James "Hollywood" Robinson (born August 31, 1970) is an American former 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 (appro ...

player, most notably in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). He is currently the head coach of the Vegas Ballers of TBL. Robinson, an undersized 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...

, attended the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

before being selected with the 21st overall pick in the

1993 NBA draft The 1993–94 NBA season, 1993 NBA draft took place on June 30, 1993, at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Chris Webber, Pen ...

by the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

High school & college

As a high school star at Jackson, Mississippi's Murrah High School, Robinson played with another future NBA player, Lindsey Hunter. Robinson was named Mississippi Mr. Basketball & was named a

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

in the same group that included such notable players as Kenny Anderson,

Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), commonly known as Shaq ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. He is a and Center (basketball), center ...

, Jim Jackson, and

Allan Houston Allan Wade Houston Jr. (born April 20, 1971) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1993 to 2005. A shooting guard, Houston played nine seasons for the New York Knicks; h ...

. Robinson also won the All American

slam dunk contest The NBA Slam Dunk Contest (officially known as the AT&T Slam Dunk) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) competition held during the NBA All-Star Weekend. The contest was conceived of and started by the American Basketball Associat ...

. He signed with Alabama, but was ineligible under the NCAA's Proposition 48 academic entrance guidelines. He redshirted, and after sitting out for a season he started play for the Crimson Tide in the 1991–92 season. As a redshirt freshman, Robinson came off the bench to average a team high 16.8 points per game, becoming the first freshman to lead the Tide in scoring since 1953. As a junior at Alabama in 1992–93, Robinson led the Crimson Tide with 20.6 points per game, also tallying 4.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists per contest, and was named to the All-Southeastern Conference First Team. He set a school record by scoring 20 or more points in 12 straight games and became the first junior in Crimson Tide history to surpass 1,500 career points (he finished with 1,831). During his college career he played with two future NBA players, Latrell Sprewell and Robert Horry. Robinson's scoring average was the highest at Alabama since

Buck Johnson Alphonso "Buck" Johnson Jr. (born January 3, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player. Johnson, a 6'7" small forward, played seven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and Washington Bu ...

's 20.7 in 1986. After such a stellar year, Robinson elected to pass up his senior season and enter the

NBA

Robinson had an uneventful first professional season (58 games with 11 minutes per game), although he did compete in the

NBA Slam Dunk Contest The NBA Slam Dunk Contest (officially known as the AT&T Slam Dunk) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) competition held during the NBA All-Star Weekend. The contest was conceived of and started by the American Basketball Associat ...

at the NBA All-Star Weekend, where he finished in last place (6th). He also has the distinction of being one of three Robinsons that the

had on its roster in the

1995–96 NBA season The 1995–96 NBA season was the 50th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA), though the 50th anniversary was not celebrated until the following season. The Chicago Bulls defeated the Seattle SuperSonics 4 games to 2 in the NBA Fina ...

, the others being Clifford Robinson and

Rumeal Robinson Rumeal James Robinson (born November 13, 1966) is a Jamaican-American former professional basketball player and convicted felon. Growing up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Robinson graduated from Cambridge Rindge and Latin School and went on to pl ...

. Robinson's importance in Portland increased from 1994 to 1996, as

Clyde Drexler Clyde Austin Drexler (born June 22, 1962) is an American former professional basketball player who currently works as the commissioner of the Big3 3-on-3 basketball league. Nicknamed "Clyde the Glide", he played 15 seasons in the National Bask ...

was traded to

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

midway through 1994–95 and

Terry Porter Terry Porter (born April 8, 1963) is an American former college basketball coach and former player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was most recently the head men's basketball coach at the Portland Pilots, University of Portland ...

was often injured the following season. After that season, he was traded, along with Bill Curley and a conditional first-round pick to the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

, for

Isaiah Rider Isaiah Rider Jr., nicknamed J.R. (born March 12, 1971), is an American former professional basketball player who played nine seasons in the NBA. Rider was born in Oakland, California, and was raised in nearby Alameda. He starred in both basebal ...

. As a Timberwolf, Robinson achieved roughly the same averages than his final two Portland years, albeit in less playing time. Robinson did have a memorable December 30, 1996 game against the Cleveland Cavaliers in which he came off the bench to score 23 points in 10 minutes. In 1997–98, he signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

with the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

, and posted similar numbers (almost 8 ppg in 84 games). Waived in March 1999, he would rejoin the Timberwolves, with little impact. Midway through 2000–01, after one season of absence, Robinson received a ten-day contract with the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...

, eventually his last NBA stint.

Career statistics

Trades and contracts

*July 23, 1996 – Traded by the Blazers with Bill Curley and a conditional first round draft pick in 1997 or 1998 to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Isaiah "J.R." Rider. *August 16, 1997 – Signed as a free agent by the Los Angeles Clippers; March 18, 1999 – waived *March 26, 1999 – Signed to the first of two consecutive 10-day contracts by the Minnesota Timberwolves; April 17, 1999 – signed for the remainder of the season

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, James 1970 births Living people Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Russia American men's basketball players Basketball players from Jackson, Mississippi Greek Basket League players Los Angeles Clippers players McDonald's High School All-Americans Minnesota Timberwolves players Olympiacos B.C. players Orlandina Basket players Orlando Magic players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) PBC CSKA Moscow players Portland Trail Blazers draft picks Portland Trail Blazers players Shooting guards 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen