Long before Khalil Mack arrived, Anthony Smith set the standard for Raiders pass-rushers. The defensive end got off to a hot start after entering the NFL as a first-round pick. Yet, his success on the field rarely gets discussed. That’s what happens when you go from being a star for one of the NFL’s biggest franchises to serving three life sentences for murder.

Anthony Smith quickly emerged as a star for the Raiders

Khalil Mack’s 40.5 sacks are the most by a player in his first 4 seasons with the @Raiders since Anthony Smith (42.0) from 1991-94.

The last @ChicagoBears player with more sacks through the first 4 seasons of his career was Super Bowl XX MVP Richard Dent (49.0) from 1983-86. https://t.co/L5EfzbOJA5

— Stats By STATS (@StatsBySTATS) September 1, 2018

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Anthony Smith played his college ball at the University of Alabama and the University of Arizona. The 6-foot-3, 265-pound defensive end entered the 1990 NFL draft as a top prospect. Of course, that class featured a number of future defensive stars, including Junior Seau, Cortez Kennedy, and LeRoy Butler.

The then-Las Vegas Raiders selected Smith 11th overall. He joined a squad that already featured a star sack artist in Greg Townsend. The versatile front-seven defender had enjoyed six double-digit sack campaigns by the time Smith broke into the lineup in 1991.

That season turned out to be a terrific one for the dynamic defensive end duo. Townsend racked up a career-high 13 sacks while Smith totaled 10.5. He followed up with 13 of his own in 1992 despite starting just one game. Smith recorded 12.5 sacks in 1993 and seemed poised to become a long-term fixture in Las Vegas.

However, he never matched that same level of production. And eventually, the world would discover that Anthony Smith the NFL star led a different life away from the football field.

From playing in the NFL to facing four murder charges

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After a torrid start to his Raiders career, Smith regressed mightily. He recorded just 18.5 sacks in the final four years of his NFL career. Still, with 57.5 sacks in 98 career games, he more than lived up to his first-round draft status.

But as his NFL career came to a close, so too would Anthony Smith’s days as a free man. In March 2011, Smith and two other people were charged with murdering Maurilio Ponce. He had been beaten and shot in October 2008 in California. According to an AP report, prosecutors said Ponce’s death occurred after a business deal went bad.

The Ponce murder charge represented just one of four brought against Smith. And while jurors failed to reach a verdict in the Ponce murder case, they did come to an agreement on the other charges.

Smith got sentenced to three consecutive life terms in 2016

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On January 22, 2016, Anthony Smith got sentenced to three consecutive life terms in prison without the possibility of parole. Just a few months earlier, an LA County jury convicted him on three counts of murder with special circumstances of torturing, kidnapping, and multiple murders.

Prosecutors provided details of the murders. Smith reportedly posed as a police officer before kidnapping Ricky and Kevin Nettles in November 1999. The two brothers had been kidnapped from their car wash business.

The Nettles brothers’ bodies were found about eight miles apart. Both had U-shaped branding burns on their cheeks, and Ricky Nettles had numerous burns across his abdomen and feet.

Less than two years later, Smith kidnapped Dennis Henderson before beating and stabbing him to death. Henderson’s body was found in a rental car with more than 40 stab wounds. He had been kidnapped on June 24, 2001, from the Mar Vista section of LA.

Prosecutors also said that Anthony Smith had multiple books on how to kill people in his possession. At the time of his sentencing, he was 48 years old.

During his 13 season playing career, Michael Vick established himself as one of the most talented quarterbacks in the NFL, earning four Pro Bowl selections. Yet Vick will forever be remembered for his involvement in an illegal dogfighting scandal. In 2007, Vick plead guilty to charges and spent a total of 21 months locked up in federal prison.

Michael Vick isn’t the only member of his family to have an NFL career — or into legal trouble. His younger brother Marcus had a brief tenure with the Miami Dolphins. He’s also run into trouble with the law on several occasions. Here we recap Marcus Vick’s stalled football career and his various struggles staying on the right side of the law.

Marcus Vick’s college football career

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Marcus Vick established himself as a talented quarterback prospect while attending high school in Newport News, Virginia. He was good enough to earn himself an athletic scholarship to Virginia Tech — the same school that his older brother Michael had played quarterback for. Vick was redshirted during his freshman year in 2002, and showed flashes of promise during the following season.

