Before this season, Stevenson was more known for his tattoos, which we will get to in a minute, than his game, but he did contribute to the Mavs run to the title. In the finals he averaged 7 points in only 17 minutes per game. Stevenson also hit 13 of 23 three's and played tough defense on LeBron and Wade. He becomes a free agent this summer and could make some money if he wasn't an idiot.
Before declaring for the draft straight out of high school, Stevenson committed to Kansas after averaging 30.4 points, 9.7 boards, and 6.2 assists his senior season. This led then-Kansas head coach Roy Williams to say Stevenson was his most gifted recruit ever. That is saying a lot for a coach that was able to coach Jeff Boschee.
He was all set to go to Kansas until the SAT "red flagged his scores." As a sophomore he took the test and scored a 450 and then raised his score to an 1150 as a senior, instead of explaining how he improved so mightily, he re-took the test and scored a 650. He definately got the tougher version the second time around.
Now on to the NBA where all the fun starts:
He was picked 23rd overall in the 2000 draft by the Jazz. As a 19-year-old rookie, he finished second in the All-Star Dunk contest and pleaded no contest to having sex with a 14-year-old girl. R. Kelly would be proud.
He was then traded to Orlando for the superstar that is Gordon Giricek. He lasted only 2.5 seasons in Disney averaging a respectable 11 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists. In August of 2007 a man was shot and injured at Stevenson's Orlando home after an argument with women that were brought home from Destiny Nighclub.
Here is a description of Destiny Nightclub from their website:
Destiny Nightclub - So it’s midnight. You’re still feeling it. You’re still buzzed. Why go home? You don’t have to. Destiny Nightclub, located at 7430 Universal Blvd, is open well after normal closing-time, so you can keep the vibe going until it’s scandalously past your bedtime.
So Stevenson takes his talent from the club scene in Orlando to the museums and politico of Washington, D.C. for the league minimum. I guess you can't be having sex with middle schoolers and clubbing all night with classy women looking to keep the vibe going until it's scandalously past their bedtime. The black Jayson Williams would be proud.
His career went pretty well in Washington and he was even able to sign a 4-year $15 million contract. Then coach Eddie Jordan said about Stevenson, "He's a warrior, man, a true warrior. His confidence is growing, he's making threes, he's just a true pro. This is a man's league and he is man. In the dictionary next to that word there is a picture of DeShawn Stevenson." By the 08-09 season he was on the pine to make time for Nick Young and Juan Dixon.
Stevenson was traded to the Dallas Mavericks along with Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, James Singleton and Quinton Ross, and became the first player in NBA history to wear #92.
Now onto his tattoos:
A backwards Pittsburgh Pirates P on his face
Mike Jones of the Washington Post had this to say about that tattoo:
"On his left cheek bone is inked the Pitsburgh Pirate’s ‘P’, “for the Pittsburgh, that’s my favorite team. Barry Bonds, when he first started.” The thing about the P is, however, that it’s backwards and looks more like a 9. DeShawn tried to explain, “No, if you’re standing where Dom’s standing and looking at me, it looks like a P.” Dominic McGuire was standing directly in front of him about 10 yards away, but it still looked like a 9. I think DeShawn meant to say, “when I look in the mirror it looks like a P.” The final new tat is a crack on the left side of Stevenson’s forehead. He said it’s because “I don’t crack. I feel like people always try to break me, but I don’t crack. So, I put that there.”
Another Bucco fan, gotta love it. Rumor has it that he was thinking of getting a Jeff King mustache tattooed on his upper lip.
He also has a crack on his left temple (Insert crackhead joke here)
Stevenson's explanation: "I don't crack. I feel like people always try to break me, but I don't crack. So, I put that there." Seems reasonable. Very reasonable.
Finally he has Abe Lincoln on his neck. I guess the Gettysburg Address really moved him.
His explanation: "For slavery, ya know? Did away with it." Then asked why there are 5's on each side: "I had to put the 5's on each side because nobody could recognize Abe. They kept asking me who it was?" Makes perfect sense. He is a very unreconizable figure, everyone in Amish country has that beard, and that top hat was definately the flat brimmed New Era hat of the day. Of course Abe Lincoln is best known as the guy on the $5 bill.
Just think how many tattoos he could have gotten if he wasn't given the hard SAT test and signed with Ohio State.
Until next year when someone does something stupid after winning the NBA title.
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