Rodney Rogers
Encyclopedia
Rodney Ray Rogers (born June 20, 1971, in Durham, North Carolina
) is a retired American basketball
player who last played power forward
for the NBA
's Philadelphia 76ers
.
when Rogers was a toddler, died when Rogers was eight.
Estella Rogers sustained severe head injuries and required two operations when she was nearly killed in an automobile wreck in 1988. She was in a coma for more than two weeks and remained hospitalized for three more months. Even after she returned home she still had memory loss and needed extra care. While his mother recovered, Rogers moved in with Nathaniel Brooks, who was once his youth league coach, spending his last two seasons at Hillside High School with the Brooks family.
His stepfather James Spencer, who was the only man Rogers called "Dad", died of lung cancer in February 1990. Renita, the oldest of the Rogers children, became a nurse at N.C. Memorial Hospital in Chapel Hill
. His oldest brother Stacy, who attended the Eastern N.C. School for the Deaf in Wilson
and the N.C. School for the Deaf in Morganton
, won a gold medal in basketball at the 1981 XIV Deaflympics
(aka "World Games for the Deaf" and "World Deaf Olympics") in Cologne, Germany. After that he worked for the Veterans Administration
Hospital in Durham. Stanley, his other brother, served over 10 years (1981–1991) of a 20-year sentence for armed robbery at Central Prison in Raleigh
.
All-State selection, and was named the 1990 North Carolina state Player of the Year. As a junior he averaged 22.5 points and 9.7 rebounds, and in his senior year he averaged 28.3 points and 12.3 rebounds on a team that finished 27-2 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the state 4-A playoffs.
at Wake Forest University
, where he won the 1990-1991 season Rookie of the Year honor (over Grant Hill
) and was the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year
in 1993, averaging 21.2 points and 7.4 rebounds. His final college statistics were 19.3 points and 7.9 rebounds, and he was the number nine draft pick in the 1993 NBA Draft
for the Denver Nuggets
.
Rogers's college jersey #54 was retired in February 1996 by the Demon Deacons
.
history to beat a first-seeded team, the Seattle SuperSonics
. Rogers had one significant game in his rookie year, against the Utah Jazz
on February 8, 1994. Near the end of the game, Rogers hit three 3-pointers in a span of nine seconds to bring the Nuggets from a 94-86 deficit to a 95-94 lead. However, Jeff Malone
hit a jumper with 12 seconds remaining to give the Jazz the 96-95 win.
Rogers became a starter his second season, in large part due to frequent injuries suffered by LaPhonso Ellis
. On June 28, 1995, Rogers was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers
, with draft rights to guard Brent Barry
, for the draft rights to forward
Antonio McDyess
and guard Randy Woods
. He spent four years with the Clippers.
Rogers signed with the Phoenix Suns
in 1999. He averaged 13.8 points per game coming off the bench and won the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award
in 2000. The Suns entered the playoffs that year, but lost to the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers
. Rogers remained with the Suns until February 2002, when he was traded to the Boston Celtics
for Joe Johnson
.
Rogers signed with the New Jersey Nets
as a free agent on August 14, 2002, to fill a gap at power forward and give the team much-needed firepower off the bench. During his first year with the Nets he averaged 7 points per game as a bench player. The high point of his season was during a playoff game against the Milwaukee Bucks
on April 24, 2003. After missing two free throws, Rogers came back on the next possession to hit the game-winning shot. The Nets won that series and went on to make the NBA Finals
, where they lost to the San Antonio Spurs
. Rogers saw more playing time the next year, mainly due to some frontcourt injuries, but the quality of his play had declined.
He signed with the New Orleans Hornets on August 3, 2004. He was injured for much of the early part of that season, but eventually became a team starter. On February 24, 2005, Rogers was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers
, along with injured forward Jamal Mashburn
, for also-injured forward Glenn Robinson
. He was primarily used as a backup forward for the 76ers.
