I was at a local park in Beaumont recently and happened to see Rashard Lewis playing basketball with Omar Sneed. Omar was a Star at a local high School back in the early to mid 90s. Then Omar went on to Memphis and was VERY good, but went undrafted and I believe plays overseas. Rashard, I believe was born in Beaumont and moved to Houston in 8th or 9th grade. His Grandmother still lives here. Anyway, there was a little crowd gathering as the two went at it. Surprisingly to me, but to NO ONE else, Omar beat the hell out of Rashard. Omar had a better outside shot and a better inside game and is about four inches shorter. When I remarked that I was surprised in Lewis' play others said they weren't. I started talking to his buddies, whom he came with. They said that Rashard listens to his mother more than anything else. And that he still doesnt act as though he has money. When I saw him he wore beat up shoes, and old dirty shirt and pants. However, he did drive a Lincoln, which according to friends has TVs, Playstation, etc inside. His buddies said that since he was VERY poor as a kid, and he still does what his mother says to do, that he told them he would go were the money was and that his mother doesnt care for Rudy T. (I have no idea why, that is just what they said). Since I think Seattle can match whatever another team offers, I bet he stays there. His friends also said that he wasnt that sharp, and that He believes if he had been able to go to College that he would have been just another player. He AND his buddies seem to think that since he played against smaller players in high School that that was why he was much better than the others. But if he played around similarly skilled players, he wouldnt have done as much. They also said he considers himself to be like a Robert Horry type player. Kinda of garbage man, who gets what he does by hustling for it. And feels VERY lucky to be in the NBA. And he feels that MANY more talented players have not gotten the chance he has. When I talked to him, just for a brief bit, he seemed like a Man CHild. I mean that nicely. Here was this VERY tall guy and he just seemed like a young guy. He has a baby face and kinda acts like a typical teenager, even though he is now 20. He was more interested in a College dance than in basketball it seemed. And to me he didnt seem to be the sharpest tool in the shed either. But he seemed REALLY nice. He said that the Sonics have NOT contacted him and that no one can until I think July 1st. But he said he liked playing with Gary Payton, because it made him a MUCH better player. He told me that Gary told him to hustle on every play and if he hustle he would get better in the long run, which he did late in the season. He did say that if Gary doesnt like you in Seattle than you wont be playing there long. And that Gary Yells and gets on everyone as he was the coach. He said Mad Max is crazy! Said that Max and Payton went at it last year and Max threw a weight in the direction of Payton and it hit Horace Grant in the collarbone. Anyway, maybe the Rockets noticed his skills and realized they were against High School students and came to the correct realization that he wasnt worth the first round pick. Kinda makes you wonder though why a guy like Sneed and MANY others dont get shots at the BIG TIME though... ------------------
Be careful with the use of the word ManChild, where I come from in refers to a child with some physical features of a Man, ie a 13 yr old with a moustache or two large eyebrows that have merged into 1. See my point. A better description of Mr Lewis may well be a very Immature Man. Sme ------------------ CUT Tino Isn't it amazing how quickly everyone did a Cat Backflip!!!!! [This message has been edited by SmeggySmeg (edited June 01, 2000).]
ME123, Awesome info. I figured that Payton was at least that bad to play with. Thanks big time. SmeggySmeg, So I guess then Sam Cassel is androgenous unidentifiable pod born freak. Wait, what the hell are we talking about? ------------------
Omar Sneed is probably a touch under 6'6" and he weighs around 240lbs. At every level (Beaumont Westbrook HS, San Jac and Memphis), he's always been strictly a post up player. He's not an NBA prospect. Of course I'm still bitter that he originally signed with UH and then after he had to go juco, he decided to go to Memphis. ------------------
HEYPARTNER! Are you crazy? Drew for Odom is nuts but if we throw in Pig, then we might get ODOM AND THE CLIPPERS PICK! ------------------ President of the Moochie Norris FAN CLUB
aelliott-thanks. I was wondering if that might have been the reason Lewis was beat. Homecourt advantage for Sneed maybe? ------------------ Rockets fans wanted at hoopsboards.com Draft Chat, NBA Chat, Team Chat, and more!
