Coming out of high school Shaun Livingston was called by many as the next Magic Johnson. A 6’8″ point guard with incredible vision who ironically was drafted by L.A., instead of staring for the Lakers, Livingston came straight out of high school to hopefully lead a resurgence in the Clippers dreadful franchise.
After two suspected marginal seasons, Livingston was enjoying a break out season in his third year right before one of the most gruesome injuries you could witness happened. After a missed lay up attempt, Livingston came down wrong on his left knee injuring almost every part of his knee. There was talk of possibly having to amputate his leg at the hospital so needless to say the thought of playing basketball again was probably at the bottom of the list of things to do. Livingston refused to let the injury derail him from what he had prepared his whole life for and after about a year and a half out of basketball Livingston got the OK to return. His return wouldn’t be easy, but it started with an opportunity with the Miami Heat. The next five years were rough for Shaun as he played for seven different teams being traded three times and waived four others. Shaun couldn’t find a stable home, but he never let that stop him and last season he signed a one year deal with the Brooklyn Nets and he made the best of it. Posting career highs in games played, minutes played and total points scored, Shaun was able to show the league that if given a chance he could be a legit player.
The Brooklyn Nets struggled early in the season and their star center went down for the year leaving the Nets wondering were to turn. That answer was Livingston. Shaun was placed in the starting lineup and he helped lead a Brooklyn turn around that propelled them to the Playoffs and a round one victory. Livingston turned his stellar play into his biggest pay-day of his career when he agreed to a three-year deal worth $16 million with the Golden St. Warriors. That might not sound like a big deal when comparing it to the deals you see other NBA players receiving, but when you’ve been through what Shaun has been through it’s a major deal. So, I hope Shaun has finally found a little stability in his return back to California, congratulations Shaun you deserve it.