By most accounts, Vick was primed for a breakout season in 2004. Instead, he was suspended for the entire year due to a variety of criminal convictions brought against him. The main case involved Vicks’ consensual sexual involvement of an underaged girl. Although he was ultimately cleared of sex charges, Vick received three guilty verdicts for contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Later that year, Vick was also charged with possession of marijuana and reckless driving. He was reinstated the following year, and his strong play quickly moved him up from third-string to starting quarterback. Yet further legal troubles and on-field incidents finally led Virginia Tech to dismiss Vick from the football program in January 2006.

Marcus Vick’s brief NFL career

The day after his dismissal from Virginia Tech, Vick declared himself eligible for the 2006 NFL Draft. Although many analysts speculated that he could get picked as early as the third round, Vick ended up going undrafted. His various legal issues — and his questionable character and work ethic — likely played a large role, since he remained an intriguing talent.

Following the draft, Vick went to a Dolphins free agent minicamp, and was ultimately signed by the team to a league minimum free-agent contract. He spent one year with the team, only seeing game action on a single occasion. In that game, Vick came in as a wide receiver in the 4th quarter, but did not receive any passes. At the end of the season, the Dolphins chose not to resign him.

Continuing legal troubles

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Marcus Vick continued to find himself getting into legal and criminal trouble following his brief stint in the NFL. On one occasion, a drunken Vick was arrested on charges of DUI, fleeing the police, and reckless driving.

Although he received a 12-month jail sentence, a judge reduced it to a fine and a suspension of his license. Various parole violations and related fines followed.

In 2016, Vick was arrested on charges that included felony assault on a police officer, according to The Roanoke Times. At the time, the officer was attempting to serve Vick an arrest warrant for evading a 2013 civil court hearing.

Later in 2016, Vick was arrested again — this time on charges of drug possession, according to Bleacher Report. Vick once again was able to negotiate a plea deal that spared him any jail time.

Another drug arrest — and suspended sentence — followed in March 2017. Since then, Vick has managed to stay out of legal trouble. In July 2020, his period of supervised probation is set to end. Hopefully, Vick can celebrate that milestone by setting himself on a less troubled path through life. 

Coming out of college at Missouri, Keith Wright was a promising talent destined for NFL success. In 2003, Wright completed his lifelong dream of becoming a professional football player when he was drafted by the Houston Texans. However, Wright didn’t quite pan out in the NFL. He lasted just four years in the league, and he went down a dark path in retirement. Wright went on to commit a series of robberies and assaults that landed him a 234-year prison sentence. It’s safe to say he won’t be getting out at any point in this lifetime.

Keith Wright had a short-lived NFL career

Wright was an effective pass rusher and run stuffer on Missouri’s defensive line in the early 2000s. He recorded 68 tackles in his first year with the Tigers and amped it up to 92 tackles in his second year. Between 2001 and 2002, Wright switched from defensive end to defensive tackle, and it paid dividends.

Wright was selected by the Texans in the sixth round of the 2003 NFL draft. His success at Missouri didn’t translate to the NFL, though. Wright was sent to the Texans’ practice squad to start the season, and he was picked up by the Indianapolis Colts shortly after.

From there, Wright jumped to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2004. He spent one season with the Bucs before he was released in 2005. The Arizona Cardinals then signed Wright to a one-year contract, but he was released less than a month later.

Wright finished his career with stints with the Buccaneers again and the Detroit Lions. He barely made an impact on the field in four years, and he was out of the league by 2006.

Keith Wright committed 19 felonies by the time he was 32

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After his NFL career ended, Wright turned to a life of crime. In 2011 alone, Wright committed three home invasions around the Sacramento area where he lived at the time. During one of the home invasions, Wright sexually assaulted a woman and forced her to take money out of an ATM.

Wright racked up 19 felony charges in his second life. Along with home invasion, Wright was charged with kidnapping, armed robbery, false imprisonment, forcible oral copulation, and first-degree burglary.

In 2012, Wright was sentenced to 234 years and 8 months in prison. He was just 32 years old at the time.

Wright’s 234-year prison sentence is the longest in sports history

Keith Wright’s reckless actions after his NFL career cost him four lifetimes in prison. Imagine hearing the number 234 and realizing you’ll never experience freedom again. That was the harsh reality for Wright in 2012.

