God Shammgod (born April 29, 1976), formerly known by the alias Shammgod Wells, is an American basketball coach and former professional player. He is currently a player development coach with the Dallas Mavericks. He played in the NBA with the Washington Wizards during 1997–98 after being drafted by them in the second round (46th overall pick) of the 1997 NBA draft.[1] He played in the Chinese Basketball Association for several teams, including the Zhejiang Cyclones[2] and Shanxi Yujun. He also played professionally in Poland and Saudi Arabia.[3] Despite a brief NBA career, he is well-remembered as the progenitor and namesake of a widely used crossover dribble, the "Shammgod",[4] although the move, known in Europe as "The Whip", was already used earlier by former Yugoslavian players Dragan Kićanović and Danko Cvjeticanin and later popularized by Dejan Bodiroga.[5]
Playing career
High school
While known as Shammgod Wells, he played high school basketball at La Salle Academy in Manhattan. His teammates at La Salle Academy included future NBA player Metta World Peace (then known as Ron Artest) and former Providence College center Karim Shabazz. He was selected to the 1995 McDonald's All-American Team and recorded nine points in the All-American game.[6] He also played with Kobe Bryant during a summer on an AAU team.
College
Shammgod played for two seasons at Providence College, where he averaged 10.3 PPG for his college career. He was selected to the Big East All-Rookie Team as a freshman in 1996 after setting the Big East freshman assist record, which has since been broken.[7] As a sophomore, Shammgod teamed with future NBA player Austin Croshere in leading the Friars to the 1997 Elite Eight, where they lost to eventual NCAA champion Arizona in overtime. Shammgod registered 23 points and five assists while matching up against future NBA player Mike Bibby in the loss.[8]
Professional career
Shammgod appeared in 20 games for the Washington Wizards in 1997–98. Shammgod later played in the Chinese Basketball Association.[9] Most of his professional playing career was spent outside of the United States.
Coaching career
Shammgod reenrolled at Providence in 2012 to complete his undergraduate studies and earned a Bachelor's degree in Leadership Development in May 2015. He served as an undergraduate student assistant on Ed Cooley's staff and has been credited with playing a role in the development of Bryce Cotton and Kris Dunn.[10]
Name
Shammgod's birth name is God Shammgod. Often teased for his highly unusual name during childhood, he went by Shammgod Wells (using his mother's maiden name) throughout high school. When he enrolled at Providence, he was informed he would have to register under his legal name. Because it would have cost $600 to change his legal name to Shammgod Wells, Shammgod stopped using the alias.[11]
