Juan Dixon
From Free net encyclopedia
Juan Dixon (born October 9 1978 in Baltimore, Maryland) is a professional basketball player currently with the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers.
Dixon lived a tragic childhood as both his mother and father were addicted to heroin and died before he reached the age of 18. Dixon used basketball as an escape and with his unwavering work ethic, succeeded.
College
He played high school basketball at Calvert Hall in Baltimore, Maryland and scored 1,590 career points. He attended the University of Maryland, College Park and became Maryland’s all-time scoring leader when he scored 29 points against Wisconsin to help Maryland advance to the Sweet Sixteen, passing Len Bias (2,149 points). He also became the only player in NCAA history to accumulate 2,000 points, 300 steals and 200 three-point field goals. He led the Maryland Terrapins to their first NCAA Men's Basketball Championship in his senior year in 2002. Playing under coach Gary Williams, the 6' 3", 164 lb Dixon was able to overcome adversity because of his small frame and became recognized as one of the nation's best college players. After his senior season he was featured on the cover of a video game NCAA Final Four.
NBA
He was drafted 17th overall by the Wizards in the 2002 NBA Draft. Dixon spent the first three years of his NBA career with the Washington Wizards. Due to his local fame as a player at Maryland, they were nights at the MCI Center when he would arguably receive more cheers from the crowd than teammate Michael Jordan. In his final season in Washington (2004-2005) he averaged eight points per game including a career high 35 points in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Chicago Bulls. Dixon signed as a free agent with the Portland Trail Blazers during the summer of 2005. In his first game back in D.C., Dixon was given a standing ovation from the MCI Center crowd upon coming off the bench towards the end of the first quarter. A notable feat considering Wizards fans are known to boo most ex-Wizards upon returning.