Gerry McNamara
Encyclopedia
Gerry McNamara Sucks because he did not get drafted into the NBA.
Gerry McNamara (born August 28, 1983) is a former American
basketball
player and current graduate assistant coach. He is a former guard for the Syracuse University
men's team
, from 2002 to 2006. After leaving Syracuse, McNamara played professionally for Panionios BC, Olympiacos BC
, the Bakersfield Jam
, BK Ventspils
and the Reno Bighorns. In 2009, McNamara announced his retirement from basketball and returned to Syracuse as a graduate student and is currently a graduate assistant on the men's basketball team.
. He is the youngest of the four children of Gerard and Joyce McNamara. He has a brother Timothy and two sisters, Bridget and Maureen. He married Katie Marie Stott on July 21, 2007. He enjoys fishing almost as much as he enjoys basketball.
League Division II Player of the Year for four years in a row, was a three-time Associated Press
Pennsylvania
Small School All-State First Team selection and was the AP's Pennsylvania State Player of the Year in 2001 and 2002. McNamara finished as Pennsylvania's seventh all-time leading scorer with 2,917 points.
Bishop Hannan advanced to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association
Class A championship game after defeating Susquehanna Community High School of Susquehanna, Pennsylvania in the semi-finals of his freshman year. The team also went to the finals his sophomore season and finished the state runner-up in both 1999 and 2000 to Kennedy Christian High School of Hermitage, Pennsylvania
.
After and before, but not during the 1999 and 2000 seasons, Bishop Hannan was named under the AA class of PIAA. After McNamara graduated in 2002, the school, and all the neighboring Bishop schools except Bishop Hoban, went back to A for population reasons. In 2007, when the school combined with Bishop O'Hara of Scranton, Pennsylvania
, the new school called Holy Cross, was put in the AA class.
In 2001 the Golden Lancers were defeated by eventual PIAA Class AA champion Trinity High School
of Camp Hill, Pennsylvania
, in the Eastern Final.
In 2002 Bishop Hannan and Trinity met once again in the Eastern Final. McNamara exploded for a career-high 55 points (41 in the first half), putting him in 2nd place for the most points scored in a basketball game in PIAA history, as the Golden Lancers advanced to the Class AA championship game, 83-76. Three days later his 32 points led all scorers as Hannan held off Sto-Rox High School
and won the Class AA state title, 70-68.
Following his senior season, McNamara was named the 2002 Pennsylvania Gatorade
Player of the Year and a fourth-team Parade Magazine All-American. For his high school accomplishments, McNamara was also named the 20th greatest athlete in Scranton-area history by the Scranton Times in 2004.
and Florida
, but chose to attend Syracuse.
in 2003. McNamara started every game his freshman year, helping lead the Orange to a 30-5 record, including a perfect 17-0 at home. He averaged 13 points, 4.6 assists and 2.2 steals a game while shooting 35 percent from 3-point range and 91 percent from the foul line.
McNamara showed early on that he was a clutch performer, nailing a game-winning 3-pointer as then-No. 17 Syracuse notched an 82-80 win over then-No. 10 Notre Dame in February. In a March game at Georgetown, McNamara missed a free-throw with 10 seconds left that allowed the Hoyas to force overtime. Until that point, McNamara had been a perfect 41-for-41 in conference play. However, McNamara made up for his miss, hitting two 3-pointers and adding another jumper in an 11-3 run to start overtime as Syracuse beat Mike Sweetney and the Georgetown Hoyas
, 93-84. Ten of McNamara's 22 came in the extra frame.
In the NCAA Tournament
second-round game against Oklahoma State, McNamara scored 14 points and added six assists as the Orangemen overcame a 13-point first-half deficit. In the semi-final game against T. J. Ford
and the University of Texas, the Orangemen won 95-84 behind a career-high 33 points from Carmelo Anthony
and 19 points and four steals from McNamara.
In the title game versus favored University of Kansas
, his six three pointers in the first half helped Syracuse open up an 18-point lead over the Jayhawks. In the second half, Syracuse held off a furious Kansas comeback, eventually winning the game 81-78 behind the stellar play of freshman star Carmelo Anthony
and a game-saving blocked shot by sophomore forward Hakim Warrick
. McNamara and Anthony were named to the All-Tournament team.
