Robert Curtis, Jr. (January 15, 1990 – May 26, 2017) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

and

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 competed with the

Saint John Mill Rats The Saint John Riptide were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Saint John, New Brunswick, that had home games at Harbour Station. They were a member of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada) in the Atlantic Division ( ...

of the

National Basketball League of Canada The National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada; french: Ligue nationale de basketball du Canada) is a Canadian professional men's minor league basketball organization. The NBL Canada was founded in 2011, when three existing Premier Basketb ...

(NBL), playing for the team in multiple seasons. Curtis also played with the North County Cobras of the LaBelle Community Football League (LCFL).

Early life

Curtis was born on January 15, 1990, to Robert Curtis, Sr. and Starlea Hall and was brought up in

Pomona, California Pomona is a city in Los Angeles County, California. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 census, the city's population was 151,713. The main campus of California State Pol ...

. When Robert, Jr. was 5 years old, his father was shot and killed. Hall was diagnosed with brain cancer at 45 years of age.

High school career

Curtis attended

Capistrano Valley High School Capistrano Valley High School (often called CVHS or Capo) is a public high school at the southern border of Mission Viejo, California, USA, that is run by the Capistrano Unified School District. It is set on a hilltop overlooking the San Diego Fre ...

in Mission Viejo, California. Along with basketball, he played

in his sophomore year. In his junior season, Curtis was averaging 1.9 points and 2.0 rebounds in 8 games on the varsity team. he saw significant improvement as a senior, averaging 14.5 points and 9.6 rebounds in 26 appearances. Throughout his final season at Capistrano Valley,

Oregon State Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...

was the sole

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athletic ...

program that pursued him. He played with the West Coast All-Stars at the Boo Williams Invitational that season. Following graduation from high school, Curtis made the decision to play prep basketball before joining a college team.

Collegiate career

Curtis played his first two seasons of

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

with

Saddleback College Saddleback College (Saddleback) is a public community college in Mission Viejo, California. It is part of the California Community College system and awards over 300 associate degrees, academic certificates, and occupational skills awards in 1 ...

in Mission Viejo, California. The Gauchos played in the

California Community College Athletic Association The California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) is a sports association of community colleges in the U.S. state of California. It oversees 108 athletic programs throughout the state. The organization was formed in 1929 as the Calif ...

(CCCAA). In 2010, the

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 ...

led the team to a state title. He, along with teammate Tyler McManaman, was named to the all-tournament team. Curtis returned to Saddleback for his sophomore season. After the conclusion of the 2009–10 season, he was recruited by the

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

team at

Cal State Dominguez Hills California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH, CSU Dominguez Hills, or Cal State Dominguez Hills) is a public university in Carson, California. It was founded in 1960 and is part of the California State University (CSU) system. In 2020, ...

. However, he sat out for the season. Entering the next season, Curtis joined

Wayland Baptist Wayland Baptist University (WBU) is a private Baptist university based in Plainview, Texas. It is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas (Southern Baptist Convention). Wayland Baptist has 11 campuses in five Texas cities, six s ...

of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its st ...

(NAIA). He averaged a team-high 13.1 points and 6.8 rebounds. Curtis chose to become professional after his third season at the collegiate level.

Professional career

Basketball

Over the summer after his final year at Wayland Baptist, Curtis participated in the Southern California Summer Pro League. At the event, he averaged 14.7 points and 8.2 rebounds in 31.8 minutes per game over a total of six games. On August 27, 2012, Curtis was selected by the

Windsor Express The Windsor Express is a Canadian professional basketball team based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The Express are an expansion team of the National Basketball League of Canada that began play in the 2012–13 season. The Express play its home gam ...

with the first overall pick in the

2012 NBL Canada draft The 2012 NBL Canada Draft was held on August 27, 2012, at the Rogers Centre. A total of 24 players were selected, in three rounds. Robert Curtis was selected with the first overall pick by the Windsor Express, to be traded to the Saint John Mill Ra ...

. He was promptly traded to the

for Mike Helms, the team's fifth overall draft pick, and rights to Isaac Kuon. Mill Rats' general manager Ian McCarthy praised Curtis, "Rob is a young player with tremendous upside. He is ready to prove he was worthy of being the #1 pick and this will be a statement year for him. He is a very mobile big with a good post skillset."

Football

Curtis had experience playing

at the semi-professional level. In 2012, he decided to return to the sport, which he had not played since high school. He signed with the North County Cobras of the LaBelle Community Football League (LCFL) as a wide receiver and

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

. The Cobras are based in

Vista, California Vista (; Spanish for "view") is a city in San Diego County, California. Vista is a medium-sized city within the San Diego-Carlsbad, CA Metropolitan Area and has a population of 101,638. Vista's sphere of influence also includes portions of u ...

. In his first game, Curtis recorded a touchdown reception against the

San Diego Riptide The San Diego Riptide was a professional arena football team based in San Diego, California. The team played its home games at the San Diego Sports Arena. The team was originally coached by Cree Morris, then Mouse Davis and finally by Sean Ponde ...

. He said, "I've been feeling football. Football's my first sport, and over the years going through high school my mom didn't want me to play football because of the dangers." He was coached by Tony Vinson, who praised him for his determination.

Death

Curtis was shot and killed outside of a

Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement r ...

Victorville, California Victorville is a city in Victor Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Its population as of the 2020 census was 134,810. History In 1858, Aaron G. Lane came to what is now known as Victorville and founded a waystation called "Lane's Cr ...

, on May 27, 2017. A person was arrested on Wednesday, May 31 for the shooting.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Robert 1990 births 2017 deaths American expatriate basketball people in Canada Deaths by firearm in California Saddleback Gauchos men's basketball players Saint John Mill Rats players Players of American football from Pomona, California Basketball players from Los Angeles County, California Wayland Baptist Pioneers men's basketball players American football wide receivers American men's basketball players Power forwards American murder victims People murdered in California