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Sweetney in the summer league
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Michael Sweetney shoots for the pros
The Orlando NBA Summer League is usually reserved for rookies, second year guys who warmed the bench during their first seasons, and borderline NBA guys who are hoping to catch on with observing ball clubs. And then there’s Michael Sweetney.
Sweetney, an honorable mention All-American for Georgetown in 2003, spent his final season racking up impressive career totals. To this day, Sweetney’s career totals in scoring and rebounding rank in the top 10 in Hoya history, while his 18.2 career scoring average ranks him ahead of every Hoya who’s ever played, save for Allen Iverson.
After enjoying a storied collegiate career, why is Michael Sweetney toiling in the summer league? The answer, pure and simple, is girth. Drafted #9 overall by the New York Knicks in 2003, Sweetney enjoyed the life of an NBA athlete a little too much. Between 2003 and 2008, his weight ballooned from a portly 260 lbs. to whatever number his bathroom scale decided to break on. His final NBA measurements had him at 275 lbs., but anyone who watched Sweetney pant his way up and down the court in 2006-2007 (his last NBA season) can tell you that he looked much more than 15 lbs. above his collegiate weight.
In the past, Sweetney’s appreciation of culinary techniques wouldn’t have been as much of a deal breaker. Players such as Oliver Miller, Stanley Roberts, and John “Hot Plate” Williams all had respectable careers while carrying a spare tire around their waists. But as the league is getting quicker, portly paint patrollers are falling by the wayside.
Robert “Tractor” Traylor and Sean May both had solid collegiate careers, but neither one was able to translate their undergraduate success into palatable careers. So in order to make it back to the pros, Sweetney has to take every step in order to slim down.
"Last year I was nowhere," Sweetney admitted. "I was down in Miami training at FIU with a guy named Mick Smith. He was the old strength coach with the Orlando Magic, so I was down here training with him trying to get my body right."
This year, Sweetney still looks pretty round and out of shape. Jogging up and down the court, he looked a bit lighter, but pulled his hamstring, and is now bench-ridden. This is a blow to his goal of returning to the NBA, but the Boston Celtics (the team who invited Sweetney to the summer league) could use his scoring, as long as he continues to improve his shape. The Celtics may have just signed UNC-alum Rasheed Wallace, but they lost Leon Powe’s scoring prowess to a knee injury, and are unlikely to resign him. If that’s the case, Michael Sweetney has a seat on the bus; he just needs to squeeze into it.
For more info: Michael Sweetney collegiate stats.
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