80-75 in the tournament's first round.
Syracuse built a 16-point lead over the University of Maryland
in the second round; they survived a furious Terrapins comeback in the 72-70 win. In the Sweet 16
McNamara had a game-high 24 points, but Syracuse could not overcome the University of Alabama
, 80-71. McNamara averaged 26.7 points in the three tournament games.
. McNamara averaged 15.8 points and was named to the First Team All-Big East. The fourth-seeded Orange suffered a shocking overtime upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to the University of Vermont
. McNamara struggled through one of the worst games of his college career, scoring just 11 points and missing 14 of his 18 shots.
, the second-most points ever scored by a Syracuse player at the team's home arena, the Carrier Dome
, and a 30-point performance against the visiting Louisville Cardinals
. Syracuse finished with a losing record in the Big East; the team was in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament unless it secured the conference's automatic bid by winning the Big East's postseason tournament.
Prior to the conference tournament two separate publications, Sports Illustrated
and the Syracuse Post-Standard
conducted polls of Big East players and assistant coaches. In each poll, McNamara was voted the Big East's "Most Overrated" player.
Fueled by the negative press, and despite an injured leg, McNamara led Syracuse on an unprecedented run to the Big East tournament title. In the first round he hit a running one-handed three-point shot with less than a second left in the game to spur Syracuse past the University of Cincinnati
, 74-73. Following the game Jim Boeheim unleashed a passionate defense of his star player to the attending media.
The next day McNamara hit a three-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation to tie number-one ranked University of Connecticut
and eventually led Syracuse to an overtime upset. McNamara finished with 17 points and 13 assists, one assist shy of the Big East Tournament record.
Syracuse fell behind Georgetown University
in the tournament's semi-finals, Syracuse's third game in three days. McNamara hit five three-pointers in the second half—including one in the last minute of the game—to slash the Hoyas' lead to one. He dished out an assist to freshman guard Eric Devendorf
to put Syracuse in the lead following a Georgetown turnover and forced another turnover in the closing seconds to clinch the game.
McNamara had 14 points and 6 assists in Syracuse's 65-61 championship game win over the University of Pittsburgh
. Syracuse became the first team to win four games in four days and capture the Big East Tournament Championship.
McNamara won the Dave Gavitt
Award as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. He donned a tee-shirt with the mocking retort, "Overrated?!!" as he helped cut down the nets.
McNamara's career came to an unceremonious end in the first round of the 2006 NCAA Tournament. Severely hobbled by his leg injury and exhausted from the run in the Big East tournament, he scored only two points in just 23 minutes of play as fifth-seeded Syracuse was upset by Texas A&M University
. It marked the only game in his career McNamara was held without a field goal. The Orange finished with a 23-12 record.
Honorable Mention All-American, McNamara was named by Big East head coaches to the league's All-Freshman team in 2003, to the All Big East second team in 2004 and to the All Big East first team in 2005 and 2006.
His career statistics rank among the greats in Syracuse's school history. He finished fourth in points scored (2099), first in minutes played (4781), second in steals (258), third in assists (648), first in three-point shots made (400) and attempted (1131), and first in career free-throw percentage (89.1%).
In 63 career Big East games, McNamara set conference records for three-pointers made (183) and career free-throw percentage (91.7%). His 400 career three-pointers ranked sixth all-time in NCAA history.
McNamara was also named the 2006 winner of the Chip Hilton Player of the Year Award
. The award is presented annually by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to a senior Division I men's player who demonstrates outstanding character, leadership, and talent.
McNamara left Syracuse as one of the most beloved players in Orange basketball history; his final regular-season game at the Carrier Dome
on March 5, 2006, was the arena's first-ever advance sellout for a basketball game. The final attendance of 33,633, at that time an all-time NCAA record for an on-campus regular-season game, included more than 3,000 fans—dubbed "McNamara's Band" by the media—from the Scranton area (according to media reports more than 60 buses made the two hour trip from Scranton to Syracuse for the game). Among those people coming up from Scranton were McNamara's parents, who were in attendance for every game in his college career. Syracuse lost the game to highly-ranked Villanova University
; McNamara led all scorers with 29 points.
