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Breakdown

Chris Webber is/was:

Chris Webber, a rare blend of strength, speed, size and skill, spent two heralded seasons at the University of Michigan that signaled a great future in the NBA. He won Rookie of the Year honors and averaged over 20 ppg in his second pro season, then bounced back from an injury-marred 1995-96 campaign to earn All-Star status in 1996-97 and lead the Washington Bullets to a playoff berth. Following one more season with Washington, now nicknamed the Wizards, in which he led the team in scoring, rebounding and blocks, Webber was traded to Sacramento and led the NBA in 1998-99 in rebounding at a career-high 13.0 rebounds per game. He also topped the Kings in scoring, shotblocking and minutes per game. A power forward with soft hands and finesse, he was rated the best player of the Fab Five, the 1991 Michigan recruiting class that also included Juwan Howard, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson. The five constituted a starting freshman unit that lost to Duke in the 1992 NCAA title game. As sophomores the five again advanced to the NCAA Championship Game, where Michigan had a chance to defeat North Carolina until Webber called an illegal timeout in the final seconds. Webber finished his two college seasons with career averages of 17.4 points and 10.0 rebounds per game as well as a .589 field goal percentage. His collegiate honors were numerous, including a selection to the All-America First Team. Webber entered the 1993 NBA Draft after his sophomore season and has remained a focus of attention. The first sophomore since Magic Johnson in 1979 to be selected as the No. 1 overall pick, he was taken by the Orlando Magic but traded on draft day to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for guard Anfernee Hardaway and three future first-round draft picks. As a 21-year-old forward with the Warriors, Webber became the league's youngest player to win Rookie of the Year honors. He averaged 17.5 points and 9.1 rebounds while shooting .552 from the field in 1993-94. Despite these achievements, Webber and Warriors Coach Don Nelson did not get along, and the situation became irreconcilable by the start of the 1994-95 season. To solve the problem, Golden State shipped Webber to the Washington Bullets in early November for Tom Gugliotta and three first-round draft picks. After the dust from that deal had settled, Webber was off the NBA center stage for much of 1994-95 as the Bullets suffered through a poor season. He dislocated his shoulder on December 23 and missed more than a month. When he returned, he became the Bullets' leader and posted three triple-doubles in March and April. For the season, he topped the team in both scoring (20.1 ppg) and rebounding (9.6 rpg). A dislocated shoulder that he later aggravated cost Webber all but 15 games of the 1995-96 campaign, his third in the NBA, though he averaged a career-high 23.7 ppg in the games he did play. Webber bounced back with an All-Star season in 1996-97, leading the Bullets with 20.1 points, 10.3 rebounds and 1.90 blocks per game and shooting .518 from the field. He ranked sixth in the NBA in rebounding, 14th in shotblocking, 16th in field goal percentage and 21st in scoring. In 1997-98 Webber led Washington with 21.9 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.75 blocks per game. On May 14, 1998 Webber was dealt to Sacramento for Mitch Richmond and Otis Thorpe. He had an outstanding season with the Kings, leading the league with 13.0 rebounds per game, a career-high. He also topped the team with 20.0 points, 2.12 blocks and 40.9 minutes per game.