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Amar'e Stoudemire

No. 1 – Phoenix Suns
Position	Power forward/Center
League	NBA
Personal information
Born	(1982-11-16) November 16, 1982 (age 42) Lake Wales, Florida
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight	249 lb (113 kg)
Career information
High school	Cypress Creek
NBA draft	2002: 9th overall
Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Playing career	2002–present
Career highlights and awards
2003 NBA Rookie of the Year 4x NBA All-Star (2005, 2007, 2008, 2009)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

Olympic medal record
Men's Basketball
	2004 Athens	United States

Amar'e Carsares Stoudemire (born November 16, 1982 in Lake Wales, Florida) is an American professional basketball player for the NBA's Phoenix Suns. He is a 6-foot-10-inch (208 cm) and 249-pound (113 kg) power forward/center.

Stoudemire won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 2003, made three appearances in the NBA All-Star Game, made first-team All-NBA Team in 2007, and won Bronze Medal with the United States men's national basketball team at the 2004 Olympic Games.

Stoudemire's first name had previously been listed in the Phoenix Suns media guide as "Amaré" or "Amare", but it was changed to "Amar'e" in October 2008. Stoudemire told NBA.com that his name had always been spelled "Amar'e", but the media had been spelling it incorrectly since he joined the NBA.

Early life and career

Stoudemire's father died when he was twelve, and his mother Carrie was in and out of prison during that time also. As a result, he attended six different high schools before graduating from Cypress Creek High School in Orlando, Florida. He told Isaac Perry in an article for Dime Magazine that what kept him going in that time period was God and the words of rapper Tupac Shakur.

He did not start playing organized basketball until he was fourteen. Stoudemire only played two years of high school-level basketball, but in those two years he was named the MVP of the Nike summer league. He committed to play at the University of Memphis, but never attended the school.

Instead, he declared for the NBA draft because of his desire to quickly help his family. The Phoenix Suns decided on him with their ninth pick in the 2002 NBA Draft due to a need for inside strength at the time. Phoenix was the only team that year to select a high school player in the first round.

NBA career

In his rookie season, Stoudemire averaged 13.5 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, with a high of 38 points, against the Minnesota Timberwolves on December 30, 2002, the highest score by a prep-to-pro player until broken a year later by LeBron James. Stoudemire won the NBA's Rookie of the Year award, beating out Houston Rockets center Yao Ming and Miami Heat forward Caron Butler and becoming the first player ever drafted out of high school to win the award.

The following season, Stoudemire improved statistically, but his team stumbled to a 29–53 record, and point guard Stephon Marbury was traded to the New York Knicks. During the summer of 2004, Stoudemire was selected to play for the United States national team in the 2004 Summer Olympics. However, head coach Larry Brown declined to give him significant playing time.

During the 2004–05 NBA season, Stoudemire teamed up with point guard Steve Nash to lead the Suns to a 62–20 record. Averaging 26 points per game that year and achieving a new career high of 50 points against the Portland Trail Blazers on January 2, 2005, he was selected to his first National Basketball Association All-Star Game as a reserve forward. In the Western Conference Finals against the San Antonio Spurs, Stoudemire performed magnificently, averaging 37 points per game, but the Suns lost in 5 games.

Knee problems

During the 2005–2006 NBA pre-season, knee cartilage damage was discovered and Stoudemire underwent microfracture surgery on October 18, 2005. Initially, the Suns thought he would return by mid-February, but his rehab took longer than expected. Stoudemire, however, made an attempt to return but did not play well, going scoreless against the New Jersey Nets on March 27, 2006. On March 28 it was announced that he would likely miss the rest of the regular season due to ongoing stiffness in both knees. His manager stated that the comeback happened a little too soon, and Stoudemire needed to do more rehab. Stoudemire's rehabilitation, which was led by Suns trainer Aaron Nelson and Dr. Micheal Clark, the president and CEO of the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) went well as he stated during the rehab that he was pretty explosive and he gradually gained his strength back.

Stoudemire attended the 2006 USA Basketball camp in Las Vegas, although he ultimately did not play in the 2006 FIBA World Championship. His athletic trainers stated that he had no swelling since his most recent surgery and his strength and flexibility have been "better than ever: almost like superman".

Stoudemire played in the FIBA Americas Championship 2007, but withdrew from the national team for the 2008 Olympics. Jerry Colangelo, managing director for the national team, said, "Amar'e has pulled himself out of consideration for the roster and that's predicated on, despite the fact that he's had an injury-free year coming back, he's a little hesitant on pushing the envelope too hard." Stoudemire had said in April 2008, "It's more than a year-round grind. It's last year and the year before that and the year before that. It's really been like a three-year-round basketball circuit."

2006–07 season

Before the 2006–07 season, Stoudemire changed his jersey number from 32 to 1. Dijon Thompson, last wore #1 the previous season.

Stoudemire joined the United States national team once and began practicing with the international team in July, but was dropped from the squad for its trip to Asia because coach Mike Krzyzewski believed he needed a proper chance to fully recover from his knee injuries.

On February 18, 2007, Stoudemire appeared in the 2007 NBA All-Star Game, his second NBA All-Star Game appearance. He scored 29 points and grabbed 9 rebounds, and came in second in MVP voting to winner Kobe Bryant. He had previously announced that he would make the All Star Game in his first season back after his knee recovered.