Wright’s lengthy prison sentence is actually the longest for any athlete in professional sports history. No one else even came close to 200 years.

Clifford Etienne, a boxer from the early 2000s, came closest to Wright when he was sentenced to 160 years in prison for a slew of crimes.

Wright will remain locked up in prison for the rest of his life. What could’ve been a promising football career turned into one of the most tragic sports stories ever told.

Clinton Portis is one of the Washington Redskins’ last true superstars. In addition to being a great player, he was a charismatic player who let his personality out as much as he could.

By 2004, Clinton Portis had a reputation as an elite running back and a prankster. Neither the Washington Redskins nor the NFL were laughing, though, when Portis earned fines because he wore the wrong socks.

Clinton Portis was one of the NFL’s best running backs in his prime

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A star at the University of Miami, Clinton Portis burst on the scene in 2002 when he totaled 1,508 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns as a rookie for the Denver Broncos.

The former second-round pick followed that up with 1,591 yards and 14 touchdowns in 13 games for the Broncos in 2003; that earned him Pro Bowl honors for the first time in his career.

Denver traded him to the Washington Redskins in 2004 for elite cornerback Champ Bailey. Clinton Portis took well to Washington and ran for over 1,300 yards in each of his first two years there.

Injuries and a heavy workload — Portis had four seasons with over 300 carries by the time he was 27 — contributed to Portis’ career ending earlier than expected. Clinton Portis retired after the 2010 season with 9,923 rushing yards and 75 touchdowns to his name.

Portis had a reputation as a prankster

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Clinton Portis had a great sense of humor that earned rave reviews from teammates, media members, and fans alike. Portis spent the 2005 season using different aliases and wearing different costumes.

Portis also impersonated Napoleon Dynamite in a viral video.

Clinton Portis was a player made for the social media era. His gimmicks and pranks would have been perfect on Twitter and YouTube.

But as is always the case, Clinton Portis’ tendency of going a bit too far landed him in trouble with higher powers … that being the NFL and the mighty fist of the Commissioner’s Office, of course.

Clinton Portis earned fines because of his socks

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The NFL has very strict uniform policies even to this day. Unless the league says otherwise, players need to wear a certain helmet, specific cleats, everything.

Some of the policies don’t make much sense. The Washington Redskins, for example, need to wear white socks even when they wear all-red uniforms.

Clinton Portis didn’t agree with this policy. That’s why, in 2004, he and teammate Sean Taylor wore red socks to go along with their red jersey and red pants.

In Clinton Portis’ first game wearing red socks, he rushed for 148 yards on 31 carries against the rival Giants. Portis repeated the look in an 80-yard, two-touchdown game against the Eagles a week later.

Washington routed the Giants 31-7 and lost 17-14 to Philadelphia.

The NFL wasn’t pleased with Portis’ outfit. Portis received a $5,000 fine, then a $10,000 fine, and ripped the NFL’s uniform policy in a media session.

“I think that is a stupid fine for the simple fact that they want everybody to be the same. This is an individual game, you know. That is the thing that has the league being the No. 1 sport, because different personalities come together as one and people enjoyed that.”

Clinton Portis and Sean Taylor found themselves in uniform trouble a year later, too. The NFL fined Portis $20,000 for wearing black shoes, striped socks, and an unapproved eye shield.

Taylor also wore striped socks and received a $5,000 fine.

Over the course of 16 NBA seasons in the NBA, Charles Barkley proved to be one of the all-time greats. Among other impressive feats, he is one of just four players in NBA history to amass 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, and 4,000 assists. He garnered those impressive numbers as one of the most physically dominant power forwards the game has ever seen.

Barkley was also a passionate, competitive player. On more than a few occasions, his physicality crossed the line into downright aggression, leading to fights with other players. One of Barkley’s most notorious fights, however, took place off the court. Let’s look at the incident and seemingly small price Barkley had to pay for it.

Charles Barkley’s craziest bar fight

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The fight in question took place in Orlando, Florida on October 26, 1997. At the time, Barkley was a member of the Houston Rockets, who were in town to play a pre-season game against the Magic. The naturally gregarious party guy decided to hit the town one night. He ended up at a bar by the name of Phineas Phoggs.

