A high ranking Assistant NBA General Manager sits at his desk on a brisk New York day. It’s a position he’s settled into; a town he knows, perhaps not as well as another city that sits on a different river.
His hometown is Louisville, and he is a Sports legend of the Ville.
Alan Houston, known for his shot and work ethic, is a legendary New York Knick player as well as current assistant general manager. But, what got him there?
A 1988 Graduate of Ballard, Houston led his high school team to the 1988 Kentucky state championship. He went just south of the commonwealth to play his college ball at the University of Tennessee. With the Vols, Houston was named an All-American twice, All-SEC four times, and still holds the points record for the orange.
While at UT, Houston played for his coach and dad Wade Houston, also an All-American. This, of course, leads one to question, “Just how tense can Thanksgiving be?” Luckily, the team of Houston and Houston proved to be one of the most successful in Tennessee history, so it never got to that. But still, I’m just saying. Just this year, UT retired Houston’s jersey after the Kentucky game in the Thompson-Bowling Arena.
After a stellar college career, Houston was drafted eleventh overall to the Detroit Pistons. A solid player, Houston didn’t really make a name for himself until he was traded three years later to the New York Knicks where he took over for the aging John Starks. During his tenure with the Knicks, Houston led the team to the 1999 NBA finals.
A year later, he was invited to the U.S. Olympic basketball team, where he and his all-star teammates won gold in Sydney. That year and in 2001, the Louisville native was named to the NBA All-Star Team.
After his retirement, Houston accepted a position as the Knicks Assistant General Manager under President Donnie Walsh.
This guy is still considered one of the best at every team he’s played for. As such, it’s a no-brainer that he’s a sports legend of the Ville.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allan_Houston
Elliot, C. Tennessee Retires Allan Houston’s Number. TNJN.
http://tnjn.com/2011/mar/08/tennessee-retires-allan-housto/#
Also, Houston started a great charity for kids called the Allan Houston Legacy Foundation check it out here: http://www.allanhouston.com/index.php
Image courtesy of the Allan Houston Foundation
Houston in action with the Knicks