After Rogers was traded to the Phoenix Suns in 1999, the family made Paradise Valley, Arizona
their permanent home until 2006. Tisa returned to Durham to take over her father's family real estate business, in which Rogers was an investor. He returned to Durham in 2006 and went to work for the City of Durham as a heavy equipment operator. Rogers was promoted to supervisor in the spring of 2008. Most of his Public Works Department co-workers did not know he had been in the NBA and set for life financially until his dirt bike accident later that year.
Rogers is the cousin of New England Patriots
linebacker
Tully Banta-Cain
.
Rogers was a volunteer girls' basketball coach at Rogers-Herr Middle School., and he co-founded the Durham Eagles youth football team. He enjoyed hunting, riding motorcycles and ATVs, horseback riding and fishing. He is a NASCAR
fan and loves big trucks and construction equipment. Rogers had his own trucking company hauling rock, sand & gravel.
north of Raleigh
. Rogers hit a ditch while riding through a trail and flipped over his vehicle's handlebars. He was first flown to Duke University Medical Center, then on December 3 was moved by air ambulance to the Shepherd Center
in Atlanta, Georgia
. The Shepherd Center specializes in rehabilitating people with spinal cord and/or brain injuries. Rodney Rogers is paralyzed from the shoulders down as a result of the accident, and doctors have given him only a 5% chance of ever walking again.
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
) is a retired American basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player who last played power forward
Power forward (basketball)
Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...
for the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
's Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...
.
Early life
Rogers was the fourth and youngest child born to Willie Wadsworth and Estella Rogers. He spent most of his childhood growing up in the McDougald Terrace housing project in Durham. His father, who left the family and moved to TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
when Rogers was a toddler, died when Rogers was eight.
Estella Rogers sustained severe head injuries and required two operations when she was nearly killed in an automobile wreck in 1988. She was in a coma for more than two weeks and remained hospitalized for three more months. Even after she returned home she still had memory loss and needed extra care. While his mother recovered, Rogers moved in with Nathaniel Brooks, who was once his youth league coach, spending his last two seasons at Hillside High School with the Brooks family.
His stepfather James Spencer, who was the only man Rogers called "Dad", died of lung cancer in February 1990. Renita, the oldest of the Rogers children, became a nurse at N.C. Memorial Hospital in Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
. His oldest brother Stacy, who attended the Eastern N.C. School for the Deaf in Wilson
Wilson, North Carolina
Wilson is a city and the county seat of Wilson County in the Coastal Plain region of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The 18th largest city in the state, Wilson had a population of 49,167 according to the 2010 census.- Geography :...
and the N.C. School for the Deaf in Morganton
Morganton, North Carolina
Morganton is a city in Burke County, North Carolina, United States. Reader's Digest included Morganton in its list of top ten places to raise a family. The town was recently profiled in The 50 Best Small Southern Towns. The population was 17,310 at the 2000 census...
, won a gold medal in basketball at the 1981 XIV Deaflympics
Deaflympics
The Deaflympics are an International Olympic Committee -sanctioned event at which deaf athletes compete at an elite level...
(aka "World Games for the Deaf" and "World Deaf Olympics") in Cologne, Germany. After that he worked for the Veterans Administration
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs is a government-run military veteran benefit system with Cabinet-level status. It is the United States government’s second largest department, after the United States Department of Defense...
Hospital in Durham. Stanley, his other brother, served over 10 years (1981–1991) of a 20-year sentence for armed robbery at Central Prison in Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
.
High school career
Rogers attended Hillside High School in Durham. As an athlete, he was known as "the Durham Bull." He was a two-time Greensboro News & RecordGreensboro News & Record
The News & Record is the largest newspaper serving Guilford County and the surrounding region. It is based in Greensboro, NC, and produces local sections for Greensboro and Rockingham County, NC. As of April, 2011, it had an average weekday circulation of 60,993 and an average Sunday circulation...
All-State selection, and was named the 1990 North Carolina state Player of the Year. As a junior he averaged 22.5 points and 9.7 rebounds, and in his senior year he averaged 28.3 points and 12.3 rebounds on a team that finished 27-2 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the state 4-A playoffs.
