Despite being a two-time NBA champion and All-Star that played for the Los Angeles Lakers, the second most successful team in the National Basketball Association history, Andrew Bynum is better remembered for his feuds with and the lingering knee problems that cut his career short as well as the lack of maturity and motivation to push himself to play the game at the highest level.
The 7 feet tall, 285 pounds heavy center position player, who was the youngest player ever play in the NBA having been drafted straight from high school, was selected by the Lakers with the 10th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft. Read on to find out more about his early beginnings and how he fared in the league.
Andrew Bynum Bio
Andrew Bynum was born to Ernest Bynum and Janet McCoy on the 27th of October, 1987 in Plainsboro Township, New Jersey. Following his parents’ divorce when he was just a year old, Bynum was raised by just his mother although he did spend summers visiting his father who moved and lived in North Carolina.
Due to his size, while growing up, Bynum was destined to have a career in sports. He attended West Windsor Plainsboro High School North in Plainsboro, New Jersey for half of his freshman year before transferring to Solebury School in Solebury, Pennsylvania. He completed his freshman and sophomore years here before moving to St. Joseph High School, in Metuchen, New Jersey where he completed his junior and senior year. It was also during his time at St. Joseph that Bynum became a dominant high school basketball player.
In his junior year, Andrew Bynum averaged 16.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 6.0 blocks per game. In his senior year, he averaged 22.4 points, 16.8 rebounds and 5.3 blocks per game. His performances earned him a spot at the 2005 McDonald’s All-American game where he went on to record 9 points and 5 rebounds. Following his graduation from high school, Bynum became one of the most talked about prospective college basketball players. Many high-profile schools struggled to get him to play for their program, but Bynum opted to attend the University of Connecticut. His decision to attend Connecticut was soon reversed as the then 17-year-old high school graduate decided to declare himself eligible for the 2005 NBA Draft following projections that he was going to be a high ranked pick.
The Los Angeles Lakers were the team that opted to take a chance with Andrew Bynum as they selected him with the 10th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, making him the youngest player ever drafted to an NBA team. He went on to further become the youngest player ever to play in an NBA game when he played in the Lakers’ season opener against the Denver Nuggets. In his rookie season, Bynum averaged 1.6 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 0.5 blocks in 46 games. Bynum was able to show massive improvements in the following years, averaging 7.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game in 82 games in his second year, and then 13.1 points and 10.2 rebounds per game in 35 games in his third year.
Despite having a few knee injury troubles that sidelined him for a number of games, Bynum was able to help his team win back to back NBA Championships in 2008-09 and 2009-10. He stayed with the Lakers for two more years before he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. Unfortunately, Bynum did not get to play a single game for the 76ers as one problem after another kept developing in both his knees. In July 2013, he signed for the Cleveland Cavaliers and managed to appear in 24 games before he was traded away. In February 2014, he joined the Indiana Pacers but only managed to play in two games before his knee problems resurfaced. He has since then not played another professional game of basketball.
What Happened To Him, Where Is He Now?
Nothing was heard about Andrew Bynum ever since it was announced he was parting ways with the Indiana Pacers franchise in May 2014. However, in Spetember 2018, there were multiple reports stating that the 2012 All-NBA Second Team member was looking to make a comeback to the NBA. It was reported that Bynum had hired an agent and was scheduling workouts with different teams prior to training camps for the 2018-19 season.
Bynum, who turned 31 in October 2018, is not too old to feature in the NBA, however, what will worry teams who could be looking to bring in his talent to their franchise, is his persistent knee injuries, above all other things.
