Sports-- A Penny Earned

If you claim to be a true basketball fan, then you are sure to remember the time when Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway was running the game. Before King James, and Post Magic Johnson, Penny was that 6" 7" combo guard that had that pick- your- poison type of game. Hardaway rarely disappointed as he stuffed the stat sheet night-in and night-out. The Memphis native, and University of Memphis legend, Hardaway captured the attention of the basketball world with his seemingly uncanny ability to do it all.

Rocking the classic Orlando colors, Penny made #1 the object of every young ballers affection. Whether it was an in- and- out spin dribble no- look dime, pulling up for 3 in transition, or getting his steps together to dunk on you, simply put Penny was "like that"

Off the court, Hardaway was equally as good. Scoring multiple endorsements, most namely his seven digit deal with Nike. With the exception of the Almighty Air Jordan's; His "Air Penny" line was at the top of every kids Christmas and birthday lists. Not stopping there, Penny-mania spilled over to the silver screen.

In the film Blue Chips, Penny played highly coveted recruit Butch McCrae. In the film Penny teamed up with real life teammate Shaquille O'Neal. Hardaway also had a series of Nike Commercials featuring himself and "Lil Penny", a doll with Chris Rock as the voice ( I had a lil penny doll by the way, lololol).

So why are we not talking about Penny Hardaway you ask? Despite his rise to greatness, from 1999-2008 Penny's career was plagued by injuries. Bouncing around from team to team Hardaway's excellence had all but been forgotten, as year after year his season were cut short by a plethora of different injuries. Though his efforts were admirable, and he still managed to put up decent numbers, his career never lived up to it's initial promise.

Yet and still Penny Hardaway is and always will be one of my favorite players. Ya Dig