Sports Great Anfernee Hardaway

by George Rekela

A biography of the young scorer whose play helped the Orlando Magic get to the NBA championship series in 1995.

64 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Marcus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hardaways nickname came as a result of his grandmother's calling him "Pretty" with a southern drawl, thus sounding like "Penny." Hardaway was raised by his grandmother while his mother was away working. His first love was football but his grandmother did not want him to get hurt. He grew up in the Binghampton neighborhood of shotgun houses in Memphis, Tennessee. As a teenager, despite his rising popularity around the city, in high school, and the nation, Penny continued to work as a referee of youth sports at the Memphis YMCA and played on the Memphis Y.M.C.A. Jr. Olympic basketball teams as a youth.Hardaway grew up playing basketball in Memphis for Treadwell High School, where he averaged 36.6 points, 10.1 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 3.9 steals, and 2.8 blocks as a senior and was named Parade Magazine National High School player of the year. He finished his high school career with 3,039 points Hardaway then committed to Memphis State University (known as the University of Memphis since 1994).Hardaway had to sit out the 1990–91 season due to being academically ineligible. He wound up making the Dean's List with a 3.4 grade point average as an education major. During his freshman season, Hardaway was robbed at gunpoint and then struck by a stray bullet in the foot, putting his career in jeopardy. In the summer of 1992 Hardaway was selected to the 1992 USA Basketball Developmental Team that scrimmaged daily against the 1992 Olympic Team.Penny was teammates with Chris Webber, Bobby Hurley, Jamal Mashburn, Rodney Rogers, Eric Montross, Grant Hill, and Allan Houston. The USA Basketball Developmental Team was the only team to beat Team USA in 1992.