Antawn Jamison Biography Antawn Jamison biography Growing up
By his mother
Antawn’s father and I ran a very strict household when Antawn was growing up. We weren’t mean, but we were very strict. He’ll be the first to tell you. We’ve always been a very religious family - we made sure he was in church every Sunday.
Antawn was a very big kid growing up. He was always the tallest kid in his class and usually one of the skinniest. He was a very fat baby though! He was so chubby. Then when he was about three he thinned out and has been skinny since then. He probably hit his first big growth spurt when he was 12 years old. When he was in the ninth grade, he really started growing.
People might not know this, but Antawn is a major junk food addict! He was and is always still eating junk food. He used to get candy, cookies and honey buns and hide them under in his room under his bed. (Eating junk food) That was his only hobby other than playing basketball. He always stayed out of trouble. He never got into any fights with anyone other than his sister. I don’t really remember, but she’ll tell you that Twan used to hit her for nothing. She said that she was always getting the beating for something that Antawn always started.
He’s always been very mature and mannerable. We always taught him to say ’yes sir’and ’yes maam.’ I’m proud to say that he listened to us and that he still uses good manners. He always wanted to play basketball growing up. I can remember when he was two or three years old, he had one of those little adjustable basketball goals with the little styrofoam balls and was always playing with it more than anything else. He’s always had a basketball goal of some kind around - out in the yard or in the house. When he got up to Quail Hollow, he played football. He was a quarterback there for about two years. He really enjoyed it. His team did okay, but they did much better in basketball.
He attended high school at Providence High, in Charlotte, NC. I think he had a pretty good time in high school. He was always the center of attention. I think it may have bothered his high school girlfriends sometimes, but he seemed to enjoy it.
Antawn wasn’t really in many clubs growing up that I can remember. He was just always really interested in playing basketball. I can’t think of any really memorable games that Antawn played in high school because I didn’t attend a single one of them. I couldn’t go. The games made me nervous and my stomach queasy and I couldn’t stand it. Antawn’s father went to every one of them and recorded them. When he got home from the game, I would always watch them on tape.
He started getting major interests from colleges to play basketball when he was a sophomore in high school. He had boxes and boxes of letters from colleges that were interested in him. I really didn’t know much about the schools that were interested in him so its tough to say I had a preference for any particular college I wanted him to attend.
I just wanted to make sure that Antawn got a good education and that the school he chose would assure that. I also wanted him to be happy and as long as he was happy, I’d be happy for him. After Dean Smith came to visit and talk to us - Antawn really knew that he wanted to go to UNC and play for him. After we spoke with Coach Smith, we knew that he was the kind of coach that Antawn needed. It couldn’t have been a better fit!
Antwan never thought about going straight from high school to the pros, not even once. His father and I weren’t having it! We’ve always stressed education first. When he eventually went on to college and left early for the pros, he promised us that he would come back and get his diploma. We knew that if he gave us his word that he would not let us down.
Going to the Pros
By his mother
 When Antwan was drafted fourth by the Toronto Raptors, I was a little disappointed because I wanted him to be closer. He was also upset because he wanted to be closer too. Then when he got traded to Golden State, we just figured that we had to deal with what we had been dealt. We had no idea that he was going to be traded. We were all back there trading hats. I’m really glad that he didn’t end up in Toronto to be honest. I’m not trying to bad mouth Canada or the city of Toronto but that’s where the draft was and it was cold. I didn’t like the weather or the difference in currency. They would have been able to cheat me out of my money for the rest of my life because I couldn’t keep up with it. I’d have to keep a calculator on me at all times!
I think he’s very happy in California. We haven’t really been able to travel there much or to see him play at other places because his younger brother is still in school. We probably went to visit him four times during his rookie year.
I don’t think that Antawn liked being with Golden State at first. He wasn’t getting playing time as he had been accustomed to all of his life. He was struggling with playing another position (small forward as opposed to power forward). I know that the fact that he wasn’t playing and that his team was playing so badly was somewhat depressing for him. But he adapted, and improved his game little by little each year. He came back to Charlotte and spent the summer at home that year.
Sometimes, I think that all of the losing with the Warriors affects him. I think it would affect anyone. When they are winning, no one thinks about losing. I know that sometimes when they play hard and get so close to winning and then lose it in the end, it is upsetting. He always calls after each game. He’s usually a little down and out when he calls especially after they’ve lost a close game. When he calls after the team has won, he is so happy that I can hear it in his voice. As long as they win some of them, he’s a little happy.
I know that this year, has been somewhat upsetting for him because the organization was hoping to be better. They started out well by defeating the Spurs and then started losing again. They started out this way last season by winning one more game than they had before in the early half of the year. Then they came out after the All-Star break and could barely win a game. Despite the team’s record, Antawn gives all he can on the court and that makes us proud of him.
I remember when Antawn scored 51 points in back to back games. We were so proud of him! That was so unbelievable. He called after each of those games, but especially after the second game when they defeated the Lakers. They had lost the first of those two, against Seattle, but he was still excited when we spoke with him. That was the year that he didn’t make the All-Star team. He was so close and he really expected to be chosen. It was really disappointing for him. It didn’t bother us because he got to come home and visit us. We like to see him every chance we get, even if he means he misses the All-Star game. Biography and pictures courtesy of AntawnJamison.net
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