(In this case, an ex-girlfriend of Kiefer's told her.) After competing in Australia, Sykes was recruited by former Syracuse star Eric Devendorf to play for the Oranges alumni team, Boeheim's Army, in The Basketball Tournament. Reach him via email: jboyd1@gannett.com. Keifer Sykes #28 of the Indiana Pacers dribbles the ball while being guarded by Chris Paul #3 of the Phoenix Suns in the third quarter at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Jan. 14, 2022, in Indianapolis. "She's the key to being married, to being a dad. That wasn't the case with a 7-footer at Louisiana Tech named Joniah White. Keifer, along with six of his siblings and half-siblings, took the red line train with mom and dad to City Hall. The sport is now, has long been, and will continue to be populated by men who are fathers well before they are emotionally and financially ready for the task. Keifer Sykes was born on December 30, 1993. He quickly capitalized on his opportunity. It's nothing else but about KJ.". Keifer Sykes weighs 180 lbs (81 kg). I went to basketball for free college. Hed come so close in the past and inched even closer with a shot that turned him into an overnight sensation. She took care of everybody.. "That was the hardest part, telling her, and the first thing she said was, 'She's going to be cute.'". To report about any issues in our articles, please feel free toContact Us. Crawford's son lives in Memphis. Due to his success, he was invited to the 2016 NBA D-League Elite Camp. Its all demonstrated in the documentary, Carlisle said after the game. Upon returning to Marshall whose alumni includes "Hoop Dreams" documentary star Arthur Agee, Timberwolves guard Patrick Beverly and two-time WNBA champion Cappie Pondexter Sykes gifted his former coaches and teachers a Pacers jersey as a thank you for believing in him and laying the foundation for his path to the NBA. Gathers saved up his scholarship checks ($400 per month) and Pell Grant money to help pay Bria's rent, which came to nearly $800/month. 28 jerseys with his best friend. "She was really scared to tell me," Dawson said of his girlfriend's pregnancy. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,600],'biographyhost_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_1',164,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-biographyhost_com-medrectangle-4-0'); Throughout his career, Sykesrepresentedseveral basketball clubs worldwide like Anyang KGC (Korean Basketball league), Ankara DSI (Turkish Club), Felice Scandone (Italian Club), etc. [14] On September 28, 2015, he signed with the San Antonio Spurs,[15] only to be waived by the team on October 21 after appearing in three preseason games. One of Sykes signature moments came when he scored five points a dagger 3 and layup on back-to-back plays in overtime of a dramatic 121-117 upset win against Stephen Curry and the Warriors at Chase Center on Jan. 20. The little guy is now doing better and just turned three months old. Without her, I wouldn't have been as successful as I have been this year.". Sykes was selected in the second round of the 2016 Korean Basketball League by the Anyang Korea Ginseng Corporation, taking a 15-hour trip across the world that began a roughly five-year journey abroad. Bell's boy already loves basketball. Every year he's gotten better at balancing and understanding that. However, Wanamaker struggled in the 22 games he appeared in, averaging 3.5 points on 36.1% . And like Dawson and Sykes, he's a pro prospect. Where the family is. No one taught Branden Dawson how to be a father. Like Sykes, Dawson's been a father since he was a junior in high school. He'll want to turn to ESPN and watch a basketball game. Like Sykes, he opted not to turn pro early despite having a child to feed. Trivante Bloodman is a 22-year-old senior guard from Harlem who's barely been able to sleep in the past week. Come August, Keifer will be three months removed from college. "Everything that she did for us, losing my dad, taking care of everybody she deserves this more than anybody. They think, 'that's what I eat, so that's what the baby should eat.' He and his wife/high school sweetheart, Laura, are expecting. [28], On August 5, 2021, Sykes signed a contract with the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Sykes could match upagainst his "best friend" for the first time in the NBA when Indiana hosts Chicago on Feb. 4. I remember being cut by the Pacers (before the season) and having to tell my son that I got cut, feeling like I just got cut in front of everybody, and I still had to do a seventh- and eighth-grade camp the next day. ins.style.display='block';ins.style.minWidth=container.attributes.ezaw.value+'px';ins.style.width='100%';ins.style.height=container.attributes.ezah.value+'px';container.appendChild(ins);(adsbygoogle=window.adsbygoogle||[]).push({});window.ezoSTPixelAdd(slotId,'stat_source_id',44);window.ezoSTPixelAdd(slotId,'adsensetype',1);var lo=new MutationObserver(window.ezaslEvent);lo.observe(document.getElementById(slotId+'-asloaded'),{attributes:true}); In Chicago, Illinois, USA, the NBA G League player Sykes wasbornon 30 December 1993. This is a blessed, beautiful evening, and it's blessed and beautiful because it ends the way Sykes wants every game to end: with a boisterous embrace of his son, Keifer Sykes Jr. KJ, they call him. He'll have his headstone then, and he'll have his son and grandson touching it. Although Sykes has not brought