Anderson was a key member of Kentucky’s NCAA championship team of 1996. After being chosen in the first round of the NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the 13th overall pick in 1997, he went on to an 11-year career in the NBA, and played on a championship team with the Miami Heat in 2006. But before all that, he was frequently homeless as a teenager in Louisville. Violent crime and broken family relationships were part of his environment. Still, he managed to stay away from those influences, and continued his rise to basketball stardom. He is now helping young people through his charitable foundation. In this interview, he talks about the challenges he faced as he was growing up, as well as his memories of the ’96 Wildcats, the NBA coaches he played for (Pat Riley and Gregg Popovich among them) and what this year’s NBA draftees can expect as they move into the professional ranks.
Wildcat great Derek Anderson on basketball and life lessons
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