Bernard Hopkins (basketball) facts for kids

Bernard Anthony Hopkins White (born January 13, 1973) is a retired professional basketball player from America and Spain. He was a powerful power forward, standing 6 feet 6 inches tall. Bernard played college basketball at Hagerstown Community College for two years. Then, he moved to Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) for his last two years. In his final year, 1995–96, Hopkins was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the 1996 CAA men's basketball tournament. He was also chosen as the Colonial Athletic Association Men's Basketball Player of the Year.

Bernard Hopkins' College Basketball Journey

Bernard Hopkins grew up in Baltimore, Maryland. He was a fantastic basketball player in high school and finished in 1992. He started his college basketball journey at a community college in Hagerstown. This was about an hour away from his hometown.

Becoming a Star at VCU

After two years, Bernard transferred to Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). He joined the Rams team. In just two years, he became one of the most celebrated players in the school's history.

During his third year of college, Bernard was an amazing shooter. He made 58.5% of his shots from the field. This was one of the best shooting percentages in the entire country!

Senior Year Success

His final year was even better. Bernard scored 538 points and grabbed 333 rebounds. This was the third-highest number of rebounds ever at VCU. He also had 19 "double-doubles." A double-double is when a player gets 10 or more in two different stats, like points and rebounds, in one game.

Bernard led the Rams to win both their conference's regular season and tournament championships. In the first round of the 1996 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, the Rams played against Mississippi State. Even though they lost by seven points, Bernard was named the CBS Chevrolet Player of the Game.

As a senior, he was the first player in his conference to achieve some amazing stats in one season:

• Score over 500 points
• Grab over 300 rebounds
• Make over 70 assists
• Shoot better than 50% from the field

He was named the MVP of the conference tournament and the Player of the Year. Overall, Bernard scored 950 points during his college career.

Bernard Hopkins' Professional Basketball Career

After college, Bernard was invited to the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament. This special event is for the best college seniors. It's a chance to show off their skills to National Basketball Association (NBA) scouts. Players hope to get picked in the NBA draft.

Bernard was named the MVP of this tournament. However, he was not drafted by an NBA team that year.

Starting in the CBA

Instead, the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) team, the Yakima Sun Kings, chose him. They picked him third overall in their draft. Bernard played for the Sun Kings for one season. He was named the Rookie of the Year for the entire league. He was also selected for both the all-rookie team and the all-league team.

Playing in Spain

From 1998–99 onwards, Bernard played for many different teams, all in Spain. He loved Spain so much that he became a citizen of that country!

Some of his biggest achievements in Spain include:

• Being named a Liga ACB All-Star in 1999 and 2001.
• Winning Player of the Month five times.
• Winning Player of the Week 24 times!

On November 6, 2012, his last team in Spain, Blu:sens Monbús, made a special announcement. They decided to retire his number 4 jersey at the end of the 2012–13 season. This means no other player on that team will ever wear the number 4 again, honoring Bernard's great career.

Personal Life

Bernard Hopkins became a naturalized citizen of Spain while he was playing basketball there. This means he went through a process to become a legal citizen of Spain, in addition to being an American citizen.

See also

In Spanish: Bernard Hopkins (baloncestista) para niños