There, a 20-year-old construction worker by the name of Jorge Lugo accosted Barkley. At just 5-foot-2, Lugo didn’t stand much of a chance against the 6-foot-6 Barkley. So instead of taking a swing at the big man, Lugo threw a cup full of ice at him. Barkley initially ignored the provocation. But when the man returned a short time later and threw a second glass, hitting a member of Barkley’s group, he flew into a rage.

As it happened, an off-duty police officer was working at the bar, and quickly intervened. Yet Barkley refused to back down. Instead, he wrestled Lugo out of the officer’s grasp and, in a move straight out of professional wrestling, picked him up threw him through a plate-glass window.

Unsurprisingly, police quickly arrested Barkley. He spent several hours in jail before fellow Rockets star Clyde Drexler bailed him out. That gesture of friendship set Drexler back a cool $6,000.

Barkley’s response to the fight

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In discussing the incident, Barkley took full responsibility for his actions, while standing by his decision to react the way he did, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel:

“I’m going to defend myself. Let there be no debate. If you bother me, I’m going to whip your ass. The guy threw ice in my face, and I slammed his ass into the window. I’m not denying that. I defended myself. He got what he deserved.”

To anybody who knew Barkley, those words came as no surprise. To this day, Barkley’s candor and willingness to stick to his guns are two of his most characteristic personality traits.

Charles Barkley’s legal ramifications

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Barkley was charged with a count of aggravated battery, and a count of resisting arrest without violence. Fortunately, Lugo had not been seriously injured during the incident. A local hospital treated him for a minor laceration to his right arm. Lugo ultimately decided not to press charges against Barkley.

Instead, in December, reports surfaced that Barkley reached an out-of-court civil settlement with Lugo. The exact terms of the resolution never surfaced to the public. As for the criminal charges against Barkley, he ended up getting off relatively light. A judge decreed that he pay a $320 fine and do two community-service visits with children’s programs.

Lugo remained adamant that he had never thrown anything at Barkley. Yet reporters soon uncovered the fact that Lugo was an undocumented immigrant from Mexico. He had already been arrested twice that same year, according to the Orlando Sentinel. In September, he was released from jail after serving over three months on drug charges.

In 1986, Lenny Dykstra led the New York Mets to a World Series victory and almost won the National League MVP. He was a muscular, dominant offensive player and adept in the outfield. Unfortunately, Dykstra’s life off the ball field has not been anything to celebrate.

Most recently, he has made headlines for his lewd rants on Twitter during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) quarantine. Although the post might seem shocking, it is merely one more bizarre antic fans have seen. The question is, how did Dykstra go from stardom to a bankrupt drug user?

Shining career brought down by poor choices

Southern California native, Lenny Dykstra, was nicknamed “Nails” due to his tough persona both on the field and off. He was known for getting into fights in bars, but he was also known for doing everything possible to make a play on the baseball field.

He ran running into walls and face planted as he dove to catch balls. His power at the plate was equally impressive. The Mets victory in the 1986 World Series was in no small part due to Dykstra’s performance including a leadoff home run. 

Unfortunately, Dykstra’s life off the field began to catch up with him. Soon after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies, he drove drunk, causing an accident that severely injured his teammate as well as himself.

The police determined his blood-alcohol level was .178 at the time of the accident. After the incident, Dykstra struggled with injuries before finally retiring from baseball at the age of 33.

Lenny Dykstra’s legal woes

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Following his baseball career, from the outside, things did not look so bad for Dykstra. He owned a successful car wash with his family, and he made several successful investments.

Financial expert Jim Cramer of “Mad Money,” was so impressed with Dykstra’s economic prowess that he gave him a column on thestreet.com. 

Armed with expert endorsements and media success, Dykstra launched a new enterprise, The Players Club. This venture was a magazine, private jet rental, and financial advisement service all in one.

The company targeted professional athletes, claiming the desire to help them grow their money after retirement. The business was fraught with drama. One embittered ex-employee sat down with GQ to recount Dykstra’s manic behavior and poor spending habits.

It was no surprise to him that The Player’s Club would go under. Dykstra himself would find himself in court for legal proceedings that would wind up with him serving jail time. 

In 2012 Dykstra was sentenced to jail time for falsifying documents to lease luxury vehicles. While he was in jail serving time for this Grand Theft Auto conviction, he found himself in court again concerning bankruptcy fraud. 

