Kenny Anderson (basketball) facts for kids

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Kenny Anderson

Anderson in 2017

Fisk Bulldogs

Head coach

Personal information

Born

October 9, 1970 (age 54)
Queens, New York, U.S.

High school

Archbishop Molloy
(New York City, New York)

Listed height

6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)

Listed weight

168 lb (76 kg)

Career information

College

Georgia Tech (1989–1991)

NBA Draft

1991 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall

Selected by the New Jersey Nets

Pro career

1991–2006

Coaching career

2007–2008, 2018–present

League

Gulf Coast Athletic Conference

Career history

As player:

1991–1996

New Jersey Nets

1996

Charlotte Hornets

1996–1998

Portland Trail Blazers

1998–2002

2002–2003

2003

2003–2004

2004–2005

2005

2005–2006

Žalgiris Kaunas

As coach:

2007–2008

Atlanta Krunk

2018–present

Fisk

Career highlights and awards

NBA All-Star (1994)
Consensus first-team All-American (1991)
Second-team All-American – NABC (1990)
Third-team All-American – AP (1990)
2× First-team All-ACC (1990, 1991)
ACC Rookie of the Year (1990)
Mr. Basketball USA (1989)
Gatorade National Player of the Year (1989)
McDonald's All-American (1989)
2× First-team Parade All-American (1988, 1989)
Second-team Parade All-American (1987)

Career NBA statistics

Points

10,789 (12.6 ppg)

Rebounds

2,641 (3.1 rpg)

Assists

5,196 (6.1 apg)

Medals

Men's basketball

Representing the United States
FIBA World Championship
Bronze	1990 Buenos Aires	National team
Goodwill Games
Silver	1990 Seattle	National team

Kenneth "Kenny" Anderson (born October 9, 1970) is a former American professional basketball player. He played as a point guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for many years. Before joining the NBA, he was a star player at Georgia Tech.

Early Life and High School Success

Kenny Anderson was born in Queens, New York City. Even as a young teenager, he was known as one of the best basketball players in the country. Recruiters from colleges started watching him when he was only in sixth grade. By age 14, he was already featured on the front page of New York City sports newspapers.

Anderson attended Archbishop Molloy High School, a school known for both academics and sports. During his time there, he achieved an amazing feat: he was named a Parade All-American four times. Only Lew Alcindor had done that before him! He also became the first player to be named All-City four times.

He was honored as a McDonald's All-American and received many "Player of the Year" awards. Despite his coach sometimes benching him, Anderson set a state record for scoring in New York with 2,621 points. This record stood for many years. At the end of high school, he was considered the top player in the entire country.

College Career at Georgia Tech

After a lot of interest from different colleges, Kenny Anderson chose to play for Georgia Tech in November 1988. He picked Georgia Tech over other big schools like North Carolina and Duke.

Anderson played for Georgia Tech for two years as the team's starting point guard. In 1990, he helped lead his team to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. He played alongside Dennis Scott and Brian Oliver, and they were nicknamed "Lethal Weapon 3." Even though they won the ACC title, they were only the fourth seed in the NCAA tournament. They surprised many by beating strong teams, including Shaquille O'Neal's LSU Tigers, before losing to UNLV in the Final Four.

After Scott and Oliver left, Anderson's scoring increased, averaging almost 26 points per game. In 1991, Georgia Tech lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Soon after, Anderson decided to leave college early to join the NBA draft.

College Statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1989–90	Georgia Tech	35	35	37.7	.515	.410	.733	5.5	8.1	2.3	0.1	20.6
1990–91	Georgia Tech	30	29	38.9	.437	.351	.829	5.7	5.6	3.0	0.1	25.9
Career		65	64	38.3	.473	.374	.787	5.6	7.0	2.6	0.1	23.0

Professional Basketball Career

Kenny Anderson was picked second overall in the 1991 NBA draft by the New Jersey Nets. He was the youngest player in the league during his first year.

New Jersey Nets (1992–1996)

Kenny-Anderson-poses-with-fan-circa-Mar-Apr-1993

Kenny Anderson with a fan in 1993, while recovering from an injury.

In his second season, Anderson's performance greatly improved, helping the Nets reach the 1993 NBA playoffs. He was part of a promising trio with Derrick Coleman and Dražen Petrović. Sadly, Petrović passed away in 1993, which changed the team's future.

In his third season (1993-94), Anderson had his best year, averaging 18.8 points and 9.6 assists per game. He scored a career-high 42 points in one game and also had 14 assists. That same season, he was chosen to play in the 1994 NBA All-Star Game alongside his teammate Derrick Coleman.

Charlotte Hornets (1996)

In 1996, Anderson was traded to the Charlotte Hornets. He played 38 games for them that season, averaging 15.2 points.

Portland Trail Blazers (1997–1998)

Later in 1996, Anderson signed with the Portland Trail Blazers. In the 1997 NBA playoffs, he averaged 17 points per game, but the Trail Blazers lost in the first round.

Boston Celtics (1998–2002)

In 1998, Anderson was part of a trade that sent him to the Toronto Raptors. However, he was quickly traded again, just five days later, to the Boston Celtics. He played for the Celtics for several seasons.

Seattle SuperSonics (2003)

In 2003, Anderson was traded from the Celtics to the Seattle SuperSonics.