details of his wife in light, he is a father to his son Hugo and daughter Zarah. I didn't have goals to go further. There's more to life than basketball. WATCH: Dog makes mess at Louisville halftime show, Updates: Four conference tournaments in action Tuesday, Bracketology: Boise State boosts its standing, Alabama vs. Auburn odds, picks, prediction, bets, Top 25 And 1: Bill Self continues to cement legacy, Court Report: Strange resumes, best turnarounds, Nate Oats says Bama players explained pat-down, March Madness starts with game-winner at buzzer, AP Top 25: Marquette moves up; UK back in rankings, Legendary former Virginia coach Terry Holland dies. He knows all about long drives on weekends to steal time with a child. "Keifer Sykes was a +27," Pacers assistant coach Mike Weinar said when spotlighting players who were effective in a summer league win over the Wizards. Sykes won the 2015 Horizon League player of the year to join the elite company of players to win the award twice. Sykes said he also shared a moment over the phone Thursday night with fellow Chicago native and former high school and collegeteammate Alfonzo McKinnie, who now playsfor the Bulls. As of 2021, he is representing Fort Wayne Mad Ants, a professional basketball team of Indiana. Harrington praised Sykes for his resiliency throughout his triumphant but often tough career. In the 2017-18 season, Sykes played for Ankara DS S.K. For some, this is a touchy subject. And as I have witnessed in recent days, the documentary is being augmented with a videographer. [19], In the summer of 2016, Sykes joined the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Summer League. Even when I was younger, he would just always affirm my greatness, Sykes said. His daughter Zarah has just turned six years old on 22 September 2021. Antetokounmpo leads Milwaukee against Brooklyn after 45-point game. You cant eat before somebody whos older than you, you gotta bow, you cant drink alcohol in front of older people; it was just a full-blown different culture. Manage Settings You gotta be a hero to do that, to stand up in front of these kids and let them know like, I got cut from the NBA yesterday, but Imma keep pushing and try to make it, and then come back later and show them that I made it. Turning 5 will be the milestone. Anderson is banking on landing a pro contract overseas this spring or summer. KJ doesn't know just yet how his grandfather died -- or even what death is, or that people disappear from the world in abrupt and unfair ways. Why do the Pacers keep losing close games? The child's mother, Cecilia, and members of both parents' families crammed into a hospital room and glanced back and forth between watching a father on TV and keeping an eye on T.J. sleep with tubes and probes keeping him alive. Dawson grew up with a mother who loved him dearly and worked at a local hospital -- the same one My'Shawn was born at -- but there was a wall of fear he couldn't mount. He's brand new to this game. The ones, even in his inner circle, who repeatedly toldhim he'd never make it to the NBA. They want me to stay overseas to make more money for them. The contract became guaranteed. August 5, 2020. The next thing I know I hear the coaches banging on the door. "The milk is spilt all over the place," she recalled saying. I'm still frustrated we lost, but now I'm like, that's over with. He left a big mark on his teammates. Johnson has two teammates, Markel Crawford and Trahson Burrell, who are fathers. He so reminds me of Keifer.". I didnt go somewhere that eased me into it. Mitchell said he keeps in touch with Sykes and, because of the time difference between the U.S. and Australia, the Phoenix often watch Pacers games when they get out of practice in the afternoon. "Because if dont nobody else deserve it, Keifer deserves it., Sykes has totaled 33 games in his NBA career, 10 of which he didnt play in. "When she told me, I kind of freaked out. Gathers, who's likely to return for his senior season, said his household of three is living off $15,000 per year. The sacrifices she made, man. But since Sykes' family felt he was already being overlooked due to his stature, they decided to send him an hour across town to Marshall on the West Side, where his dream of being a basketball star had a better chance of flourishing. Keifer will look at his son. But that nightmare hasn't ended, neither has the pain. In college, Keifer Sykes wrote RIP DAD on his socks, and if there's room, he'll write that same message on his sneakers so his father is always with him on the court. of the Basketball Super League. Where was Keifer Sykes born? Sykes joined Indianas G League affiliate, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, and clawed his way back to the Pacers, who eventually signed him to a guaranteed deal for the rest of the 2021-22 season. Bloodman's long been saving for this. 2023 www.indystar.com. There are dads playing at Minnesota and UNC Wilmington. I was an All-Star, we won the regular-season (league) title and postseason title, but over there its so cutthroat, Sykes said. She took in five kids, taking care of my kids when I told her I wanted to play college basketball. Hes so well-rounded. Sharp -- who's completed his Mormon mission obligations and is a 24-year-old senior on a team that in recent years has seen half its roster filled with married men -- saw little Jaycee Sharp come into the world 30 minutes after midnight on Oct. 1, 2014. It's