Hakim Warrick

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Hakim Warrick

Position	Power forward
Height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Weight	219 lb (100 kg)
Team	Memphis Grizzlies
Nationality	United States
Born	July 8, 1982 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
College	Syracuse
Draft	19^th overall, 2005 Memphis Grizzlies
Pro career	2005 – present

Hakim Warrick (born July 8, 1982 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American professional basketball player for the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies.

[edit] Collegiate career

After 3 years of varsity basketball at Friends' Central School in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, Hakim Warrick, nicknamed "Hak" by Syracuse fans, moved on to play at Syracuse University. Warrick was considered a last resort by the Syracuse coaching staff and was only offered a scholarship when All-American recruit Julius Hodge chose North Carolina State over Syracuse. At Syracuse, under Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim, he won a National Title in 2003 along with Carmelo Anthony and Gerry McNamara. It was the first NCAA title in Orange basketball history. Warrick is probably most noted for his block in the National Champioship Game against Kansas. With 1.5 seconds remaining Warrick used his long arms to block Michael Lee's game-tying three-point attempt, sealing Syracuse's first ever national championship.

During his career at Syracuse, Warrick would routinely electrify crowds with his ballerina-like post moves and highlight-reel dunks. Against Notre Dame during his senior year, Warrick silenced the rowdy Irish crowd with a standing dunk from 6 feet away from the basket. Another notable dunk of Warrick's came in the Final Four against Texas, when he cleared Royal Ivey for a two-handed dunk, but was called for a charge.

While at Syracuse Hakim Warrick won the Big East Men's Basketball Player of the Year award his Senior year, as well as Most Improved Player his sophomore. He also was, along with McNamara, named to the First Team All Big East in both his Junior and Senior Year. Hakim's last game came in the 1st round of the NCAA Tournament when 4th seed Syracuse was upset 60-57 in overtime by 13th seeded Vermont. Warrick had 21 points in the defeat.

During Warrick's 4 years at Syracuse he averaged 15.4 points and 7.6 rebounds. He is currently 5th all time in Syracuse scoring and the 4th all time rebounder. Warrick was recently passed by former team mate Gerry McNamara in scoring.

[edit] Post Syracuse

Although Warrick was considered too lanky for a pure post player, filling out at only 219 lb (99.5 kg) on a 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) frame, he made up for this with his outstanding athleticism. Between his junior and senior seasons, Warrick spent considerable time working on his face-up game and jump shot, which for the first time makes him a scoring threat away from the basket. Many had projected him to be a lottery pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, and it is unclear why he eventually slipped into the late first-round (picked nineteenth by the Memphis Grizzlies). Nevertheless, with his rare combination of size and quickness, Warrick may prove to be a headache for rival small forwards in the years to come.

On January 31, 2006, Warrick was named to be one of the contestants in the NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest during the All-Star Weekend. He came in third place, behind New York Knicks guard Nate Robinson and Philadelphia 76ers forward Andre Iguodala.

[edit] External links

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2005 NBA Draft
First Round Andrew Bogut \| Marvin Williams \| Deron Williams \| Chris Paul \| Raymond Felton \| Martell Webster \| Charlie Villanueva \| Channing Frye \| Ike Diogu \| Andrew Bynum \| Fran Vázquez \| Yaroslav Korolev \| Sean May \| Rashad McCants \| Antoine Wright \| Joey Graham \| Danny Granger \| Gerald Green \| Hakim Warrick \| Julius Hodge \| Nate Robinson \| Jarrett Jack \| Francisco García \| Luther Head \| Johan Petro \| Jason Maxiell \| Linas Kleiza \| Ian Mahinmi \| Wayne Simien\| David Lee
Second Round Salim Stoudamire \| Daniel Ewing \| Brandon Bass \| C.J Miles \| Ricky Sánchez \| Ersan Ilyasova \| Ronny Turiaf \| Travis Diener \| Von Wafer \| Monta Ellis \| Roko Ukić \| Chris Taft \| Mile Ilić \| Martynas Andriuškevičius \| Louis Williams \| Eražem Lorbek \| Bracey Wright \| Mickaël Gelabale \| Andray Blatche \| Ryan Gomes \| Robert Whaley \| Axel Hervelle \| Orien Greene \| Dijon Thompson \| Lawrence Roberts \| Amir Johnson \| Marcin Gortat \| Uros Slokar \| Cenk Akyol \| Alex Acker