Darnell Lamont Robinson (born May 30, 1974 in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

) is a retired American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player and a member of the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

Razorbacks 1994 NCAA national champion men's

team, playing center (6'11" 245 lbs). He holds the national high school career record for most blocked shots with 1,187 Robinson was selected a

McDonald's All-America The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the conc ...

following an exceptional high school career at Emery High School, where he finished as the leading scorer in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

boy's high school basketball history with a total of 3,361 points (breaking the previous record held by

Tracy Murray Tracy, Tracey, or Tracie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tracy (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname, also encompassing spelling variations Places United States * Tracy, C ...

). He scored 19 points, arguably outplaying the more highly regarded

Rasheed Wallace Rasheed Abdul Wallace (born September 17, 1974) is an American basketball coach and former professional player. A native of Philadelphia, Wallace played college basketball at the University of North Carolina before declaring for the draft in 199 ...

in the 1993 game. He also recorded 1,187 career blocks at Emery, the all-time record for high school basketball according to the

National Federation of State High School Associations The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) is the body that writes the rules of competition for most high school sports and activities in the United States. NFHS's headquarters are located in White River State Park in Indi ...

: he had 241 as a freshman, 281 as a sophomore, 334 as a junior and 331 as a senior. His 334 blocks in 1991–92 were an all-time record for blocks in a single season from 1992 to 2009, when it was broken by

Angelo Chol Angelo Ajieng Chol (born July 15, 1993) is a South Sudanese professional basketball player who last played for Toyama Grouses in Japanese B.League. He played college basketball for San Diego State. Professional career On January 21, 2021, Chol s ...

's 337. Robinson was drafted by the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conferenc ...

with the 29th pick of the 2nd round of the

1996 NBA draft The 1996 NBA draft was the 50th draft in the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 26, 1996 at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In this draft, NBA teams took turns selecting college basketball play ...

after leaving Arkansas a season early. He later signed with the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

, but never played in the

NBA 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 ...

. Robinson ended up playing professionally in

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 re ...

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 with ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Robinson's coach in Greece referred to him as "one of the greatest underachievers I've ever been involved with."NBA eludes state's all-time prep scorer Darnell Robinson
/ref>

References

1974 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Italy American men's basketball players Apollon Patras B.C. players Aris B.C. players Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball players Basketball players from Oakland, California Bnei Hertzeliya basketball players Centers (basketball) Dallas Mavericks draft picks Greek Basket League players McDonald's High School All-Americans Pallacanestro Trieste players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Paris Racing Basket players Gigantes de Carolina basketball players {{1970s-US-basketball-bio-stub