5x NBA All-Star Chris Webber is widely recognized as one of the NBA's All-Time great players. Through 15 years in the league, he established himself as an extraordinary player, averaging 20.7 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 4.2 assists on 47.9% shooting.
And while Webber is largely known for his tenure in Sacramento, he recently reflected on his time in Golden State, where he played for one season before being to D.C. in 1994.
Naturally, he had only positive things to say:
I loved my time in Golden State. I think the league was changing again. It was a difference at that time from old-school coaching and what you see now. I was part of that transition as well. It was fun to play point forward, but at that time, the league didn’t understand Nelly. They didn’t understand me. Even though I won Rookie of the Year, we were criticized for it. It’s just funny now looking back, and I was a part of change. I have to look back at it. The backlash we got for trying to be that change. We were among the top in the pace in play and playing with Mully (Chris Mullin) … I remember just following Mully, doing everything that he did. I love Golden State, the Bay, and winning Rookie of the Year was awesome. From 18 months at Michigan, from the period of calling the timeout, which was the worst period.
It was April, and within almost 50 days, you have to deal with the mistake you made, forget yourself, then prepare for the next level. I was happy with the focus that I had, I didn’t get caught up. I didn’t use anything as an excuse not to succeed that next year. So it goes straight to for me was a success. It was an honor. I didn’t want to leave Golden State, but my contract had an out after the first year. That was great for me financially. But it’s not necessarily what Nelly appreciated. (Webber signed a 15-year, $74 million deal as a rookie but had a player option on his contract for the second season, which he exercised to become a free agent.) I got to go play in Washington and that was awesome because of Juwan, Tim Legler, Rod Strickland, Tracy Murray, Chris Whitney and all those guys. D.C. was a great place to live.
Webber played during a very interesting time in the NBA.
His career overlapped with a major transition for the league when perimeter shooting and a faster pace were becoming a much more common practice in basketball.
And while Webber got to chase the bag early on, he was able to mark his place in NBA history as one of the sport's greatest power forwards.
Part of his success can be attributed to his short stint in Golden State, where he developed his game and grew as a man.
He retired back in 2008 but has continued to share his experience and knowledge of the game with the world ever since.
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