McNamara's popularity continues to this date, as he can currently be seen in local television advertisements in Syracuse, New York
, including the ad for Fernandez Automall. On August 16, 2006, The Scranton Red Barons, Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, gave the first 6,000 fans through the gates at PNC Field a Gerry McNamara bobblehead doll. The doll was featured on the Scranton-set television show The Office, placed on the desk of the character of Dwight Schrute
.
McNamara played in all eight games and started four as the U.S. went a perfect 8-0. In those games, he averaged 8.4 points, 1.9 rebounds and a squad-best 2.6 assists per game. McNamara finished off the tournament with 13 points and five rebounds to help the Americans win the gold-medal game over previously unbeaten Ukraine, 85-70.
draft held on April 11, 2006 by the Northeast Pennsylvania Breakers
. However, McNamara decided not to sign with the Breakers and instead focus on the upcoming 2006 NBA Draft
by participating in the annual NBA Pre-Draft Camp.
Despite being projected as a second round pick in some mock drafts, McNamara was not drafted. However, he was invited to participate in the Orlando Pro Summer League in Orlando
, Florida
playing for the Orlando Magic
. At the conclusion of the league, McNamara was not offered a contract with the Magic.
On September 4, 2006, he signed a one-year contract to play for Olympiacos BC
, but only for Euroleague 2006-07
games. After playing just one minute in the team's first five games, McNamara reached a contract settlement and left the team and returned to the United States in November 2006. It is estimated he was paid $90,000 for that one minute. While he was in Greece, McNamara was drafted in the sixth round of the Continental Basketball Association
draft by the Albany Patroons
on September 26, 2006. The Patroons held McNamara's rights until 2008.
On December 12, 2006, McNamara signed with the Bakersfield Jam
, an NBA Development League
team located in Bakersfield, California
. McNamara was named as a reserve to the Western Conference's All-Star team and played in the Gillette D-League All-Star Game on February 17, 2007, in Las Vegas
. He scored 2 points and recorded 5 assists. He finished the 2006-2007 season averaging 10.8 points and 5.2 assists in 41 games.
On June 29, 2007, McNamara was invited to try out for the Philadelphia 76ers
' summer league team. Despite a sprained ankle he made the team and played in both Las Vegas
and Utah
summer leagues.
After not being offered a contract by the 76ers, McNamara decided to return to Greece by signing a $400,000 contract on August 21, 2007 to play for the Greek
team Panionios BC for the Greek A1 League 2007-08
season. He played his last game for the team on November 6, 2007, and was let go the next day, just four games into the season. McNamara played three of the four games and scored just seven points. Ironically he was replaced on the roster by former Michigan State University
star Mateen Cleaves
with whom he shared minutes on the Bakersfield Jam the prior season.
On February 15, 2008, McNamara signed a contract with Latvian basketball team BK Ventspils. After his brief stint in Latvia, McNamara returned to the United States after being invited to participate in the Utah Jazz
's training camp on September 17, 2008, but McNamara was waived on October 27, 2008.
On January 7, 2009, McNamara signed with the NBA Development League's Reno Bighorns, joining him with former SU stars Damone Brown
and Donte Greene
. Three days later, McNamara made his debut against his former team, the Bakersfield Jam, and scored six points and recorded six assists in a 93-91 victory. However, on March 7, 2009 McNamara was waived by the Reno Bighorns citing personal reasons, and it was reported that McNamara was considering ending his playing career.
candidate in the School of Education's Instructional Design, Development and Evaluation program. In addition to taking classes, McNamara joined the basketball team's coaching staff as a graduate assistant.
Gerry McNamara (born August 28, 1983) is a former American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player and current graduate assistant coach. He is a former guard for the Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
men's team
Syracuse Orange men's basketball
The Syracuse Orange men's basketball program is the intercollegiate men's basketball team representing Syracuse University. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I, and the team competes in the Big East Conference...
