Bubba Wells facts for kids

Charles Richard "Bubba" Wells Jr. (born July 26, 1974) is an American basketball coach and former player. He was known for his impressive college career at Austin Peay State University. Later, he played professionally for teams like the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA and Dafni in the Greek Basket League.

Bubba Wells' College Basketball Days

Bubba Wells played college hoops for Austin Peay State University. He was a fantastic player and was even named the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year in 1997. In his junior year, he scored an amazing 26.3 points per game. He did even better in his senior year, averaging 31.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

Over his four years in college, Wells averaged 21.6 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. He left Austin Peay as the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,267 points. He is also a member of their Athletics Hall of Fame. His jersey number, 13, was retired by the school, which is a big honor!

Bubba Wells' Professional Basketball Career

Bubba Wells was picked by the Dallas Mavericks as the 34th player in the 1997 NBA draft. He played in 39 games during the 1997–98 season. He even started two games in March 1998 when another player, Cedric Ceballos, was injured. His best game was on February 19, 1998. In that game, he scored 21 points, grabbed nine rebounds, and made seven assists against the San Antonio Spurs.

A Quick Foul-Out Record

On December 29, 1997, in a game against the Chicago Bulls, Bubba Wells set a unique NBA record. He fouled out of the game faster than anyone else in a regular season game! The Mavericks' coach, Don Nelson, had a plan. He put Wells into the game just to foul Dennis Rodman, a player who wasn't very good at free throws. The idea was to send Rodman to the free-throw line instead of letting him score easily.

However, the plan didn't work out. Rodman still made 9 out of 12 free throws, and the Bulls won the game. Wells got his sixth and final foul late in the third quarter. He had only played for 2 minutes and 43 seconds! This strategy of intentionally fouling a player who is bad at free throws is sometimes called "Hack-a-Shaq". It was later famously used against Shaquille O'Neal.

Playing for Other Teams

After his time with the Mavericks, Bubba Wells was traded to the Phoenix Suns in 1998. Later, he was traded again to the Chicago Bulls in 1999. However, he never played in a game for either the Suns or the Bulls.

He continued his professional career with several other teams. He played for the La Crosse Bobcats in the CBA. He also played for the Memphis Houn'Dawgs in the ABA. Bubba Wells even played internationally for Dafni in the Greek Basket League and the Barangay Ginebra Kings in the Philippine Basketball Association. In 2004 and 2005, he played for the famous Harlem Globetrotters!

Bubba Wells' Coaching Career

After his playing days, Bubba Wells became a basketball coach. From June 2005 to May 2015, he was an assistant men's basketball coach at his old college, Austin Peay State University.

Then, on May 28, 2015, he joined the coaching staff at SIU Edwardsville. He worked there as an assistant coach until 2022.

Bubba Wells' Family Life

In August 2007, Bubba Wells married Tracee Jones. Tracee was the head women's basketball coach at Tennessee State University. Bubba has a daughter named Alyiah and a son named Chase.

See also

In Spanish: Bubba Wells para niños