Warren Rosegreen lit up professional basketball courts in his early years. Although he only played for two seasons, he surprised many with his spectacular slam dunks, which thrilled crowds at the time.
College days
The Florida native made a name for himself in basketball, but he wasn“t a promising player because his team, Chaffey University, wasn”t very strong.
Looking for a bigger stage, Rosegreen spent his junior and senior years at UNLV. As a junior, he played in 26 games during the 1995-1996 season. Despite being new to the team, he was a consistent presence on the court. He played 31.8 minutes per game, averaging 11.5 points (54.2% field goal shooting, 49.4% free throw shooting) 카지노사이트 and 9.5 rebounds.
Despite making his first appearance in the NCAA Division I ranks, he exceeded expectations in the battle for minutes. He led the Big West Conference in rebounding average for the season. Adding steals and blocked shots, Rose-Green ranked seventh in the conference with 1.7 defensive win shares. Considering it was his first season, there was reason to expect more.
But offense was the problem. Despite posting a decent field goal percentage, her short range shooting was a problem. Given his size, he needed to have an outside shot and a certain level of passing ability, which he didn’t have. He was mainly used as a power forward, and he struggled to stay on the court in close games. This was due to his inaccurate free throws.
In addition, he struggled in his fourth year, the 1996-1997 season. In his senior year, he had to make a leap forward, but he only averaged 7.7 points (field goal percentage: 51.1%, three-point percentage: 00.0%, free throw percentage: 50.9%) and 8.1 rebounds in 27.1 minutes in 32 games. He couldn’t even make it to the lower leagues, let alone the NBA.
In Gwangju
Unable to establish himself in the United States, Rose-Green attended the 1998 KBL foreign player tryout and draft.
With his unparalleled athleticism and tremendous workload, Rose-Green stood out at the tryouts. In a league dominated by undersized big men at the time, Rose-Green’s value was immense, and he was selected by Nasan in the first round.
He was considered to be the rival of Johnny McDowell (then Daejeon Hyundai) in the 1997-1998 season. Thanks to his athleticism and positional rebounding, Rose-Green led the team”s offense from his first season. His jumping dunks were his specialty.
That”s how he made a name for himself and Nasan at the same time. On March 7, 1999, against Hyundai, he scored 39 points, his most since joining the KBL, and for once, he didn’t have McDowell’s envy.
However, it wasn’t enough for Rose Green to lead the team. With a clunky step and stiff pivot, he was not competitive one-on-one. He was up and down. Even for an undersized big man, his short stature was a limitation.
However, he was a standout at the 1999 KBL All-Star Game. In particular, he stunned the left center in the slam dunk contest held during the All-Star game. He won the slam dunk contest and was named the MVP of the All-Star Game.
In Incheon
As mentioned earlier, Rosegreen’s limitations were exposed. However, the following year, Rosegreen continued to organize foreign player tryouts and drafts. Wonju Sambo (now Wonju DB) was called up.
However, Sambo was traded to Sinsaekseong for a foreign player just before the season. The Shinsengumi selected Carlos Williams and Rose Green as the foreign player combination for the 1999-2000 season.
However, Williams was the starter, and Rosegreen was centered alongside him.
Due to the lack of height, Rosegreen’s weaknesses were more pronounced. When they faced taller players like Seo Jang-hoon, Jackie Jones (Cheongju SK), and Lorenzo Hall (Daejeon Hyundai), Rosegreen struggled even more.
Sinsaek eventually finished at the bottom of the league with 15 wins and 30 losses. Rosegreen missed the playoffs for the second straight year.
Nevertheless, Rosegreen is remembered by many. He was the MVP of the 2000 All-Star Game. He became the first player in KBL history to win back-to-back All-Star MVPs (Kim Sun-hyung won three consecutive seasons starting in 2013-2014) and was the centerpiece of the festivities.
After leaving Korea
After leaving Korea, Rosegreen participated in the 2002 Philippine League Cup.
He then hung up the basketball. He reappeared at his alma mater’s reunion game in 2009. Despite being out of the game for quite some time, he contributed to the team’s victory with two dunks. He scored 14 points on his alma mater’s home court, the Thomas & Mack Center.
“I’ve been practicing three to four times a week,” Rose-Green said after the game. “I don’t drink or smoke. That’s why I was able to play well.”