David robinson biography navy academy

David Robinson, known as The Admiral because of his service in the US Navy, is considered one of the greatest centers to ever play basketball. Robinson enrolled at the US Naval Academy in , when he was not recruited by major basketball schools. While at Annapolis, he grew from cm () to cm (), and became a force as a center. Robinson was the #1 overall pick in the NBA Draft, chosen by the San Antonio Spurs. He had to fulfill a two-year service commitment, which was a Naval Academy compromise, and less than the usual five-year commitment required of Midshipmen.

Robinson played for 14 years in the NBA, all with the Spurs, helping them win NBA titles in and He was a time NBA All-Star (, , ), and was named All-NBA First team in , and He was chosen as the NBA’s MVP in and was NBA Defensive Player of the Year in Robinson was chosen NBA Rookie of the Year in and was given the NBA Sportsmanship Award in He was named to the NBA 50th Anniversary All-Time Team and his #50 was retired by the San Antonio Spurs.

During his NBA career, Robinson averaged ppg, scoring 20, points, and averaged rebounds/game. He led the NBA in scoring in /94 with ppg, in rebounding in /91 with rpg, and in blocked shots in /92 with bpg. In , in a game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Robinson scored 71 points, becoming only the fourth NBA player to score 70 or more points in a game, after Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, and David Thompson (Kobe Bryant would later join this club, scoring 81 in a game in ). In February , in a game against the Detroit Pistons, Robinson became only the fourth NBA player to record a quadruple-double, with 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, and 10 blocks.

Internationally, Robinson played on the US Olympic team that won a bronze medal, but he is best known for having been a member of the US Olympic Dream Team, the first time that NBA professionals had been allowed to compete at the Olympics. The Dream Team won the gold medal easily and Robinson again played at the Olympics in , on Dream Team II, becoming the first American man to win three Olympic basketball medals when they also won gold. As a collegian, Robinson also won a silver medal at the Pan American Games and a gold medal at the World Championships.

The Admiral was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in He was chosen as a member of the US Olympic Hall of Fame in Both of those were individual honors, but in and respectively, the Dream Team was also chosen for those Halls of Fame.