David Robinson David Robinson is often considered one of the greatest centers to ever play the game of basketball. He was born on August 6, 1965, to Ambrose and Freda Robinson. As a student, he excelled in all of his classes and in every sport except basketball. By his senior year in high school, he was an incredibly tall 6-foot-7, but had never played organized basketball. However, his high school basketball coach noticed Robinson and added him to the team without ever testing him. Robinson quickly earned all-region and all-district honors, but did not attract the attention of any college basketball coaches. But that didn't matter to him, because basketball wasn't his first priority. Getting an education and becoming a student at the United States Naval Academy were his main concerns. After scoring a 1320 on the SAT, his goal of joining the Naval Academy was quickly achieved (Lewis, 16). David Robinson majored in mathematics and excelled in all of his classes at the United States Naval Academy. He was a versatile athlete and an exceptional chess player. He was also a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate fraternity for African-American men. He soon chose to try out for the United States Naval Academy basketball team. By the time he played his first college basketball game, he was 6 feet 9 inches tall, and during his college career he grew to 7 feet 1 inches tall. During David Robinson's final two years, he was a consensus All-American. and won college basketball's two most prestigious player awards, the Naismith and Wooden Awards (Lewis, 30). By the time he left the academy, he was considered by most to be the best basketball player in the history of the United States Naval Academy! He holds the record for most blocks in a single season in college basketball...... middle of paper athlete......l (Basketball.com). In recognition of his outstanding charitable contributions, in March 2003, the NBA renamed its Outstanding Charitable Efforts Award in Robinson's honor. Winners of the NBA Community Assist Award receive the David Robinson plaque, with the inscription "Following the standards set by NBA legend David Robinson who improved the community piece by piece." The award is given monthly by the league to recognize players for their charitable efforts (NBA.com). Works Cited Lewis, Gregg and Deborah Lewis. David Robinson. New York: ZonderKidz, 2002. 4-107, “David Robinson.” NBA.Com. 2003. National Basketball Association. April 2008, "Men's College Basketball Almanac." Basketball.Com. 2002. NBA. Apr. 2008 .