Getting to the NBA is a dream for many.
After all, you’re internationally recognized, you earn a good amount of money, and you have
your life set, right?
Well, with the game of basketball comes a lot of travelling, stressful situations and
hard moments.
Some people handle it better than others, but some get into trouble.
It’s no secret that athletes are arrested frequently, whether they are minor scuffles
or serious crimes.
The NBA players are no different.
They get arrested too.
Hey everyone, hope you are doing well.
I’m PRPLPRNCH and today I want to talk about the ULTIMATE NBA CRIMINAL - Derrick Coleman.
Why Ultimate?
Well, because Derrick Coleman has been arrested 7 times which is a record for NBA players.
From active NBA players - JR Smith and Ty Lawson each have 4 arrests on their resume,
but it seems that JR has cleaned his life up and I don’t know what’s happening with
Ty Lawson.
So how come that a very solid player, who spent 15 seasons in the NBA, has a career
averages of 16.5 points and more than 9 rebounds, is a former rookie of the year and 1-time
All-Star finds himself as the Ultimate NBA criminal?
Entering NBA Coleman was compared to other legends like Karl Malone and Charles Barkley
and was expected to have similar production.
He had the stature.
At 6`10 and 230 pounds he was an imposing figure on the court, but his career was full
of what ifs and injuries, so maybe he just didn’t have the IT factor when it came to
the game of basketball and life.
The arrests started in 1994.
Member of the New Jersey Nets back then, Derrick Coleman was arrested on May 23, 1994 and charged
with assault.
Coleman allegedly punched a teen inside a crowded bar.
The case turned out to be nothing, as 3 months later The Manhattan District Attorney’s
office dropped assault charges because of the lack of evidence against Coleman.
Still, that was the first black mark on Colemans resume.
Barely a year went by and Coleman was arrested yet again.
On June 24, 1995 Coleman was arrested for “Disorderly Conduct”.
The arrest was a result of a dispute Coleman had with the police when they asked him to
move his pickup truck from in front of a nightclub.
Coleman was taken to police headquarters, issued citations and was released 2 hours
laters.
Later the deputy police chief said that this situation was a “misunderstanding”.
If his first two arrests were misunderstandings or unfortunate circumstances, then his third
arrest definitely was his fault.
On April 14, 1999 Derrick Coleman was arrested at Detroit Nightclub.
He was charged with “Interfering with a police officer”.
The situation escalated when police arrested Coleman’s friend for disorderly conduct
. Coleman refused to leave the scene and continuingly interfered with police until he got arrested
too.
Coleman was later released on a $100 bond.
His meetings with law continued, because just mere 4 months later Coleman was arrested for
disorderly conduct himself.
On August 9,1999 he allegedly urinated in the dining room of a popular downtown restaurant
in Detroit.
He ultimately wasn’t taken to jail and he said that the whole situation was a “Big
Misunderstanding”.
Again.
Coleman’s attorney, Harold MacDonald told that “the accusations are totally wrong.
In reality, Coleman spilled a drink on his pants and stood to wipe it off.
Employee of the restaurant saw the situation and thought that Coleman was relieving himself
and notified the manager who called the police.”
It all ended, but once again, Coleman caught himself in a situation with the Police for
the fourth time in 5 years.
Coleman couldn’t keep himself long from all the troubles and it turned out that
1999 was a big year for Coleman.
On October 27 he was arrested for the third time in a span of 6 months.
Coleman was driving under the influence when his car collided with a tractor-trailer.
In the process his fellow teammate - Charlotte Hornets guard Eldridge Recasner and Ebony
Kimbrough were injured.
Ebony Kimbrough suffered some facial cuts while Eldridge Recasner had a partially collapsed
lung and a badly bruised chest.
Sadly, that was pretty much the end of Recasners career.
He did spend 2 more seasons in the league, but never returned to the form before the
accident.
Coleman on the other hand, after the accident was taken to a Medical center where he was
treated and later released.
Coleman refused to SubMit to a breath examination and got his drivers license suspended for
one year.
A year didn’t pass and Coleman was in contact with the Police once again.
On October 21, 2000, Coleman was pulled over a traffic violation.
He presented a valid Michigan drivers license to police, but after letting him go, police
realized that he is not permitted to drive in North Carolina.
He was arrested the following day.
Coleman’s last encounter with the Police occured in 2002.
35 years old at the time, Derrick Coleman was pulled over for driving 100mph.
Officers smelled some alcohol, but Coleman once again refused to take a breath test for
alcohol.
Coleman was ultimately suspended by the NBA for the first game of the 2002-2003 regular
season.
So what is Derrick Coleman doing now?
As recently as 2017 he was helping people.
During the ongoing water crisis, Derrick Coleman was delivering fresh water to Michigan residents.
So that’s Derrick Coleman guys.
In a lot of NBA scouts eyes, one of the greatest talents ever.
He averaged at least 20 points and 10 rebounds for three seasons.
He was a member of Dream Team 2 along with Shaquille O neal, Alonzo Mourning, Reggie
Miller and DOminique Wilkins, but it seems he still did so little.
What do you think guys?
Was he that careless or he was just misunderstood?
Maybe he was just unlucky to be caught in all of those situations?
What do you think of Derrick Coleman?
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This was PRPLPRNCH, and I’m out!