New Orleans Hornets (2003)

Later in 2003, Anderson was traded back to the Hornets, who had moved to New Orleans and were now called the New Orleans Hornets.

Indiana Pacers (2004)

On September 19, 2003, Anderson signed with the Indiana Pacers. He played 44 games for the Pacers, averaging six points per game.

Atlanta Hawks (2005)

In September 2004, Anderson signed with the Atlanta Hawks. He was released by the Hawks in February 2005.

Los Angeles Clippers (2005)

Shortly after, in February 2005, Anderson was picked up by the Los Angeles Clippers. He was released by the Clippers in March 2005.

End of Professional Career

Kenny Anderson's professional basketball career ended after the 2005–06 season when he was released from Lithuania's Žalgiris Kaunas team.

Playing for the National Team

Anderson played for the U.S. national team in the 1990 FIBA World Championship. His team won the bronze medal. He played a key role, scoring 34 points in a comeback win against Puerto Rico. Because of his excellent performance, he was named to the All-Tournament Team. He also won a silver medal with the national team at the 1990 Goodwill Games.

Life After the NBA

After his playing career, Kenny Anderson became a basketball coach.

Coaching Career

In 2007, he coached the Continental Basketball Association team, the Atlanta Krunk.
In 2008, he became the head coach for the slamball team Hombres.
In August 2011, Anderson took a coaching job at the David Posnack Jewish Day School in Florida.
In 2018, he was hired as the head basketball coach for Fisk University.

Other Activities

In 2008, he appeared on the TV show Pros vs Joes.
In September 2008, he was honored by being inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame.
In 2010, Anderson graduated from St. Thomas University with a degree in organizational leadership.
In 2014, he was part of a basketball team assembled by Dennis Rodman that played an exhibition game in North Korea.
In 2015, Anderson appeared in Dwayne Johnson's reality TV show Wake Up Call.
In 2017, he was featured in a documentary called Mr. Chibbs, which looked at his life after basketball.

NBA Career Statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Regular Season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1991–92	New Jersey	64	13	17.0	.390	.231	.745	2.0	3.2	1.0	0.1	7.0
1992–93	New Jersey	55	55	36.5	.435	.280	.776	4.1	8.2	1.7	0.2	16.9
1993–94	New Jersey	82*	82*	38.2	.417	.303	.818	3.9	9.6	1.9	0.2	18.8
1994–95	New Jersey	72	70	37.3	.399	.330	.841	3.5	9.4	1.4	0.2	17.6
1995–96	New Jersey	31	28	33.6	.376	.364	.803	3.3	8.0	1.7	0.3	15.3
1995–96	Charlotte	38	36	34.3	.454	.357	.727	2.7	8.6	1.6	0.2	15.2
1996–97	Portland	82	81	37.6	.427	.361	.768	4.4	7.1	2.0	0.2	17.5
1997–98	Portland	45	40	32.7	.387	.353	.772	3.0	5.4	1.4	0.0	12.6
1997–98	Boston	16	16	24.1	.435	.370	.837	2.4	6.3	1.6	0.0	11.2
1998–99	Boston	34	33	29.7	.451	.250	.832	3.0	5.7	1.0	0.1	12.1
1999–00	Boston	82	82*	31.6	.440	.386	.775	2.7	5.1	1.7	0.1	14.0
2000–01	Boston	33	28	25.7	.388	.333	.831	2.2	4.1	1.3	0.1	7.5
2001–02	Boston	76	76	32.0	.436	.273	.742	3.6	5.3	1.9	0.1	9.6
2002–03	Seattle	38	1	18.1	.440	.000	.829	2.3	3.2	1.1	0.0	6.1
2002–03	New Orleans	23	1	19.4	.407	.500	.727	2.0	3.3	0.8	0.2	6.0
2003–04	Indiana	44	31	20.6	.441	.250	.729	1.8	2.8	0.6	0.1	6.0
2004–05	Atlanta	39	20	18.4	.426	.462	.730	2.1	2.5	0.8	0.0	5.0
2004–05	L.A. Clippers	4	0	6.5	.364	–	–	1.3	1.3	0.0	0.0	2.0
Career		858	693	30.1	.421	.346	.790	3.1	6.1	1.5	0.1	12.6
All-Star		1	1	16.0	.300	.000	–	4.0	3.0	0.0	0.0	6.0

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1992	New Jersey	3	0	8.0	.333	–	1.000	1.0	1.0	0.3	0.0	2.7
1994	New Jersey	4	4	45.3	.352	.300	.667	3.0	6.8	2.3	0.0	15.8
1997	Portland	4	4	42.3	.478	.263	.950	4.3	4.8	1.8	0.3	17.0
2002	Boston	16	16	35.0	.416	–	.800	3.1	4.8	1.3	0.0	12.0
2003	New Orleans	5	0	10.2	.333	–	1.000	0.4	1.8	0.6	0.0	2.2
2004	Indiana	4	0	4.8	.286	–	–	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.0	1.0
Career		36	24	27.9	.406	.276	.796	2.4	3.8	1.2	0.0	9.6

Images for kids

Anderson in 2017
Anderson poses with a fan while recovering from a broken wrist, circa March/April 1993