The Handle Podcast – Cedric Henderson: 11/14/16

By Reinis Lacis (@LamarMatic)

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Memphis Tigers legend Cedric Henderson hopped on the podcast to talk about the U of M, his days as a defensive-minded player for Mike Fratello’s late 90s Cleveland Cavaliers and some of the peculiar stops he had during his professional career.

Topics discussed in the podcast:

01:25 – Growing up in Memphis and idolizing the Tigers’ Anfernee Hardaway, the team being the hot ticket in the city;
04:05 – Being invited to the 1993 McDonald’s All-American Game alongside players like Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse;
06:10 – The Memphis Tigers 1994-95 season, going undefeated at home, having Memphis pride and local players like Lorenzen Wright on the team, their loss against Arkansas in the Sweet 16;
11:00 – His agent evaluating offers from overseas before he proved himself in draft combines and workouts, catching the eye of Mike Fratello thanks to intensity and defense, the Cavs thus moving on from Chris Mills and Donny Marshall;
13:40 – The first start in the NBA coming at Minnesota when coach Fratello gave him a shot after a 4-6 start, scoring 19 and guarding Kevin Garnett, the 10-game winning streak that followed;
16:15 – Wesley Person being glad about now having less defensive responsibilities, Fratello’s style being a great fit for Cedric, the time he frustrated Glen Rice into a poor game;
19:45 – Cleveland having four rookies on the All-Rookie Team in Cedric Henderson, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Brevin Knight and Derek Anderson, the team committing to playing hard, Shawn Kemp coming in as a veteran star, the way Ilgauskas’s injuries set Cleveland back;
25:05 – The lockout hurting their team, Fratello being fired, coach Randy Wittman coming in with a more freelance style that didn’t fit his strengths, almost leaving for Seattle to play for George Karl with whom he had a connection;
31:50 – Experiencing two trades in one summer, playing for a young Golden State Warriors team, Matt Harpring beating him out at Philadelphia;
36:40 – Winning the 2003 NBA D-League Championship with the Mobile Revelers, having a mature veteran squad with Isaac Fontaine, Shea Seals and Derek Hood that was lead by coach Sam Vincent, being on a mission for a 10-day contract in the NBA;
40:25 – Having great memories from his time in Lebanon, the feats like scoring 66 points in a game not meaning that much to him and his overall career;
43:45 – A retirement which came due to the feeling that his career wasn’t going anywhere and wishing to be around his kids, finding out that his knees were bad at a Memphis Grizzlies health exam, being proud of earning his degree and setting an example for his kids;
49:30 – Quick, fun stories of making a full-court 3-pointer at Chicago and Randy Brown calling it, the care-free attitude of Gilbert Arenas, being the second Cedric Henderson in the NBA and Brevin Knight as his best teammate.