During the 2007 NBA Playoffs, in a series against the San Antonio Spurs, Stoudemire accused Manu Ginóbili and Bruce Bowen of being "dirty" players. Stoudemire was suspended for Game 5 for leaving the bench area after an altercation between guard Steve Nash and Robert Horry. The Suns lost to the Spurs in six games.

2007–2008

Stoudemire led the Suns in scoring 25.8 and rebounds 9.1 in the 2007–2008 season. He made the 2008 NBA All-Star team and was named to the 2nd team on the All-NBA Team. Stoudemire also adjusted well to playing with Shaquille O'Neal, who the Suns had acquired in February. The Suns however faltered in the playoffs, again losing to their nemesis the San Antonio Spurs. The Suns blew a big lead in game one of the series, and seemed to never recover, losing the series 4–1 to the Spurs. Stoudemire averaged 23 points in the series. After the season, the Suns coach Mike D'Antoni left the team to coach the New York Knicks.

2008–2009

With new coach Terry Porter, the Suns turned more to an emphasis on defense and a more controlled offense. The Suns offensive slowdown affected Stoudemire, whose scoring average dropped about 4 points from the previous season, although he was still the leading the team in scoring and rebounding. The Suns also struggled with Terry Porter's system, and were just 28–23 and had lost their last five games just before the 2009 NBA All-Star game. Stoudemire started for the winning Western Conference in the 2009 NBA All-Star Game.

Looking to cut costs, and perhaps continue to break up the team (the Suns had traded Raja Bell and Boris Diaw in December) Stoudemire was expected to be traded before the NBA trading deadline on February 19, but a deal never materialized. On February 16, the Suns fired Terry Porter, and hired Alvin Gentry, who said he was committed to get the Suns back to their fast paced offense, a style which is best suited for Stoudemire's game.

On February 19, in a game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Stoudemire suffered a detached retina, although he may have injured it earlier as he had been bothered by the same eye even before this game. He had injured the same eye in preseason, although this injury involved a partially torn iris, with no damage to his retina. He said then that he would have to wear protective goggles for the rest of his career, but stopped wearing them after seven games. Stoudemire underwent eye surgery to repair the retina, and that the recovery would take eight weeks, which would force him to miss the remainder of the regular season. He has announced that he will wear protective goggles when he returns to the NBA next season.

Off the court

In November 2008, Stoudemire received the NBA's Community Assist Award, for his work with his Each 1, Teach 1 Foundation, and its efforts to provide safe drinking water in Sierra Leone by funding the building of water wells in impoverished villages. Stoudemire visited the country in Summer 2008, making visits to water well sites and meeting with President Ernest Bai Koroma and the rest of the cabinet.

Awards/honors

• NBA All-Star: 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009
• All-NBA First Team: 2007
• All-NBA Second Team: 2005, 2008
• NBA All-Rookie First Team: 2003
• NBA Rookie of the Year: 2003
• NBA All-Star Rookie Challenge MVP: 2004

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Notes and references

1. ^ McMenamin, Dave (November 20 2008). "Change the name of the game for Stoudemire this season". NBA.com. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
2. Bickley, Dan (October 30 2008). "Bickley on Amaré: Awaking the giant". The Arizona Republic. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
3. "Amare Stoudemire Info Page – Bio". NBA.com. Retrieved 2007-05-15.
4. Amare Stoudemire 2002-2003 stats
5. Amare Stoudemire 2003-2004 stats
6. Stoudemire undergoes microfracture surgery, out for four months, Associated Press, October 18, 2005
7. Amaré back in Valley, Paul Coro, The Arizona Republic, March 30, 2006
8. Amare Rehab Team, East Valley Tribune, October 23, 2005
9. Admiring Amare, SI.com, September 14, 2007
10. Citing injury concern, Stoudemire turns down Team USA, Paul Coro, USAToday.com, June 19, 2008
11. ^ Amare to change jersey number from No. 32 to No. 1. Updated May 26, 2006
12. http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/sports/articles/0527sunsnotes0527.html
13. "Suns Amare Stoudemire calls Bowen, Ginobili 'dirty' players". cbc.ca. 2007-05-10. Retrieved 2007-05-14.
14. "Spurs to try to close out replenished Suns". Yahoo! sports. 2007-05-17. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
15. Stein, Marc (February 22, 2009). "Stoudemire has surgery to repair retina". ESPN.com.
16. Baum, Bob (February 20, 2009). "Eye injury may put Suns' Stoudemire out for season". {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |source= ignored (help)
17. Stoudemire Says He'll Wear Goggles in Future Yahoo Sports, March 22, 2009
18. Nelson, Ryne (November 25, 2008). "Amare Honored With Community Assist". The Slam Wire. Slam Magazine. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

External links

• Video interview with Amare Stoudemire @ fiba.com
• NBA player profile
• Template:Espn nba
• Basketball-Reference.com Current Stats

v t e United States men's basketball squad – 2004 Summer Olympics – Bronze medal
4 Iverson 5 Marbury 6 Wade 7 Boozer 8 Anthony 9 James 10 Okafor 11 Marion 12 Stoudemire 13 Duncan 14 Odom 15 Jefferson Coach: Brown

• Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from April 2008
• 1982 births
• Living people
• United States men's national basketball team members
• African American basketball players
• Basketball players from Florida
• People from Orlando, Florida
• People from Phoenix, Arizona
• Olympic basketball players of the United States
• Olympic bronze medalists for the United States
• Phoenix Suns draft picks
• Phoenix Suns players
• Basketball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics
• National Basketball Association high school draftees
• McDonald's High School All-Americans
• Centers (basketball)
• Power forwards (basketball)