Lenny Dykstra’s drug use

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The judge in the Players Club case indicated he was light in sentencing Dykstra due to his issues with alcohol and drugs. When the police searched his house during his initial arrest, they found cocaine, ecstasy, and human growth hormone. Drugs had been a part of Dykstra’s life since his MLB days. He struggled with pain pills and faced steroid accusations by his brother.

Unfortunately, Dykstra’s time in jail did not end his drug use. In 2018, he found himself in legal trouble once again. He had threatened to shoot an UBER driver in the head.

When the police arrested him, they found cocaine and MDMA in his possession. Dykstra contended that the driver had kidnapped him after he asked to change destinations. The charges against Dykstra were dropped, according to NBC. But he is still facing ongoing charges for renting rooms in his house.

Dykstra once lived a dream life as an MLB All-Star. Drugs and money mismanagement have led him down a path of destruction that does not seem to have an end in sight. 

Just three years ago, Darren McFadden was running the football for the Dallas Cowboys. Now, he’s trying to run from the cops. In a bizarre, recently unearthed arrest video, McFadden is shown resisting arrest and driving his car into a Whataburger wall while drunk. The officers pulled the former running back out of his car and even had to use a Taser on him.

Darren McFadden was arrested for DUI and resisting arrest in 2019

In January of 2019, McFadden was arrested at a Texas Whataburger. The former Cowboy and Raider was found unresponsive in the driver’s seat of his 2019 GMC Yukon late at night, and officers were forced to break in the windows to wake McFadden.

The 31-year-old at the time accidentally pressed on the gas and veered his car into a wall in the drive-thru of the Whataburger. Police were finally able to wake McFadden and get him out of the car safely before anyone was hurt.

In July of 2019, Mcfadden was charged with resisting arrest and DUI with a BAC of greater than or equal to .15. Emphasis on the greater than. McFadden didn’t even realize he was flooring a vehicle into the side of a restaurant until cops busted in his windows. Even then, he could barely speak as the officers ordered him out of the car.

McFadden pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four days in jail in February of 2020.

Crazy arrest video shows the police standoff with Darren McFadden

McFadden’s arrest occurred over a year ago in McKinney, Texas, but the police body camera footage was just released by TMZ Sports Monday. If the description of the arrest wasn’t crazy enough, the video surely is.

The video starts with officers approaching McFadden’s car and tapping on his window. He’s seen asleep at the wheel in the middle of a Whataburger drive-thru, and he isn’t responding to the officers on the scene.

The officers notice that the car is still in drive, so they attempt to shake the car to wake McFadden. After a few minutes, McFadden accidentally presses the gas and floors the car into the wall of the restaurant. You can hear the tires screeching in the video as the car can’t move any farther.

The cop closest to McFadden breaks in one of the car windows and finally wakes the former NFL star. He eventually stumbles out of the car and falls to the ground as officers handcuff him. The incident could’ve been much worse if the wall didn’t stop the car from moving or if McFadden continued to resist arrest at gunpoint.

McFadden earned $50 million in the NFL but now has a criminal record

Many NFL players do great things in retirement, but some choose a different path. As successful as McFadden was in the NFL, many fans will now remember him for this scary video.

McFadden played 10 years in the NFL. He recorded two 1,000-yard rushing seasons — one with the Raiders and one with the Cowboys. Over his professional career, McFadden earned $49.3 million in salary alone.

However, no amount of athletic success can shield you from the law. McFadden will forever be a convicted criminal, just as much as he will forever be a 1,000-yard rusher in the NFL.

Karl Malone has a pristine reputation as a Hall-of-Fame NBA player and 14-time All-Star. The only knock on Malone for so long was his inability to win a championship with the Utah Jazz, but there’s something darker from his past that’s been largely forgotten. When Malone was in college, he had a child with a 13-year-old girl. Instead of facing statutory rape charges or any legal penalties at all, Malone went on to become one of the greatest NBA players of all time.

Karl Malone had an incredible NBA career

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Karl Malone was fittingly nicknamed “The Mailman” because he always delivered. Looking back on his NBA career, that could not have been more true.

Malone played 19 seasons in the NBA, and he never averaged less than 13 points per game in a single year. Incredibly, Malone went 17 straight seasons in which he averaged over 20 points per game. In the last year of that streak, Malone was 39 years old.

