In 1991, a basketball player named David Robinson visited a group of fifth graders attending Gates Elementary School in Texas. He challenged them, promising that if they graduated from high school, he would give each child a $2,000 scholarship. Seven years later in 1998, 50 of the original 94 of those kids reached that milestone, and not only did Robinson make good on his promise, but he gave each one of them $8,000 to help fund their college tuition. To this day, Robinson is a generous philanthropist, with steady involvement in a variety of charitable organizations, especially those that help children. He does this because he can relate to them as a son of a dad in the military with a strong and caring mom who was often the sole parent when his dad was deployed. Here’s the phenomenal story of this USNA Notable Graduate.
Born to Ambrose and Freda Robinson in Key West, Florida, Robinson attended Osbourn Park High School in Manassas, Virginia, and only started playing basketball his senior year. He accrued all-area and all-district honors and was recruited to play for the U.S. Naval Academy’s basketball team. At the time, he was 6’7”, just one inch taller than the 6’6” limit for midshipmen then in place. However, the Naval Academy’s Superintendent granted him a waiver, and he came to Annapolis in 1983. As a freshman, Robinson’s first year playing was rather uneventful and he didn’t start a single game; in fact, he averaged just 7.6 points per game as he learned how to play college basketball.
Little did anyone know that he would far surpass that point total and that height after hitting 7’0” as a Firstie (and he grew another inch after that). He went on to help the USNA basketball team post 82 wins in three years and was named College Player of the Year. Robinson graduated in 1987 and attracted the attention of the San Antonio Spurs, who chose him as the number one NBA draft pick in 1987. However, the NBA would have to wait — Robinson wanted to serve his country first.
Commissioned into the Civil Engineering Corps at Kings Bay Submarine Base in Georgia, he worked as the Assistant Resident Officer-in-Charge of Construction and also helped with recruiting. David Robinson’s Navy experience paid off. After he completed his service, he hit the courts for the 1989-1990 season with the Spurs, garnering the NBA “Rookie of the Year” title. As one of the only Navy graduates to play for the NBA, he was named “The Admiral,” by his teammates and became an integral part of the San Antonio Spurs for a 14-year-long career. Robinson earned the respect and admiration of fans, players, and coaches alike. During that time, he earned the following accolades:
NBA Number 1 Draft Pick: 1987
NBA Rookie Of The Year 1990
Two-time NBA Champion: 1999 and 2003
NBA Most Valuable Player: 1995
10-time NBA All-Star: 1990-1996, 1998, 2000, 2001
Four-time All-NBA First Team: 1991, 1992, 1995, 1996
Basketball Hame of Fame: 2009
In addition to these impressive achievements, Robinson also became known as the first male basketball player to play on three U.S. Basketball teams in the Olympics. First, he and his teammates scored Bronze in Seoul in 1988, then Gold in Barcelona in 1992 and in Atlanta’s 1996 games. For his outstanding contributions to basketball, Robinson was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009, along with basketball greats Michael Jordan and John Stockton.
As David Robinson’s Spurs career blossomed, his desire to give back continued to grow as well. In 2001, Robinson and his wife, Valerie, founded The Carver Academy, a San Antonio school for inner-city youth. In 2007, he and Daniel Bassichis co-founded the equity firm, Admiral Capital Group, which invests in communities. Robinson has also provided underprivileged students with college scholarships, and, together with his wife, donates to a number of different child-related charities through the David Robinson Foundation. He teams up with fellow professional athletes to help with other philanthropic efforts, and has served on several boards, among them the Naval Academy Foundation, USAA Federal Savings Bank and Centerplate.
For his work both on and off the court, he has garnered a number of important awards, including the National Civil Rights Museum’s Sports Legacy Award, the NBA’s J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award and The Mannie Jackson — Basketball’s Human Spirit Award. As perhaps the ultimate recognition for his work, the NBA renamed the Community Assist Award to be the David Robinson Plaque in 2003. Robinson was named a USNA Distinguished Graduate in 2015.
Like so many of our notable graduates, Robinson is a true inspiration — to those who follow in his big footsteps and those who have watched his journey unfold around the world. We are grateful for his service and the work that he continues to do to help others. If you want to see the spot where he made basketball history, come to the Yard. These are the same hallways he once walked in, Bancroft Hall, and the same basketball court where he once dominated. When you visit the Yard, you’re also giving the midshipmen here a gift, since all proceeds go directly to the Brigade to help fund their clubs, activities and the list goes on. We applaud Robinson and all of our notable graduates and look forward to showing you around.