DaGSUMan
Real GSU Man
?Kind of a blow-out?
http://www.nuvo.net/archive/2006/04/05/ten_under_10.html
Tom Splendor, 9
Greenwood
We?ve been focusing on kids whose brainpower has led them to positions of leadership, but we don?t want to neglect the body! It?s important, too! So, picking Tom Splendor was a no-brainer, so to speak, because at the tender age of 9, he is already being recruited by college basketball scouts.
Tom Splendor, whose prowess at the round-ball was recognized early on, is the product of two super-athlete parents. His mom, Roni, played basketball for Duke and was headed for the pros before a knee injury ruined her career. Tom?s dad, Mick, played professional tennis, once battling Bjorn Borg to the fifth set.
?Pretty quickly,? recalls mom Roni, ?we saw that basketball was going to be his main game.?
?Pretty quickly YOU saw that,? counters Mick, smiling.
Already almost 6 feet tall, Tom Splendor plays hoops for his elementary school, once scoring 212 points for his team who eventually won the game, 216-8.
?It was kind of a blow-out,? Tom admits shyly, adding that he ?sat out the last five minutes. I probably could have hit 300.?
That was the game that put him on the national map for future NBA players; each subsequent game has been attended by numerous scouts.
?Once, Isaiah Thomas came and watched me,? Tom says, clearly humbled. ?And Larry Bird has seen me twice.?
Tom?s regimen starts early from basketball practice before school, to more practice after. In the evening, he receives private tutoring from coaches and even former NBA players.
?We don?t want to namedrop,? Roni says, ?but Dennis Rodman was here in the summer for two months.?
?Only because he had nowhere else to go,? counters Mick, smiling.
?I?m not turning pro right out of high school,? Tom maintains. ?I want to get a good college education.?
?Sure you do, honey,? Roni says, smiling.
http://www.nuvo.net/archive/2006/04/05/ten_under_10.html
Tom Splendor, 9
Greenwood
We?ve been focusing on kids whose brainpower has led them to positions of leadership, but we don?t want to neglect the body! It?s important, too! So, picking Tom Splendor was a no-brainer, so to speak, because at the tender age of 9, he is already being recruited by college basketball scouts.
Tom Splendor, whose prowess at the round-ball was recognized early on, is the product of two super-athlete parents. His mom, Roni, played basketball for Duke and was headed for the pros before a knee injury ruined her career. Tom?s dad, Mick, played professional tennis, once battling Bjorn Borg to the fifth set.
?Pretty quickly,? recalls mom Roni, ?we saw that basketball was going to be his main game.?
?Pretty quickly YOU saw that,? counters Mick, smiling.
Already almost 6 feet tall, Tom Splendor plays hoops for his elementary school, once scoring 212 points for his team who eventually won the game, 216-8.
?It was kind of a blow-out,? Tom admits shyly, adding that he ?sat out the last five minutes. I probably could have hit 300.?
That was the game that put him on the national map for future NBA players; each subsequent game has been attended by numerous scouts.
?Once, Isaiah Thomas came and watched me,? Tom says, clearly humbled. ?And Larry Bird has seen me twice.?
Tom?s regimen starts early from basketball practice before school, to more practice after. In the evening, he receives private tutoring from coaches and even former NBA players.
?We don?t want to namedrop,? Roni says, ?but Dennis Rodman was here in the summer for two months.?
?Only because he had nowhere else to go,? counters Mick, smiling.
?I?m not turning pro right out of high school,? Tom maintains. ?I want to get a good college education.?
?Sure you do, honey,? Roni says, smiling.
him through his athletic endeavors.