Iowa recruit didn’t let ‘bad decision’ ruin hoops future

Playing college basketball’s a dream for any player. But it might be even sweeter for Anthony Hubbard.

The 6-5 guard committed to Iowa in April, capping a “breathtaking” run where he went for prison inmate to second-team All-American junior college player and now D-I guard.

His story’s been recounted in various Iowa papers, but this SLAM article by Brad Winton is a must-read for what Hubbard did, how he handled his mistake and how he turned the situation to his favor.

But academic issues and college basketball would become the least of his worries. When he was 18, he was asked by a friend to come along to commit a crime. “I felt like he was my friend, and I wanted to be loyal and not let him go alone, so I decided to go with him… I made a bad decision and it’s a part of my life now. I’m not going to shy away from it,” Hubbard explained.

It’d be easy for Hubbard to fall into a cycle of self-pity and never play hoops. But now, at 25, he’s in the game. And it’s because of his attitude.

“Whatever you go through in life, somebody always has it worse or has been through worse. I had three meals a day; a lot of people around the world don’t have food to eat. I have my health and physical abilities, some people aren’t able to walk. You don’t have to go my route, but I hope people learn from it and continue to fight and pursue their dreams,” Hubbard told SLAM.

That attitude? Talk about a coach’s dream.

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