Malone is the second-leading scorer in NBA history behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Malone’s consistency and scoring prowess made him one of the greatest NBA players of all time. He was one of the few stars who bested Michael Jordan for the league MVP award during Jordan’s prime.

The only accomplishment Malone failed to achieve was winning an NBA title. It still stands today as the biggest knock on the legendary power forward, but it shouldn’t be.

Malone had a child with a 13-year-old girl when he was in college

with the final chapters of The Last Dance ending in Utah I think it’s a good day to remind everyone that when Karl Malone was 20 he had a baby with a 13-year-old teen and never had a relationship with the boy.https://t.co/WklM6Eti1q

— Stephen Crockett Jr. (@SACrockettJr) May 18, 2020

Karl Malone attended Louisiana Tech University from 1982-1985. He scored 18.7 points and grabbed 9.3 rebounds per game during his college career, but there’s a major detail missing from his legacy.

While Malone was at Louisiana Tech, he reportedly impregnated a 13-year-old girl named Gloria Bell. In 1984, Bell gave birth to their son, Demetress. Malone was 20 years old at the time.

Gloria’s parents took Malone to court for paternity in 1986, but he was never charged with a crime or forced to pay any expenses. Malone eventually agreed to an out-of-court settlement with Bell’s family a few years later.

After the birth of his son, Malone refused to have a relationship with Demetress. The two didn’t meet until Bell was 17 years old.

“I grew up around good people,” Bell told ESPN in 2008. “I never turned to a father figure. I was lucky. I didn’t need one. I’m happy. I don’t need anything else.”

Karl Malone’s son Demetress went on to play in the NFL

This is Karl Malone’s son that he had by the 13 year old girl, Demetrese Bell… he was actually a pretty decent LT in the NFL. pic.twitter.com/J70YuBsiBn

— Biggie Longs (@ShawnTheDon8) May 18, 2020

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Despite not having a father figure growing up, Demetress Bell went on to become a star athlete like his paternal dad. He received a scholarship to play football at Northwestern State, and he even made the NFL down the road.

In 2008, Bell was drafted in the seventh round of the NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills. He played three seasons in Buffalo and one in Philadelphia before leaving the league in 2013. Bell started 25 games in his short professional career, but even reaching the NFL after his troubled childhood is an impressive feat.

Malone has never spoken publicly about Gloria and Demetress Bell. Obviously, he wanted to keep that part of his life a secret, and he did for the most part. He went on to have one of the greatest basketball careers we’ve ever seen, and he barely had to answer questions about his estranged family along the way.

Karl Malone will forever be remembered for what he did on the court, but we should never forget the person he was away from it.

All stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference

Kendrick Nunn is currently an NBA player, but the process for him was not easy. In his rookie season with the Miami Heat, Nunn has quickly become a top player on the team.

Before he got into the league, he faced some trouble off the court in college. During his junior year at the University of Illinois, Nunn was arrested and charged with domestic battery. But that incident didn’t stop his dreams from making it to the league.

Kendrick Nunn’s college basketball career

Going into college, Nunn was one of the top players in high school. He attended Simeon Career Academy in Chicago, Illinois. After a successful high school career, he went on to play at Illinois. As a freshman, he played in 35 games and averaged 6.2 points per game.

Going into his sophomore year, Nunn’s production improved on the court. He averaged 11.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game. Nunn started to grow as a player during his time at Illinois. As a junior, his numbers continued to improve, and he averaged 15.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game.

When Nunn was in his junior year, that’s when he got into some trouble. In 2016, Nunn was arrested and charged with domestic battery. The charges alleged that Nunn struck an alleged victim in the head, pushed her to the floor and held her by the neck. After he was charged, Illinois immediately dismissed him going into his senior year. So, Nunn was going into his senior year looking for a school to attend and play for.

Kendrick Nunn transferred to Oakland University

After he was dismissed from Illinois, he transferred to Oakland University and played on the basketball team. When he first transferred there, he had to sit out a year. During the 2017-18 season, Nunn had an exceptional senior season.

He led the NCAA in 3-point shooting averaging 4.47 3-point field goals made per game. Nunn also was second in the NCAA in points averaging 25.9 points per game. The player that was ahead of him in points per game was Trae Young. Nunn emerged as one of the top players in college playing at a mid-major school. He was voted the Horizon League Player of the Year and earned First Team All-League honors in 2018.

