SHAWN KEMP...aka MANCHILD...aka the REIGN MAN.....One of the NBA'S best in the LAST 20 years and Seattle SUPERSONIC Great

SCENE.......Market Square Arena.......Indianapolis, INDIANA...aka NAPTOWN.....aka CIRCLE CITY. 1988 High School Basketball STATE Championships. Everyone in the ARENA including Robert Montgomery KNIGHT and Gene KEADY came to see not a team....but one DUDE.....6'10" 240 pound MAN-CHILD Shawn KEMP of ELKHART INDIANA CONCORD High School.

Kemp did not disappoint already being named to the BEST MCDONALD'S All-American Boys team in History (check my post at BLUEDUDE SPORTSTALK on the 1988 McDonald All-American Team) the 1988 Team and the game was real tight. Back and forth as CONCORD was being held together by KEMP and a Freshman PG Jamar JOHNSON who went on to play for Danny KNEE and the Nebraska CORN HUSKERS.

KEMP, who was ultra-athletic and gifted at his size and weight, was very undisciplined as that might have played a ROLE in him finishing 3rd in the Mr. Basketball of INDIANA Voting. The Crucial part of the game I remember like yesterday.......CONCORD down by 1 point with about 10 seconds to go KEMP steals the BALL for the GAME-WINNER....and guess what?.....He tries a 360 between the legs DUNK....and MISSED it.....there went the STATE CHAMPIONSHIP and I remember the looks on every face in the building pulling for KEMP.......that was DUMB....and that's SHAWN'S Game though.

KEMP was to sign with the KENTUCKY WILDCATS and then COACH Eddie SUTTON and finally he did after he supposedly passed all of his tests. The PROBLEM was that the NCAA saw a vast improvement and nullified the TEST as KEMP was already enrolled at UK. Later investigations found that KEMP also received MONEY and a 1988 Chevy CAVALIER.

The NCAA did an investigation and all of KENTUCKY'S Recruits that year (and they had the #1 Class) KEMP, Chris MILLS of LA FAIRFAX and LeRon ELLIS of Mater Dei in Santa Ana, CA. That Class was about as talented as a CLASS could get.

They all transferred immediately as Mills went west to Lute OLSON and ARIZONA, ELLIS went to BOEHEIM and SYRACUSE, and KEMP went to Trinity Valley Junior College on TEXAS right outside of DALLAS.

KEMP never played at TRINITY VALLEY, who had another ALUM come trough there about 2-3 years later named Nick"the QUICK Van EXEL aka NICK at NIGHT. them KEMP did what most people thought he was going to do......Enter the NBA Draft in 1989 NBA DRAFT at 19.

KEMP was drafted by the Seattle SUPERSONICS and it took awhile as the X-MAN Xavier McDANIEL took KEMP under his wing to develop the Man-CHILD. In his 2nd full-season KEMP was starting to show his ability as the SONICS started to rise to the top of the WEST....ld by a Young KEMP, Gary "the GLOVE" PAYTON, Nate McMILLAN, Detlef SCHREMPF, and Sam "the BIG SMOOTH" PERKINS.

KEMP and PAYTON started to click as GARY was the SONICS 1st round pick in 1990 a year after KEMP was selected. GARY used to throw Alley HOOPS to KEMP so high that the SONICS Play-by-play announcers dubbed KEMP.......the REIGN MAN.....and that stuck to SHAWN the rest of his career.

As the 1995-1996 SONICS team, the best that KEMP and PAYTON played on finally go to the NBA FINALS. But like other GREAT PLAYERS in the LEAGUE ran up against the 1995-96 72-10 BULLS with 4 Future Hall Of FAMERS......and lost 4-2. KEMP held his own and the BULLS SIMPLY couldn't guard the REIGN MAN but held almost everyone else in check that series.

Towards the end of KEMP'S Career.....he played for the CAVS, BLAZERS, and MAGIC. DRUGS and ALCOHOL really took its toll on the backside of his career and he retired officially in 2006.

The Seattle SUPERSONICS named KEMP to the 16 member 40th Anniversary TEAM.....the players who I think should be on that team......Jack SIKMA, Dale ELLIS, Tom CHAMBERS, Gus WILLIAMS, the LATE Dennis JOHNSON, Gary PAYTON, Xavier McDANIEL, Downtown FRED BROWN, Slick WATTS, Shawn KEMP, Nate McMILLAN, Sam PERKINS, Detlef SCHREMPF, Ray ALLEN, Michael CAGE, and Ricky PIERCE.........if anyone out there thinks different send me a message on TWITTER @bluedudesports or e-mail at bluedudesports@gmail.com, and/or comment on my BLOG POST....thank you in advance for your kindness.

SHAWN T. KEMP.....Elkhart Concord HS INDIANA.......and Great Seattle SUPERSONIC......one of the BLUEDUDE'S FAVS....check him out on YOUTUBE.....just a sensational PLAYER who could've played NOW or in the ABA with all the THEATRICS.

BLUEDUDE SPORTSTALK......you never know what I am THINKING....HECK I don't even know sometimes.....got the IDEA form talking about Detlef SCHREMPF and my CLOSET.....1996 Shawn KEMP Mitchell and NESS Away SONICS Jersey......that they put the WRONG YEAR on it.........HOLLA