Feb. 26, 2015, the night Green Bay's Keifer Sykes plays his final game in his hometown area, in front of a band of family and friends. Im doing what I do as a mom and thats to provide for my children and back them in everything they do, Lisa Sykes said. However, they waived him on 21 October of the same year, after three preseason games. As Sykes sat in the Pacers' practice facility after shootaround Tuesday, he laughed as he reflected on his Italian team, Scandone Avellino, going bankrupt after the 2018-19 season and failing to pay its players their full salaries. All coaches who were asked estimated that more than half the teams in Division I men's basketball currently have at least one player who is father, or a father-to-be, on their roster. One team has a player with two children born from two women three months apart. Gathers recalls now the way he won her over -- by attending her 16th birthday party and jokingly signing a basketball for her as a present. It's a boy, and they're down to two names with two months to go. After shining with the Austin Spurs throughout the 2015-16 campaign, Sykes joined the Warriors for the 2016 Summer League, but he wasnt picked up by Golden State or another franchise ahead of the season. Though each situation is different, if there was one player whose circumstances most resembled Sykes', it's Dawson's. When was Keifer Sykes born? Sykes was waived by the Pacers on Wednesday, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports. We come from poverty. I was at the back and people didnt believe in me, but my dad always believed in me and always affirmed me.. After Keifer impregnated his former girlfriend, Allyne, he was horrified to tell mom. And whatever makes the mother happy, it's all about making the child happy. "So she just told me congratulations. The undersized guard scored a career- and team-high22 points Tuesday against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden and went toe-to-toe Wednesday with Nets superstar Kyrie Irving, who made his season debut in Indianapolis. Perfect place for an unforgettable night in a tiny, half-filled gym, Illinois-Chicago's UIC Pavilion. , Im not forgetting these things. On August 3, 2019, Sykes signed with the Guangzhou Loong Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association. Almost every player interviewed for this story was scared to tell mom. One afternoon Keifer was on the green line, headed back home, when he got a call. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. There are major facets to these players' lives that are never seen, seldom known, but emotionally significant signposts toward personal growth and elemental struggle. With the championship and money on the line, he drained the game-winning 3 to lift Boeheims army to a 69-67 walk-off victory. Sykes said his mother will be in attendance for his sixthNBA game and first asaguaranteed player Saturday night when the Pacers host Utah at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. A young man will ask his boy about his father. Keifer Jerail Sykes (born December 30, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Motor City Cruise of the NBA G League. I see my daughter come out to the world.". The two remain close, and Harrington said hes thankful the gun violence that changed his life didnt have the same effect on the player he nicknamed Special K., I just started calling him Special K because I knew that kid had something special about him, Harrington said. Some schools turned down interview requests. "He just needed somewhere to show everybody what he was capable of. Another team lost a player in the middle of the night, without warning, because he was given an ultimatum by the child's mother. "We want to young parents, to be young grandparents, all of that," Anderson said. He kept it from her as long as possible; the "entire school" knew about it, but she didn't. (Without prompt, Sykes publicly defended his coach throughout the ordeal.). Pacers swingmen Torrey Craig, Justin Anderson enter NBA's COVID-19 protocols, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. "A curious boy who loves to be around his cousins. For me, my pride in him is just on his self-belief and determination.. "Loved James Sykes. I was kind of sad. Rhode Island and Nevada. "I didn't want to do it. Sykes cashes a deep 3-pointer as time expires at the end of the first half. At the conclusion of the regular season, Sykes was again named first team all-conference, he was named an honorable mention AP All-American, and was named Horizon Player of the Year. Go to college, live your life. "He's absolutely like his dad," Lisa Sykes said of her youngest. I couldnt tell you that he was going to make a million-dollar shot or make it to the NBA, but from the time he was 13-years-old and getting ready to come to high school, I knew that boy was special., I asked #Suns star Devin Booker about his relationship with #Pacers rookie Keifer Sykes. "And when the baby came out, man, it was so cool to be part of that atmosphere," Freeman said. Sykes is featured in the 2018 documentary film Chi-Town, produced and directed by Nick Budabin. Flash to Feb. 12, 2015, and Freeman's sleeping in the chair next to Kylee, awaiting his miracle. These are the guys helping Dawson, watching the little one when he's away, driving My'Shawn to and from pre-K school sessions. Keifer Sykes was born on 30 December, 1993 in Chicago, Illinois, United States, is an American basketball player. He admits now it was a lot to go through. [4], From his freshman year in 201112, Sykes was immediately inserted into the Phoenix starting lineup, and was also the youngest player in the nation, let alone youngest starter. It's a dimension some critics didn't realize when they were all too eager to bemoan Dawson's performance in MSU's loss last Sunday at Wisconsin, wherein Dawson had four points and two rebounds. Because a lot of people dont even know the half of what it took for me to be here. Once my brother left, I went to school by myself. But mom? Every time dad gets home, son takes it right to the hoop. "I didn't expect much out of basketball," Sykes said. Sykes became the only active player in the nation with 2,000+ points, 500+ assists, and 400+ rebounds. Follow IndyStar Pacers beat writer James Boyd on Twitter:@RomeovilleKid. It's a lot of bloodshed in my city, a lot people dying, and I feel like God placed me in this position also to shed light on those things and to show that some people are able to be talented and get out, but some people aren't. Buchanan flew into Detroit after Sunday's Rams practice, then spent his Monday helplessly pacing around the University of Michigan Medical Center as his 18-week-old son underwent open-heart surgery. When I was like, Oh, Im small, he was like, Nah, you can go to the NBA. Stephen A. Smith discusses why the Lakers are a better . Sykes, who went undrafted in 2015, signed a two-year contract with the Pacers last month after a strong season with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the NBA G League. The next day, Bloodman played 18 minutes against Kentucky. American NBA Player, Representative of Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Indiana. Keifer Sykes scanned the gym at Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois, watching as grade school children ran around playing basketball the game thats taken him around the world but never kept him away from home. Sykes studied at Marshall High School, where he started playing basketball. Keifer Sykes scanned the gym at Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois, watching as grade school children ran around playing basketball the game that's taken him around the world but. [9] A loss in the Horizon League tournament, due in part to a Sykes injury, led the Phoenix to missing an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament and playing in the National Invitation Tournament. You'd be amazed at what these guys don't know about parenting. He converted a traditional 3-point play when he drove, banked a shot and got a free throw, too. You can go D-I. These were things that I had doubts of. He's the boss.". "Those of us that know his story, (it's) very compelling, and this is a culmination of a lot of work and a big dream.". After being cut, Sykes could've left Indianapolis for good and focused . When Sykes joined the Phoenix, they were an expansion team in Year 2 of their development, and according to Mitchell, no one expected much from them or Sykes. Sykes spent one season in South Korea, but he said that was just the beginning of the hardships he faced as he continued playing in Italy, Greece, Turkey and China. The two met in middle school in Louisiana, and remained close friends until things turned romantic midway through high school. He was on a trip for a basketball tournament, and that's when he called his mother at work. It wasn't a happy cry. Sykes elevated his play in the postseason, including a game in which he recorded 31 points and 6 steals in a 26-point comeback in a win-or-go-home game 3. My own agents telling me that I'm not gonna play in the NBA. So they bring the other (American) player in and start working him out so they can be ready and they tell you whatever games you have that week, and at the end of the week they decide to keep you or cut you. I cant do that. Keifer's always been a person purely at comfort around family and only his family. The biggest help to me is my wife. Of course he was worried about telling mom. I was afraid to tell my mom.". At one point, a boy asked the Indiana Pacers guard to follow him on Instagram. A lot of people don't see the world until college. "More basketball players have the opportunity to have sex with more girls. Every mom always finds out. "The rim looked so small. Its really not about the NBA, Sykes says. I knew my mom couldn't afford college. So this is gonna be my first time playing 2K.". Don't do what I did.'". var cid='2438531626';var pid='ca-pub-3621518944223410';var slotId='div-gpt-ad-biographyhost_com-medrectangle-3-0';var ffid=2;var alS=2021%1000;var container=document.getElementById(slotId);container.style.width='100%';var ins=document.createElement('ins');ins.id=slotId+'-asloaded';ins.className='adsbygoogle ezasloaded';ins.dataset.adClient=pid;ins.dataset.adChannel=cid;if(ffid==2){ins.dataset.fullWidthResponsive='true';} He worries about his 4-year-old son, Keifer Jr., who lives in a neighborhood in Chicago that Sykes knows is violent. Sharp and his wife, Jordan, planned the pregnancy. [30], On December 27, 2021, Sykes signed with the Indiana Pacers for the remainder of the season. Stephen A.: Lakers won't advance beyond play-in without LeBron. So it's just amazing. Like Sykes, he's a senior NBA prospect. That 's when he 's a boy asked the Indiana Pacers guard to follow him Instagram... 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