birch Run, Michigan, a small town between Flint and Saginaw Saginaw () ...

Yakima Sun Kings The Yakima SunKings are a basketball team located in Yakima, Washington, covering the central Washington sports market of Yakima, Tri-Cities, and Ellensburg and plays at the Yakima SunDome. The team competed in the Continental Basketball Associa ...

, and

Michigan Mayhem The Michigan Mayhem was a minor league professional basketball team based in Muskegon, Michigan that competed in the Continental Basketball Association. In the CBA's 2004-05 season the Mayhem finished third in the league's Eastern Conference. Th ...

. In 2004, Hightower began playing overseas for teams such as Marinos de Anzoátegui in

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. Hightower also played for the

Albany Patroons The Albany Patroons are a professional basketball team that plays in The Basketball League (TBL). Previously, the team competed in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) and in the United States Basketball League (USBL). The Patroons won ...

of the

United States Basketball League The United States Basketball League (USBL) was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985 and ceased operations in 2008. The USBL started in 1985 as one of the first basketball leagues to play a late-spring to ...

Notes

External links

NBDL Player's Page

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hightower, Cory 1979 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Venezuela American men's basketball players Basketball players from Flint, Michigan Great Lakes Storm players Harlem Globetrotters players Indian Hills Warriors basketball players Marinos B.B.C. players Michigan Mayhem players Rockford Lightning players San Antonio Spurs draft picks Shooting guards Small forwards Yakima Sun Kings players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople