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Sean McCaw

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Sean McCaw
Personal information
Born (1973-07-26) July 26, 1973 (age 51)
Queens, New York, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / Austrian
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High schoolWestern (Las Vegas, Nevada)
College
NBA draft1995: undrafted
Playing career1995–2008
PositionPower forward / center
Number32, 7
Coaching career2008–2016
Career history
As player:
1995–1999Kapfenberg Bulls
1999–2000Traiskirchen Lions
2000–2001Rueil Athletic Club Basket
2001Aveiro Esgueira
2001–2002CAB Madeira
2002–2003Baskets Oldenburg
2003Kapfenberg Bulls
2003–2004Leicester Riders
2004–2006Geneva Devils
2006–2008Science City Jena
As coach:
2008Science City Jena
2009–2012Medi Bayreuth – youth
2012–2013Cuxhaven BasCats (assistant)
2013–2016Löwen Braunschweig – youth
Career highlights and awards

Sean Jamel McCaw (born Sean Allen;[1] July 26, 1973) is an American-Austrian former professional basketball player and coach. His professional playing career spanned from 1995 to 2008 and his coaching career spanned from 2008 to 2016. McCaw's career took him to Austria, France, Germany, Portugal, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. During his college career in the United States, McCaw was named the 1995 American West Conference Player of the Year.

He currently resides in Germany with his family and works as an educator at an international school.[2]

Playing career

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High school

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McCaw was born in New York City but grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada. He attended Western High School from 1987 to 1991 but only played basketball his senior season due to academic ineligibility his first three years.[3] In his lone season, McCaw averaged 16.6 points and 11.2 rebounds per game and also set the school single season blocked shots record with 163.[3] The Western High Warriors also won their second of back-to-back Class 3A state titles.[3] McCaw was named first-team all-state.[4]

College

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A month after his senior season ended, McCaw signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the University of Arizona Wildcats without having visited the school.[3][4] He wanted to play for the alma mater of his basketball idol, Sean Elliott,[4] and was the "least publicized of the Wildcat recruits."[4]

McCaw's freshman season was statistically unremarkable and ended prematurely. After appearing in only 11 games while averaging 2.1 points and 0.8 rebounds per game,[5] McCaw was placed on indefinite suspension in February by coach Lute Olson for "failure to fulfill the team's academic requirements."[6] His suspension was team-related as he was eligible under both NCAA and Arizona Board of Regents standards.[6] The suspension effectively ended McCaw's time at Arizona; he transferred to Dixie State University (which was still a junior college at the time) for his sophomore season.[7][8]

After one successful season at Dixie, McCaw returned to NCAA Division I competition as a junior in 1993–94, this time for Southern Utah University to play for the Thunderbirds, who were in their final season as an independent.[7] The team finished with a 16–11 record but McCaw saw personal success. He averaged 16.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, leading the team in each category.[9] He also recorded 53 blocks, which was a then-school single season record.[7]

Heading into his senior season in 1994–95,[10] Southern Utah joined the American West Conference, which was in its first year offering basketball. Before the season, the media projected McCaw as one of the conference's best players.[7] He lived up to the billing by averaging team-leading 15.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, and surpassed Southern Utah's then-school record for blocks in a career (61).[11] He led the Thunderbirds to win the American West regular season championship with a 6–0 conference record (17–11 overall) as well as the conference tournament championship.[12] Southern Utah was not awarded a bid to the NCAA tournament, however, due to the NCAA rule where there must be six member institutions in a conference to qualify (it only had five). For his effort, McCaw was named to the all-conference first-team and won the first ever American West Conference Player of the Year award.[13] During his three-year NCAA Division I career, McCaw recorded 886 points, 345 rebounds, and 116 blocks.[5][14]

In 2017, Southern Utah University inducted him into their athletics hall of fame despite having only played for the school for two years.[11]

NCAA Division I statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1991–92 Arizona 11 0 .467 .000 .643 0.8 0.0 0.2 0.3 2.1
1992–93 N/A
1993–94 Southern Utah 27 26 31.7 .504 .000 .604 6.6 1.1 1.3 2.0 16.8
1994–95 Southern Utah 27 25 29.7 .540 .400 .656 5.9 1.9 1.0 2.2 15.2
Career 65 51 .519 .367 .628 5.3 1.2 1.0 1.8 13.6

Professional

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McCaw went undrafted in the ensuing 1995 NBA draft. He decided to pursue his professional career in the European market due to the 1995 NBA season lockout.[2] Between 1995 and 2008, McCaw played professionally in six different countries, won multiple titles, and became a naturalized Austrian citizen so he could compete for their national team.[2] He never returned to the United States to attempt a career in the NBA.[15]

Coaching career

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In February 2008, McCaw took over as player-coach of Science City Jena in Jena, Germany.[15] He retired from playing at the end of the 2007–08 season and remained as head coach for the 2008–09 season.[15] He parted ways with Jena in December 2008.[16] In 2009, he took over as the head coach for Medi Bayreuth's youth team, a position he stayed in for three seasons.[15] McCaw left Medi in 2012 and spent four more years as a coach for two different teams before retiring from coaching as well.[15]

Personal life

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McCaw stayed in Germany after his playing and coaching career days ended.[2] He and his family live in Lower Saxony where Sean works as an educator at an international school.[2] He is also an author, having written Same Name Different Game: Your Guide For A Successful European Rookie Season.[2][17]

See also

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  • Ben Larson – the only other American West Conference Player of the Year (1996)

References

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  1. ^ "Sean J. (Allen) McCaw". LinkedIn. 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f McCaw, Sean (2021). "Sean J. McCaw – About". SeanJMcCaw.com. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d Somers, Cindy (April 19, 1991). "UA lands 4th recruit". Tucson Citizen. Tucson, Arizona. p. 27. Retrieved October 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b c d Wilner, Jon (April 20, 1991). "Allen signs letter of intent to attend Arizona". Arizona Daily Star. Tucson, Arizona. p. 33. Retrieved October 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b "1991–92 Arizona Wildcats - final NCAA Division I statistics report" (PDF). NCAA.org. NCAA. 1992. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Wilner, Jon (February 13, 1992). "Suspension leaves nine on UA roster". Arizona Daily Star. Tucson, Arizona. p. 6. Retrieved October 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b c d "He's playing well". Tucson Citizen. Tucson, Arizona. November 30, 1994. p. 14. Retrieved October 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "1993–94 Thunderbirds Roster". Missoulian. Missoula, Montana. December 3, 1993. p. 85. Retrieved October 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "1993–94 Southern Utah Thunderbirds Roster and Stats". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  10. ^ "#32 Sean Allen". SUUTbirds.com. Southern Utah University. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Sean McCaw (Allen)". SUU.edu. Southern Utah University. 2017. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  12. ^ "1994–95 Southern Utah Thunderbirds Roster and Stats". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  13. ^ "All American West Conference Team". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. March 14, 1995. p. 18. Retrieved October 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Sean Allen college stats". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  15. ^ a b c d e "Sean McCaw basketball profile". Eurobasket.com. Eurobasket. 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  16. ^ "SEAN MCCAW VERLÄSST SCIENCE CITY JENA". baskets-jena.de (in German). July 13, 2009. Retrieved November 1, 2021.
  17. ^ "Sean McCaw im Trainerstab". cnv-medien.de (in German). Cuxhavener Nachrichten. August 12, 2012. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
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