College career
From 1990 until 1993, Rogers played college basketballCollege basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
at Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
, where he won the 1990-1991 season Rookie of the Year honor (over Grant Hill
Grant Hill
Grant Hill is the name of:* Grant Hill, American basketball player* Grant Hill , Canadian politician* Grant Hill, San Diego, California, an urban neighboorhood in central San Diego...
) and was the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year
ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year
The Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year is a basketball award given to the men's basketball player in the Atlantic Coast Conference voted by members of the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association as the most outstanding player...
in 1993, averaging 21.2 points and 7.4 rebounds. His final college statistics were 19.3 points and 7.9 rebounds, and he was the number nine draft pick in the 1993 NBA Draft
1993 NBA Draft
The 1993 NBA Draft took place on June 30, 1993 in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Anfernee Hardaway, Allan Houston, and Jamal Mashburn all looked like possible Hall of Famers until their careers were cut...
for the Denver Nuggets
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are a professional basketball team based in Denver, Colorado. They play in the National Basketball Association . They were founded as the Denver Rockets in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association, and became one of that league's more successful teams...
.
Rogers's college jersey #54 was retired in February 1996 by the Demon Deacons
Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's basketball
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's basketball team participates in the Atlantic Coast Conference and their homecourt is the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Their only Final Four appearance was in 1962 and through the years they have produced several NBA players. The Demon Deacons have...
.
Professional career
Rogers played two years for Denver, spending his rookie year primarily as a bench player for a team which was the first 8th-ranked team in NBA PlayoffsNBA Playoffs
The National Basketball Association Playoffs is a best-of-seven elimination tournament among sixteen teams in the Eastern Conference and Western Conference , ultimately deciding the final four teams who will play in the NBA Conference Finals.-Format:Following the NBA regular season, eight teams in...
history to beat a first-seeded team, the Seattle SuperSonics
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington that played in the Pacific and Northwest Divisions of the National Basketball Association from 1967 until 2008. Following the 2007–08 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, and now plays as...
. Rogers had one significant game in his rookie year, against the Utah Jazz
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
on February 8, 1994. Near the end of the game, Rogers hit three 3-pointers in a span of nine seconds to bring the Nuggets from a 94-86 deficit to a 95-94 lead. However, Jeff Malone
Jeff Malone
Jeffrey Nigel Malone is a retired American professional basketball player. He played college basketball at Mississippi State University, and is mostly known for his time with the Washington Bullets of the NBA, where he was an NBA All-Star twice, playing the shooting guard position...
hit a jumper with 12 seconds remaining to give the Jazz the 96-95 win.
Rogers became a starter his second season, in large part due to frequent injuries suffered by LaPhonso Ellis
LaPhonso Ellis
LaPhonso Darnell Ellis is a retired American basketball player.-Early career:He was an outstanding high school basketball player at East St. Louis Lincoln High School, where he led the Tigers to two straight Illinois Class AA boys' championships in 1987 and 1988...
. On June 28, 1995, Rogers was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers are a professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California, United States. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
, with draft rights to guard Brent Barry
Brent Barry
Brent Robert Barry is an American former professional basketball player. The , shooting guard was selected out of Oregon State University by the Denver Nuggets with the 15th overall pick in the 1995 NBA Draft, but was traded shortly after to the Los Angeles Clippers.Barry played professionally...
, for the draft rights to forward
Power forward (basketball)
Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...
Antonio McDyess
Antonio McDyess
Antonio Keithflen McDyess is an American professional basketball player. McDyess is listed at 6'9" , 245 lb. and is a power forward/center. In 2009 he signed a 3-year contract with the San Antonio Spurs....
and guard Randy Woods
Randy Woods
Randolph Woods is a retired American professional basketball player.-La Salle:...
. He spent four years with the Clippers.
Rogers signed with the Phoenix Suns
Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US...
in 1999. He averaged 13.8 points per game coming off the bench and won the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award
NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award
The National Basketball Association's Sixth Man of the Year Award is an annual National Basketball Association award given since the 1982–83 NBA season to the league's most valuable player for his team coming off the bench as a substitute . A panel of sportswriters and broadcasters from throughout...
in 2000. The Suns entered the playoffs that year, but lost to the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
. Rogers remained with the Suns until February 2002, when he was traded to the Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
for Joe Johnson
Joe Johnson (basketball)
Joe Marcus Johnson is an American professional basketball player, currently a member of the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA. Johnson stands at 6'7" and 240 lbs ....