This is EXACTLY the reason why this BBS is so damn cool! Nowhere else would we hear stories of trades in the mall or free agents at the park. I love this game! ------------------ "No one gets out ALIVE!" SaveOurRockets.com
Hey Partner LOL ------------------ "Stranger things have happened, but none stranger than this" - Commentator after a parachutist landed in the ring of a Tyson fight
I agree. This is what makes the BBS so awesome. An NBA star has been playing practically about five minutes from my house and I didn't even know it! I'm definitely going by there everyday now though to see if Rashard is there, because obviously it's not every day an NBA star is playing basketball in Beaumont parks. ------------------ Come back Popeye!!!
well, a good one on one player doesnt always translate to a good nba player. esp. if they were playing a half-court game. Rashard is very athletic, and omar isnt as athletic, and that counts in the nba. I remember omar being a good college player. I also believe that the reason omar didnt go to UH was UH's fault. I remember reading a quote from omar that said UH basically lost interest after he went to juco. could be wrong though. ------------------ "Don't they get cable in Canada ?" Keith olbermann, after watching hakeem block terry catledge's shot 5 times.
I'm sure NBA players get run by playground players all the time. During the playoffs, Gary Payton said that he was nowhere near the best basketball player to come out of his neighborhood, but he somehow made it. I'm sure if you put Matt Maloney 1-on-1 against some of the guys at Fonde, he's likely to get destroyed. But don't discount the team play; some of the guys that don't make it to the pros are far more athletic and talented than NBA players themselves. As a side note, read this article about the best pick-up basketball in the nation and you can get an appreciation for the talent out there that goes undrafted/never make it to the NBA. Also read the link to Houston's own Fonde Rec Center. It talks about a guy Rudy T used to go watch that supposedly no one could guard. Fonde placed #2 on the list. http://www.hoopsnation.com/top5/ ------------------ ?
During the playoffs, Gary Payton said that he was nowhere near the best basketball player to come out of his neighborhood, but he somehow made it. Now I know that there are plenty of ppl out there that are better than NBA players, but GP is one of top 3 point guards in the entire league. I wonder... HOW GOOD IS THE BEST ONE TO COME OUT OF GP'S NEIGHBORHOOD? ------------------ treasurer of the moochie norris fan club
It's Greg Foster. ------------------ Rockets: 82-0 in 2001. If you don't think so, you are a negative Grizzlies fan.
HP or even LHutz could take Matt Maloney! Thanks for the link, DoD. Interesting site. ------------------ We need some meat in the post!
How recently was this? I'm just curious cause I live in Beaumont and never heard anything about it, and if an NBA star is playing ball about 5 minutes from your house (I live that close to Rogers Park) I would have thought we'd hear. ------------------ Come back Popeye!!!
Thanks for the story, but you don't get drafted into the NBA, from highschool, by accident. The kid can play. The question is can he think the game. That's where a high school player runs into trouble. And he doesn't have long to figure it out. In most cases he has to figure it out on his own time. NBA coaches don't have the time for teaching fundamentals. Lewis has game. His friends are jealous. And of getting beat by someone who wasn't in the NBA. It probably happens all the time and we don't hear about it. There are lots of skilled players that are better than NBA players, but there are not a lot of "basketball" players. There is a difference. Basketball is a team game. Losing that match made him a better player anyway. He learned something. That's exactly the type of thing he needs. Good for him. ------------------ humble, but hungry.
Out of curiousity, how big is this Omar Sneed guy in comparison to Rashard, height and weight wise? ------------------ Rockets fans wanted at hoopsboards.com Draft Chat, NBA Chat, Team Chat, and more!
I thought I heard something like Omar was kicked out of UH for stealing something from the campus bookstore. anyone hear that too?
