Rob Feaster

Robert M. "Rob" Feaster (born May 15, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player. Feaster graduated from The College of the Holy Cross in 1995 but went undrafted in the 1995 NBA Draft. His professional career took him to Germany, Australia and France. He is a 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m), 220 pound (100 kg) small forward.^[1]

A native of Chicago, Illinois, Feaster played high school basketball at Loyola Academy in Wilmette and had aspirations to be a big-time player at a nationally prominent basketball school.^[2] He ultimately ended up at playing for the Crusaders of Holy Cross, a mid-major program in Worcester, Massachusetts. Even though Holy Cross did not have the allure to draw top level talent from across the country, Feaster did manage to excel at the NCAA Division I school and graduated as one of the most decorated players in Patriot League history.

College

Feaster's college career began in 1991–92. In 29 games played he averaged 8.0 points and 3.2 rebounds per game and was named the 1992 Patriot League Rookie of the Year.^[3][4] He followed that campaign with a sophomore season in which the Crusaders placed second in the conference regular season, won the Patriot League Tournament, and earned a berth in the 1993 NCAA Tournament.^[5] Feaster led the team in scoring at 17.7 points per game for the season and was also named the conference tournament's most valuable player.^[5] It was Holy Cross' first NCAA Tournament appearance since the 1979–80 season, and with a 24–7 record, just their third 20-win season since then as well.^[5]

As a junior in 1993–94, Feaster averaged 28.0 points per game, which placed him second in the nation behind Purdue's Glenn Robinson.^[6] Despite the prolific scoring, the Crusaders only finished with a 14–14 record.^[5] He was selected to the All-Patriot League team for the third time in as many years.^[6] Feaster's final season in 1994–95 saw him earn his fourth all-conference selection behind a third consecutive season in which he led Holy Cross in scoring at 25.0 points per game.^[5][6] This mark also ranked him ninth nationally, and for his efforts he was named the Patriot League Player of the Year.^[6] When Feaster finished his college career, he had scored a then-Patriot League record 2,224 points (in 2012–13, his record would be broken by Lehigh's C. J. McCollum).^[7][8] Despite setting the conference scoring record, he still only ranks second all-time at Holy Cross.^[1] Ron Perry scored 2,524 points between 1976–77 and 1979–80.^[9]

Professional

Feaster did not get selected in the 1995 NBA Draft, so he went overseas to play professionally.^[1] He spent several years in each of Germany, Australia and France. He also played in the Continental Basketball Association in the United States for the La Crosse Bobcats during the 2000–01 season.^[10] He was named to the all-league team in Australia while playing for the Victoria Giants, and his overall career was solid, although he regretted that he never played in the National Basketball Association (NBA): "My clock on the (possible) NBA experience has clicked...The NBA was a dream that wasn't attained.”^[1] When asked for advice for Americans leaving to play internationally, he also said, "[Y]ou have to have an open mind. Americans by nature are pretty confident and arrogant. You have to respect (that) you are in someone else's home. You have to adapt to that. You have to be humble."^[1]

References