.
Rogers signed with the New Jersey Nets
New Jersey Nets
The New Jersey Nets are a professional basketball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
as a free agent on August 14, 2002, to fill a gap at power forward and give the team much-needed firepower off the bench. During his first year with the Nets he averaged 7 points per game as a bench player. The high point of his season was during a playoff game against the Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....
on April 24, 2003. After missing two free throws, Rogers came back on the next possession to hit the game-winning shot. The Nets won that series and went on to make the NBA Finals
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....
, where they lost to the San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
. Rogers saw more playing time the next year, mainly due to some frontcourt injuries, but the quality of his play had declined.
He signed with the New Orleans Hornets on August 3, 2004. He was injured for much of the early part of that season, but eventually became a team starter. On February 24, 2005, Rogers was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...
, along with injured forward Jamal Mashburn
Jamal Mashburn
Jamal Mashburn is a retired American professional basketball player. A small forward, Mashburn was a prolific scorer in his 12 seasons in the league, with a career scoring average of 19.1 points per game...
, for also-injured forward Glenn Robinson
Glenn Robinson
Glenn A. "Big Dog" Robinson is a retired American professional basketball player in the NBA. He last played during the 2004–05 season.-Early life:...
. He was primarily used as a backup forward for the 76ers.
Personal life and post-NBA career
Right after being drafted by the Denver Nuggets, in the summer of 1993, Rogers married Tisa White. They had three children together, two girls (Roddreka and Rydeiah) and one son (Rodney Rogers II). Roddreka, who was born December 1, 1993, underwent a 5½-hour emergency neurological operation when she was just two months old. Rodney and Tisa have since divorced.After Rogers was traded to the Phoenix Suns in 1999, the family made Paradise Valley, Arizona
Paradise Valley, Arizona
Paradise Valley is a small, affluent town in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2005 Census Bureau, the population of the town was 14,558. Despite the town's relatively small area and population compared to other municipalities in the Phoenix metropolitan area, Paradise...
their permanent home until 2006. Tisa returned to Durham to take over her father's family real estate business, in which Rogers was an investor. He returned to Durham in 2006 and went to work for the City of Durham as a heavy equipment operator. Rogers was promoted to supervisor in the spring of 2008. Most of his Public Works Department co-workers did not know he had been in the NBA and set for life financially until his dirt bike accident later that year.
Rogers is the cousin of New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
linebacker
Linebacker
A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
Tully Banta-Cain
Tully Banta-Cain
Tully Banta-Cain is an American football linebacker who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the seventh round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at California.Banta-Cain earned two Super Bowl rings during his first stint with the Patriots...
.
Rogers was a volunteer girls' basketball coach at Rogers-Herr Middle School., and he co-founded the Durham Eagles youth football team. He enjoyed hunting, riding motorcycles and ATVs, horseback riding and fishing. He is a NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
fan and loves big trucks and construction equipment. Rogers had his own trucking company hauling rock, sand & gravel.
2008 dirt bike accident
On November 28, 2008, Rogers was involved in a dirt bike crash in rural Vance CountyVance County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 42,954 people, 16,199 households, and 11,647 families residing in the county. The population density was 169 people per square mile . There were 18,196 housing units at an average density of 72 per square mile...
north of Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
. Rogers hit a ditch while riding through a trail and flipped over his vehicle's handlebars. He was first flown to Duke University Medical Center, then on December 3 was moved by air ambulance to the Shepherd Center
Shepherd Center
Shepherd Center is a private, not-for profit hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1975, the hospital is devoted to the medical treatment, research and rehabilitation for people with spinal cord injury and disease, acquired brain injury, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain and other neuromuscular...
in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
. The Shepherd Center specializes in rehabilitating people with spinal cord and/or brain injuries. Rodney Rogers is paralyzed from the shoulders down as a result of the accident, and doctors have given him only a 5% chance of ever walking again.