Jamal Mashburn: The Legend of Monster Mash
Many kids in this social media generation won’t recognize the name Jamal Mashburn at all. In my era, Mashburn was one of the best basketball players to come out of New York City and was one of guys many of my peers looked up to. He went to Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx, NYC and later starred at the University of Kentucky where he absolutely destroyed the competition. By his Junior year at Kentucky, Mashburn would be the 4th leading scorer in school history and a consensus First Team All American. That year he would lead his team to the NCAA final four and following that run, declare himself eligible for the 1993 NBA Draft.
Jamal Mashburn was unstoppable at the University of Kentucky. This led him to be drafted 4th overall by the Dallas Mavericks. Photo USA today
With the 4th pick in that ‘93 draft the Dallas Mavericks selected Mashburn. Dallas would eventually form a trio of All Star caliber players with Mashburn,Jason Kidd, and Jim Jackson collectively known as “The three J’s”. Mashburn would dominate the opposition on a nightly basis and in his second season would average 24.1 points a game, which was good enough at that time for 6th in the league in scoring. He was a scoring machine and broke many franchise records which allowed him blossom into one of the best scoring forwards in the league. Despite playing at an All Star level, the Mavericks would miss the playoffs in a very competitive Western Conference. An eventual injury would sideline Mashburn for the majority of the ‘95-‘96 season and before long it seemed as if Dallas maybe wasn’t the place for Mashburn. The following season he was traded to the Miami Heat.
The 3 J’s as they were known was Mashburn’s first taste of the NBA. They had success but were eventually broken apart and traded away. Photo sportsday.dallasnews.com
The Pat Riley led Heat were loaded with talent. They had Tim Hardaway, Alonzo Morning and a gang of role players that gave them a great chance to contend for a championship. That first year Miami beat out the Orlando Magic in the first round of the playoffs and later took the NY Knicks to 7 games in their playoffs matchup. They made their first Eastern Conference Finals that year and faced Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls who ruined the chances for many good players and teams in the east, including Mashburn and the Heat that year. The Bulls eventually won the series 4-1. Even though Chicago looked to have a lock on the East, you couldn’t count out Pat Riley. Riley could attract free agents and put some pieces together. This Miami team showed that they were going to be a force to reckon with for years to come in the tough Eastern Conference.
Jamal Mashburn of the Miami Heat (R) shoots over Marcus Canby of the New York Knicks (L). Miami Heat coach Pat Riley watches the play at right rear. Photo credit STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images
Everybody in the league respected Jamal Mashburn for his killer instinct and scoring prowess. He showed flashes of greatness in Miami but once the injuries started to mount he became expendable. The Heat would eventually deal Mashburn to the Hornets. This move gave Jamal a fresh start with a team where he was the focal point and leader. In 2003 he had his best statistical year averaging 21.6 ppg, which led him to his first and only All Star appearance. Playing with the Hornets really revitalized his career but injuries caught up with him. He was bothered by knee problems that kept sidelining him. Trying to recover from these knee problems he was traded again, this time to the Philadelphia 76ers. Mashburn was never able to recover from his chronic knee problems and never saw court time for Philadelphia. He would end up calling it quits after 13 years in the league. Since retiring in 2004, he has become one of the league’s best life-after-basketball stories.
Today Jamal Mashburn is a very successful businessman and owns 37 Papa John’s, 34 Outback Steakhouses, three Dunkin’ Donuts and the largest Toyota dealership in Kentucky. Photo Black Enterprise
Today, Jamal Mashburn is a legend for so much more than just basketball. He has launched a number of different business ventures including purchasing 34 Outback Steakhouse franchises, 37 Papa John’s franchises, 3 Dunkin Donuts franchises, a number of real estate investments and a few car dealerships across the state of Kentucky. He also is a Board Member of the ROI Acquisition Corporation and the FairBridge Hotels International. There are so many stories of athletes who made enormous amounts of money during their careers only to wind up with nothing after they retire. “Everyone can’t be blessed with a 6’8 frame and natural athletic abilities. For me, the pursuit of becoming a professional basketball player was always a means to an end. While honing my basketball skills as a boy, I also aspired to one day become a successful businessman who carried a briefcase to work” Mashburn said. While most athletes were spending money and living a luxurious day to day life, Mashburn was strategizing and thinking about life after basketball.
Mashburn is a very humble guy and took time out of his busy day to speak with me. Photo ATH Media
When I finally got a chance to meet Mashburn in person we didn’t speak about his days in the NBA, nor did we speak about his All Star appearance. We spoke about his business acumen and I made sure I told him how much of a positive role model he was for making it out of the Colonial Houses in Harlem, NYC to the point where he is today. He told me “I was one of the lucky ones. I had a good support system around me who wanted to see me win“. Just like any basketball team, you need the right people to earn any success. “…I made sure I had the right people around me so that there was no other option other than success”. He has assembled a group of professionals specializing in administration, finance, project management, insurance, and advertising. On and off the court Jamal Mashburn is a winner. We salute him and support him 100%.