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Schea Cotton
Vernon Scheavalie "Schea" Cotton (born May 20, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. He was highly touted as a high school player, when he seemed destined to play professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 10 years professionally, but never reached the NBA.
Growing up in the Los Angeles area, Cotton was physically mature beyond his years. He gained national exposure before even playing in high school. The interest level in his prep career was arguably as high as any player ever. Due to disputes over his entrance examination scores with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), his college basketball career was delayed for two years. After a lawsuit with the NCAA was settled, Cotton played one season with the Alabama Crimson Tide. He decided to forgo his final two years of college eligibility to enter the 2000 NBA draft, but he went undrafted. Cotton played professionally for 10 years, both domestically as well as in numerous foreign countries. After retiring as a player, he became a basketball coach and trainer for young players.
Vernon Scheavalie Cotton was born in Los Angeles County at Inglewood, California, to Gaynell and James Cotton. He was named by his father after singer Maurice Chevalier. As kids could not pronounce his name, Cotton came to be known as Schea. After his family moved from San Pedro, California in 1990 due to concerns with gangs, he enrolled at St. Irenaeus Catholic School in Cypress. The school did not have any openings in the seventh grade, so Cotton repeated the sixth grade. His mother denied that he was held back to gain a physical advantage to earn an athletic scholarship. At age 12 and in the sixth grade, he stood 6 feet (1.8 m) and 180 pounds (82 kg) and was captain on a team which included seventh- and eighth-graders. That year, Cotton was featured in the Los Angeles Times. He was able to dunk on alley-oops as a seventh-grader, which was uncommon at the time. Cotton became nationally known before even reaching high school. According to ESPN in 2010, the expectations for him were "as great as any pre-high school aged player ever, even LeBron James."
By the time he was a high school freshman, Cotton had grown to 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and 220 pounds (100 kg). He started the year at St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower, where he played four games. Citing a desire to play with teammates from his summer team, he transferred mid-season to Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, where many of them attended. That year, Cotton averaged 20 points and seven rebounds per game, and Mater Dei won the 1994 Southern Section Division I-A championship and advanced to the Southern California regional final. He was profiled in Sports Illustrated, who billed him as one of the nation's top high school players. "Don't laugh. This kid could pull it off," wrote the magazine of Cotton's desire to jump directly from high school to the NBA. His games had developed a following, drawing well above-average crowds. In an era before the Internet, high school games were not televised, and his fame spread through word of mouth. Still, the interest level in Cotton at the time has been compared to the fanfare of LeBron James' prep career, and some have referred to him as "LeBron before LeBron." Youngsters would wait for over a half-hour for his autograph. In 2014, Cal-Hi Sports hailed him as "arguably the most ballyhooed youth player in [California] history."
In his sophomore year, Cotton averaged 24 points and 10 rebounds, leading Mater Dei to a 36–1 record and a state championship, their third in 13 seasons. He was voted All-Southern Section Division I Player of the Year, and was named to the All-Southern Section Division I Team for the second straight year. Cotton also became the first and only sophomore to be named Cal-Hi Sports Division I State Player of the Year, and was honored nationally as a fourth-team Parade All-American. He wore 37 pairs of shoes that year, a new pair for each game courtesy of Nike. According to Cotton, "I basically had a shoe contract in high school, to be honest, without the money."
After two years at one of the country's top programs in Mater Dei, Cotton returned to St. John Bosco. The school received little press coverage, and he had grown weary of the attention he garnered at Mater Dei. In his junior year, Cotton broke a bone in his left hand and missed most of the season. Though he played in only 11 games, he was named a first-team Parade All-American. He missed his senior year after undergoing surgery to repair damaged ligaments in his left shoulder. He had suffered the injury over the summer in an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) game against Lamar Odom. Despite being sidelined, one recruiting service tabbed him as the No. 2 high school prospect in the nation.
A report from a Las Vegas newspaper during Cotton's junior year speculated that he was considering entering the NBA draft after his senior year. Still, he committed in 1996 to play for Long Beach State. However, his brother, James, announced in 1997 that he would be leaving the school early and declaring for the NBA draft, prompting Cotton to request and receive a release from his letter of intent. Afterwards, some college coaches believed Cotton would jump directly to the NBA. Although Kevin Garnett triggered a second generation of NBA high school draftees in 1995, followed by Kobe Bryant and Jermaine O'Neal a year later, college remained the predominant choice at the time for top prep players.
In April 1997, he committed to play at UCLA, where he was expected to team with fellow incoming freshman Baron Davis, another top recruit from Los Angeles, who signed days later. Cotton's admission was contingent on earning a qualifying score on the SAT, which he had not received in two attempts. On his third try, he scored 900, which surpassed the NCAA minimum of 700 for incoming freshman, but the NCAA invalidated his score. Cotton had been diagnosed with a learning disability, auditory learning, in which he comprehended better by listening than by seeing. The Educational Testing Service (ETS), which publishes and oversees the SAT, confirmed the diagnosis, and allowed him to take the test with extra time and larger font text. The NCAA, however, had stricter criteria than the ETS, and disagreed that he was entitled to take the non-standard test. Cotton denied any wrongdoing, and felt he was being targeted by the NCAA. Earlier, the NCAA had investigated a Ford sport-utility vehicle driven by Cotton, which they suspected was provided to him as an incentive to sign with UCLA. However, the NCAA absolved him of violating his amateur status based on documents provided by his parents.
