SirValiant Brown facts for kids

SirValiant Martin "Val" Brown (born December 21, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player. He played as a point guard and shooting guard. Val played high school basketball at Robert E. Lee High School in Springfield, Virginia. Later, he joined the George Washington Colonials in the NCAA Division I.

During his first year at college (1999–2000), he was one of the top scorers in the nation. He averaged 24.6 points per game. After this amazing freshman year, Brown was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year. He also received an Honorable Mention All-American award. He left college in 2001 and tried for the NBA draft. However, he was not chosen by any team. He then started his professional career in the NBA Development League. Over his 10-year career, he played in countries like Uruguay, Puerto Rico, Canada, and Germany.

Early Life and High School Basketball

Val Brown was born in Washington, D.C.. His parents were Robbie and Marcella Brown. His father gave him a unique name, SirValiant, inspired by Prince Valiant. Prince Valiant was one of the knights of King Arthur's Round Table. Val's brother was named SirLancelot, after another famous knight.

Playing for Robert E. Lee High School

During his time at Robert E. Lee High School in Springfield, Virginia, Val was known as "Val." Even in his first year, local newspapers like the Fairfax Connection said he was a very important player. By the end of his second year, Val was scoring about 19.9 points per game. The Washington Post named him an Honorable Mention All-Met player. This meant he was one of the best players in the Washington, D.C. area.

For a short time in his junior year, Val moved to Mount Zion Christian Academy in Durham, North Carolina. He left in December 1997 and finished that school year at Notre Dame Academy in Middleburg, Virginia.

Senior Year Success

In the summer of 1998, Val was invited to the ABCD Camp. This camp was for the best high school basketball players in the United States. For his final year, Val returned to Robert E. Lee High School. He had an amazing season, averaging 27 points, 5 assists, and 3 steals per game. The Associated Press chose him as an All-State player. He was also named an Honorable Mention All-Met player for the second time.

College Basketball Career

Freshman Year: A Scoring Star (1999–2000)

Many top colleges, like Kentucky and UCLA, wanted Val to play for them. But he chose George Washington. He wanted to play for coach Tom Penders. Penders' assistant coach had been watching Val play since he was 15.

Val wore jersey number 13 at George Washington. Coach Penders needed a new main scorer after their previous star player left. He gave Val a lot of playing time. Val was 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) and 158 pounds (72 kg). He mostly played as a shooting guard but sometimes also as a point guard.

Breaking Records and Earning Awards

Val's first game was on November 19, 1999, where he scored 19 points. Just two games later, he scored 31 points against Houston. He then had two games where he scored 33 points each. He was named the MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the BB&T Classic tournament. On December 11, 1999, Val set a new scoring record at the Charles E. Smith Center. He scored an amazing 42 points against Siena.

By the end of December, Val was named the Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week four times in a row! News articles about him appeared everywhere. He was the top scorer among all freshmen in the NCAA Division I. Coach Penders even compared him to famous player Allen Iverson. Val continued to have high-scoring games, including 36 points against Duquesne and 35 points against UMass.

At the end of his freshman year, Val was the top freshman scorer in the nation. He was also the second-best scorer overall, averaging 24.6 points per game. He led his team in many areas, like scoring and three-pointers made. He was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year. He also made the All-Atlantic 10 Second Team and the All-Rookie Team. The Associated Press recognized him as an Honorable Mention All-American.

Sophomore Year (2000–01)

Val decided to return to George Washington for his second year. He started the season with 11 points. In his second game, he scored 32 points against Old Dominion. On December 2, he scored 32 points again, this time against St. John's, which was a highly ranked team. He was named BB&T Classic MVP for the second year in a row.

This 32-point game was his highest score that season. On January 6, 2001, Val reached 1,000 career points. He did this in just 44 games! He scored at least 20 points in 12 games that season. He finished his sophomore year with 24 points against Temple on March 9. In his second year, Val played 31 games and averaged 17.3 points per game. He was the second-highest scorer on his team.

In May 2001, Val decided to enter the 2001 NBA draft. This meant he would leave college early. He finished his college career with 1,274 points at George Washington. This was the 19th highest in the school's history at that time. His 738 points in his freshman year set a new single-season record for the team. He also had the second-highest career scoring average for the team, with 20.9 points per game.

College Statistics

Professional Basketball Career

Val Brown decided to leave college early to enter the 2001 NBA draft. At the 2001 NBA Draft Combine, he was measured at 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) without shoes and weighed 176 pounds (80 kg). He had a 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) wingspan. During a pre-draft camp in Chicago, Val started playing as a point guard, even though he was a shooting guard in college. However, no NBA teams chose him in the draft.

After the draft, he joined the Philadelphia 76ers for a summer league in July. The 76ers' coach, Larry Brown, did not give him much playing time. Val was not signed by the 76ers. He then joined the One World All-Stars, a team that played exhibition games against college teams.

Playing in Different Leagues

In September 2002, Val joined the Roanoke Dazzle in the NBA Development League. He played 8 games during the 2002–03 National Basketball Development League season. He averaged 3.5 points and 1.1 rebounds per game.

In September 2003, Val signed with Trouville, a team in Montevideo, Uruguay. He played there until early 2004. In November 2006, he joined the Quad City Riverhawks in the American Basketball Association.

After playing for Gigantes de Carolina in Puerto Rico's top league, Val played for the Butte Daredevils in the Continental Basketball Association during the 2007–08 season. In 12 games with the Daredevils, he averaged 4.8 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 0.8 assists.

In November 2008, Val joined the Canadian team Halifax Rainmen in the Premier Basketball League. He played 7 games, averaging 7.1 points. He left the team in January 2009. He then returned to Puerto Rico to play for Leones de Ponce, where he played 2 games. Val spent his last professional season (2010–11) playing for MTV Wolfenbüttel in Germany.