Haywoode Workman: Difference between revisions

| caption = Workman in 2009

| birth_place = [[Charlotte, North Carolina]], U.S.

| bbr highlights = workmha01

Workman attended [[Winston-Salem State University]] for one year (1984/85) before transferring to [[Oral Roberts University]] for three seasons (1986/87-1988/89; missing the 1985/86 season as sa transfer student). [[Oral Roberts men's Golden Eagles basketball|Oral Roberts]] went 27–52 during Workman's tenure, where he posted career averages of 17.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 2.9 steals. Workman's most memorable college performance came in December 1988 when he scored a career high 42 points (18 from 3-pointers and 15 from FTs) against the sixth-ranked [[Oklahoma Sooners men's basketball|Oklahoma Sooners]] featuring [[Mookie Blaylock]] and [[Stacey King]]; Oklahoma won 152–122. In his junior year, Workman was named Honorable Mention All-American. Workman remains 8th on the school's all-time points scored list, 5th in total free-throws made, and 10th in total assists. He also has the records for most steals in a game, in a season, and in a career at Oral Roberts. He is a member of the Oral Roberts Hall of Fame.

Workman made the full Bullets training camp at Bowie State and fought with Tony Harris and Larry Robinson for a spot on the team, while [[Darrell Walker]], [[Steve Colter]] and second-round draft pick [[A. J. English]] were already in the fold at the guard position. With the absence of Eackles, Colter, the backup point in the previous season, was asked to play more shooting guard. Darrell Walker was also experiencing [[tendinitis]] in his [[Achilles tendon]]. Ultimately, Harris was cut and Colter, who was at odds with Washington head coach coach [[Wes Unseld]], was shipped to the [[Sacramento Kings]] in exchange for [[Byron Irvin]], who was more adept at playing two guard. Both Workman and Robinson would start the first two games of the season at the guard positions. When Walker, who actually played 58 total minutes between games 1 and 2, was inserted back into the starting lineup for game 3, Workman went to the bench and Robinson continued to start for the next seven games. However, Workman had impressed enough, so when Ledell Eackles finally signed and returned to the court in November, Robinson was released.

After two years in Italy, he returned to the NBA in [[1993–94 NBA season|1993]] by signing with the [[Indiana Pacers]]. He started 52 games for the Indiana Pacers in the 1993–94 season, averaging almost eight points and 6.2 assists during the Pacers' first trip to the Eastern Conference finals that year. He notched a playoffs career-high 11 assists, and a Pacers' playoff record seven steals, against the Orlando Magic in Game 1 of the 1994 Eastern Conference first round. Despite the Pacers trading in the summer of 1994 for a more experienced point guard in [[Mark Jackson (basketball)|Mark Jackson]], Workman, along with players such as [[Antonio Davis]], [[Sam Mitchell (basketball)|Sam Mitchell]], and [[Dale Davis (basketball)|Dale Davis]] became invaluable to the Pacers' depth and was integral to the team's consistent post-season success in the mid to late nineties. However, on November 9, 1996, in a game against [[Washington Bullets]] he suffered a torn [[anterior cruciate ligament]] in his left knee, due to which he missed the remainder of the 1996/97 season (he underwent surgery on November 22) and the entire 1997/98 season. This injury derailed the remainder of his playing career.

While working out in Florida in the summer of 2001, he ran into NBA referee [[Bob Delaney (basketball referee)|Bob Delaney]], who asked him about trying to become a referee. There, he started refereeing local games and became involved with the Tampa Bay Pro-Am league. He started in California in 2002, working the pro-am leagues at [[Venice, Los Angeles, California|Venice Beach]] and West Los Angeles out of his own pocket. Encouraged, he responded quickly by sending his resume when he heard the CBA was looking for new officials. He worked 15 games that CBA season and later worked the pre-draft camp in Chicago. In July 2003, he worked the NBA summer league in Boston.<ref>[httphttps://sportswww.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=aldridge_david&id=1618689 Ex-guard making comeback as ref]</ref> He moved up to refereeing NBDL games in 2004.

{{1989 NBA Draftdraft}}

[[Category:20th-century African-American basketball playerssportsmen]]

[[Category:21st-century African-American sports officialssportsmen]]

[[Category:National Basketball AssociationNBA referees]]

[[Category:Victoria Libertas PesaroPallacanestro players]]