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Schea Cotton
Vernon Scheavalie "Schea" Cotton (born May 20, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. He was highly touted as a high school player, when he seemed destined to play professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 10 years professionally, but never reached the NBA.
Growing up in the Los Angeles area, Cotton was physically mature beyond his years. He gained national exposure before even playing in high school. The interest level in his prep career was arguably as high as any player ever. Due to disputes over his entrance examination scores with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), his college basketball career was delayed for two years. After a lawsuit with the NCAA was settled, Cotton played one season with the Alabama Crimson Tide. He decided to forgo his final two years of college eligibility to enter the 2000 NBA draft, but he went undrafted. Cotton played professionally for 10 years, both domestically as well as in numerous foreign countries. After retiring as a player, he became a basketball coach and trainer for young players.
Vernon Scheavalie Cotton was born in Los Angeles County at Inglewood, California, to Gaynell and James Cotton. He was named by his father after singer Maurice Chevalier. As kids could not pronounce his name, Cotton came to be known as Schea. After his family moved from San Pedro, California in 1990 due to concerns with gangs, he enrolled at St. Irenaeus Catholic School in Cypress. The school did not have any openings in the seventh grade, so Cotton repeated the sixth grade. His mother denied that he was held back to gain a physical advantage to earn an athletic scholarship. At age 12 and in the sixth grade, he stood 6 feet (1.8 m) and 180 pounds (82 kg) and was captain on a team which included seventh- and eighth-graders. That year, Cotton was featured in the Los Angeles Times. He was able to dunk on alley-oops as a seventh-grader, which was uncommon at the time. Cotton became nationally known before even reaching high school. According to ESPN in 2010, the expectations for him were "as great as any pre-high school aged player ever, even LeBron James."
By the time he was a high school freshman, Cotton had grown to 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and 220 pounds (100 kg). He started the year at St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower, where he played four games. Citing a desire to play with teammates from his summer team, he transferred mid-season to Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, where many of them attended. That year, Cotton averaged 20 points and seven rebounds per game, and Mater Dei won the 1994 Southern Section Division I-A championship and advanced to the Southern California regional final. He was profiled in Sports Illustrated, who billed him as one of the nation's top high school players. "Don't laugh. This kid could pull it off," wrote the magazine of Cotton's desire to jump directly from high school to the NBA. His games had developed a following, drawing well above-average crowds. In an era before the Internet, high school games were not televised, and his fame spread through word of mouth. Still, the interest level in Cotton at the time has been compared to the fanfare of LeBron James' prep career, and some have referred to him as "LeBron before LeBron." Youngsters would wait for over a half-hour for his autograph. In 2014, Cal-Hi Sports hailed him as "arguably the most ballyhooed youth player in [California] history."
In his sophomore year, Cotton averaged 24 points and 10 rebounds, leading Mater Dei to a 36–1 record and a state championship, their third in 13 seasons. He was voted All-Southern Section Division I Player of the Year, and was named to the All-Southern Section Division I Team for the second straight year. Cotton also became the first and only sophomore to be named Cal-Hi Sports Division I State Player of the Year, and was honored nationally as a fourth-team Parade All-American. He wore 37 pairs of shoes that year, a new pair for each game courtesy of Nike. According to Cotton, "I basically had a shoe contract in high school, to be honest, without the money."
After two years at one of the country's top programs in Mater Dei, Cotton returned to St. John Bosco. The school received little press coverage, and he had grown weary of the attention he garnered at Mater Dei. In his junior year, Cotton broke a bone in his left hand and missed most of the season. Though he played in only 11 games, he was named a first-team Parade All-American. He missed his senior year after undergoing surgery to repair damaged ligaments in his left shoulder. He had suffered the injury over the summer in an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) game against Lamar Odom. Despite being sidelined, one recruiting service tabbed him as the No. 2 high school prospect in the nation.
A report from a Las Vegas newspaper during Cotton's junior year speculated that he was considering entering the NBA draft after his senior year. Still, he committed in 1996 to play for Long Beach State. However, his brother, James, announced in 1997 that he would be leaving the school early and declaring for the NBA draft, prompting Cotton to request and receive a release from his letter of intent. Afterwards, some college coaches believed Cotton would jump directly to the NBA. Although Kevin Garnett triggered a second generation of NBA high school draftees in 1995, followed by Kobe Bryant and Jermaine O'Neal a year later, college remained the predominant choice at the time for top prep players.
In April 1997, he committed to play at UCLA, where he was expected to team with fellow incoming freshman Baron Davis, another top recruit from Los Angeles, who signed days later. Cotton's admission was contingent on earning a qualifying score on the SAT, which he had not received in two attempts. On his third try, he scored 900, which surpassed the NCAA minimum of 700 for incoming freshman, but the NCAA invalidated his score. Cotton had been diagnosed with a learning disability, auditory learning, in which he comprehended better by listening than by seeing. The Educational Testing Service (ETS), which publishes and oversees the SAT, confirmed the diagnosis, and allowed him to take the test with extra time and larger font text. The NCAA, however, had stricter criteria than the ETS, and disagreed that he was entitled to take the non-standard test. Cotton denied any wrongdoing, and felt he was being targeted by the NCAA. Earlier, the NCAA had investigated a Ford sport-utility vehicle driven by Cotton, which they suspected was provided to him as an incentive to sign with UCLA. However, the NCAA absolved him of violating his amateur status based on documents provided by his parents.