Kendrick Nunn’s path to the league

Going into the 2018 NBA draft, Nunn did not hear his name called. After going undrafted, Nunn signed a partially guaranteed contract with the Golden State Warriors. He landed a spot on their Summer League team and also received an invitation to their fall camp. The Warriors ended up releasing him in October 2018, and he was added to the Warriors G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors.

Nunn had success in the G League, and in 49 games, he averaged 19.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.4 steals. His performance in the G League allowed him to be picked up by the Miami Heat in April of 2019. Nunn was a professional scorer, and he knew how to score in multiple ways. The Heat took noticed of him and decided to take a chance on him.

When Nunn joined the Heat for the 2019-20 season, he did not waste any time during his rookie season. He made his NBA debut when he started in a 120-101 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies, and he finished that game with 24 points. Through his first five NBA games, he scored 112 points and broke the record for the most points scored in as many games by an undrafted player. In his 31st game with the Heat, he scored 504 points and became the fastest rookie to reach 500 points in franchise history.

Before the season was halted due to the coronavirus, Nunn was averaging 15.6 points, 3.4 assists, and 2.7 rebounds per game through 62 games in which he started all of them. Just a few years ago, he faced a domestic abuse charge, and now he’s having a successful rookie campaign in the league.

An unusual scandal has hit the football world. The United States Justice Department recently charged several former NFL players for attempting to defraud the league through its healthcare program. One of the more prominent players involved in the scandal was former Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis.

Several former players are facing major consequences for their parts in the alleged scheme. Portis is the most famous of the bunch, but fans may recognize others implicated, too. Let’s take a closer look at who’s involved, the charges, and Portis’s reaction. 

The NFL players involved in the scandal 

Portis began his career with the Denver Broncos but played most of it with the Washington Redskins. The running back finished his career with 75 touchdowns and nearly 10,000 rushing yards.

While Portis is a tossup for Hall of Fame honors, he was certainly a great player for a significant stretch of his NFL career. The following former players have also been named in the charges:

• Carlos Rogers
• Robert McCune
• John Eubanks
• Tamarick Vanover
• Ceandris Brown
• James Butler
• Frederick Bennett
• Correll Buckhalter
• Joe Horn
• Reche Caldwell
• Etric Pruitt

While some of these retired players are more famous than others, they were all named in the scandal by news outlets like NBC Sports Washington. But what, specifically, are the charges? 

The fraud charges against Clinton Portis and others

NBC Sports Washington reported that the Justice Department charged 10 players with defrauding the NFL’s retired player healthcare program: 

“The news broke Thursday morning when the Eastern District of Kentucky alleged that the retired players submitted fraudulent claims for medical equipment costing between $40,000-50,000 to the Gene Upshaw NFL Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan.”

The indictment said the NFL players in question filed the fraudulent claims from June 2017 through December 2018. The claims were for $3.9 million and the plan distributed $3.4 million in funds to the players. 

The reason this scandal is so serious? It goes beyond rumor and hearsay; it involves a federal crime, which comes with costly penalties including heavy fines and potential jail time. So what did Portis have to say in his defense to such a serious accusation?  

Clinton Portis’ reaction to the fraud charges against him

Clinton Portis attorney, Mark Dycio, says the former running back is innocent. Via @jjouvenal: “Clinton Portis had no knowledge that his participation in what he believed to be an NFL sanctioned medical reimbursement program was illegal.”

— Rick Maese (@RickMaese) December 12, 2019

Portis had two reactions: one from his attorney and the other directly from him. His lawyer, Mark Dycio, released this statement via the Washington Post: 

“Clinton Portis had no knowledge that his participation in what he believed to be an NFL sanctioned medical reimbursement program was illegal. He is completely taken aback by this indictment and will move forward with the process of clearing his good name and those of his fellow NFL alumni.”

Portis regularly appears on local Washington, D.C. media outlets to discuss the Redskins.

In a recent appearance on D.C.’s top sports radio station, 106.7 the Fan, he defended himself, claiming the charges were simply untrue: “I honestly don’t have anything to say. I just would hope that people that’s familiar with me … would know better. It’s some stuff that you see and you know exactly what it is.”

Portis also used a term commonly thrown around by both media outlets and President Trump, referring to the charges as “fake news.” The federal government clearly doesn’t agree. It’ll be interesting to see how the case plays out.