KFDM COOP Posted March 26, 2008 Report Posted March 26, 2008 Hammond gives Nederland Gamble Game breakthrough By Cody Pastorella The Port Arthur News For the first time in the history of the event, a player from Nederland is a finalist for one of the James Gamble Awards. That player is Chris Hammond, who, as a Mr. Inside finalist, automatically becomes a member of the team representing Southeast Texas in the 5th annual Port Arthur News/Gamble Award Game Friday night at the Parker Center. Hammond, one of seven juniors on this year’s team, is the smallest of the Mr. Inside finalists. But, like the players who surround him, he is not short on abilities. Gamble said Hammond is not your traditional post player, but is a player who can do a lot to create mismatches for the opposition. "He is more of a swing player," Gamble said of the 6-3 wing who averaged 16.6 points per game this season, as well as seven boards. Hammond scored 18.4 points per game during the District 22-4A season. He was the newcomer of the year in his sophomore campaign, and was a unanimous choice for all-district this season after nailing 66 treys and getting 62 steals in leading the Bulldogs. "We're very proud to have him," Gamble said. "He has a great attitude and a really good work ethic. We have him listed as a post player, but we're going to use him inside and outside. That is a tough role to pick up in a short time but he has a good attitude, is really trying hard and I think he is going to be fine come game time." About being the first player from Nederland, Gamble said, "we're always looking for the best talent and Chris is a very good ball player. "He shoots the ball very well and does a good job handling the ball. He has plenty of potential." Gamble added that Nederland head coach Brian English deserves credit for the Bulldogs’ first entree. "I think you have to credit coach English," the former Lincoln coach said. "We've had kids from Vidor on the team when Brian was at Vidor and now he is at Nederland and we have a Nederland player. "It just goes to show his dedication for developing good basketball players." Hammond said he is honored to be the first Nederland player to get invited to play in the Gamble game and to be a finalist for such a prestigious award. "It's good for Nederland's program," Hammond said. "Maybe people will start to see that we can play basketball here and people won't overlook us anymore because we can play with everybody." Hammond added that it's even more of a pleasure to get to practice and play with some of the great local talent. "It's fun and challenging to be competing with and against the area's best talent," he said. "There are some really good ball players on this team and it's fun to compete with them. We're all working hard and coach Gamble is a really good coach. Everybody listens to him. It should be a really good game.
bulldog81 Posted March 26, 2008 Report Posted March 26, 2008 PA News Article Continued: "They (Franchize) are a bigger team but we will play them tough. It will go back and forth." English said that he is proud of Hammond's accomplishments and thinks the Mr. Inside nomination is well deserved. "He's a really good player with the potential to be even better," English said. "But anytime you get noticed and have the chance to play in a game like this, it's a really good thing. Hopefully he has fun with it, learns something from it and comes back to lead this team (Nederland) to the playoffs next season." Tickets for the Port Arthur News/Gamble Award basketball game are being sold at the Port Arthur News and Lamar State College-Port Arthur business office. Cost is $3 for adults and $2 for students. The other finalists for the Mr. Inside award are Willie Jefferson from Ozen, Jacoby Joseph of Ozen, Marcus Malbrough of West Brook and Jamar Gulley of Central. Jefferson and Gulley are juniors while Joseph and Malbrough are seniors. Gulley is listed at 6-3 but has a bigger frame than the lean Hammond. Jefferson is the only true post player for Gamble this year. He stands at 6-7. Previous Mr. Inside winners include Kendrick Perkins (2003, Ozen), Ashton Hall (2004 and 2005, Kountze), Dominique Keller (2006, Memorial) and Richard Netherly (2007, West Orange-Stark). "It feels good just to be considered," Hammond said. "It has been a lot of fun and it's an honor to be a part of this."
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