, from 2002 to 2006. After leaving Syracuse, McNamara played professionally for Panionios BC, Olympiacos BC
Olympiacos BC
Olympiacos B.C. , also known simply as Olympiacos and Olympiacos Piraeus, is a Greek professional basketball club, part of Olympiacos CFP, based in Piraeus. The basketball club, founded in 1931, is one of the most successful in Greece and a traditional powerhouse in European competitions...
, the Bakersfield Jam
Bakersfield Jam
The Bakersfield Jam is an expansion franchise of the National Basketball Association Development League that began play in 2006-07. It plays its home games at the newly-built Jam Events Center in Bakersfield, California, United States, which had been built as their practice facility...
, BK Ventspils
BK Ventspils
BK Ventspils is a professional basketball club that is located in Ventspils, Latvia. The club competes in the Latvian Basketball League and the Baltic Basketball League .-History:...
and the Reno Bighorns. In 2009, McNamara announced his retirement from basketball and returned to Syracuse as a graduate student and is currently a graduate assistant on the men's basketball team.
Personal life
McNamara was born in Scranton, PennsylvaniaScranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
. He is the youngest of the four children of Gerard and Joyce McNamara. He has a brother Timothy and two sisters, Bridget and Maureen. He married Katie Marie Stott on July 21, 2007. He enjoys fishing almost as much as he enjoys basketball.
High school
McNamara attended Bishop Hannan High School. In his four seasons at Hannan, the Golden Lancers compiled a record of 109-17. McNamara was named the LackawannaLackawanna County, Pennsylvania
As of the census of 2000, there were 213,295 people, 86,218 households, and 55,783 families residing in the county. The population density was 465 people per square mile . There were 95,362 housing units at an average density of 208 per square mile...
League Division II Player of the Year for four years in a row, was a three-time Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
Small School All-State First Team selection and was the AP's Pennsylvania State Player of the Year in 2001 and 2002. McNamara finished as Pennsylvania's seventh all-time leading scorer with 2,917 points.
Bishop Hannan advanced to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association
Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association
The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, Inc. is one of the governing bodies of high school and junior high school sports for the state of Pennsylvania, United States....
Class A championship game after defeating Susquehanna Community High School of Susquehanna, Pennsylvania in the semi-finals of his freshman year. The team also went to the finals his sophomore season and finished the state runner-up in both 1999 and 2000 to Kennedy Christian High School of Hermitage, Pennsylvania
Hermitage, Pennsylvania
Hermitage is a city in Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 16,157 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Youngstown–Warren–Boardman, OH-PA Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
.
After and before, but not during the 1999 and 2000 seasons, Bishop Hannan was named under the AA class of PIAA. After McNamara graduated in 2002, the school, and all the neighboring Bishop schools except Bishop Hoban, went back to A for population reasons. In 2007, when the school combined with Bishop O'Hara of Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
, the new school called Holy Cross, was put in the AA class.
In 2001 the Golden Lancers were defeated by eventual PIAA Class AA champion Trinity High School
Trinity High School (Camp Hill, Pennsylvania)
Trinity High School is a private, coeducational Roman Catholic high school of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg, located in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, west of Harrisburg. The school has 55 faculty members and an enrollment of about 640 students in grades 9 through 12. The school was twice...
of Camp Hill, Pennsylvania
Camp Hill, Pennsylvania
Camp Hill is a borough in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, 2 miles southwest of Harrisburg. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,636 at the 2000 census...
, in the Eastern Final.
In 2002 Bishop Hannan and Trinity met once again in the Eastern Final. McNamara exploded for a career-high 55 points (41 in the first half), putting him in 2nd place for the most points scored in a basketball game in PIAA history, as the Golden Lancers advanced to the Class AA championship game, 83-76. Three days later his 32 points led all scorers as Hannan held off Sto-Rox High School
Sto-Rox High School
Sto-Rox High School is a high school located in the West Park neighborhood of Stowe Township, Pennsylvania. It is the only high school of the Sto-Rox School District, which educates the children of Stowe Township and the borough of McKees Rocks....
and won the Class AA state title, 70-68.
Following his senior season, McNamara was named the 2002 Pennsylvania Gatorade
Gatorade
Gatorade is a brand of sports-themed food and beverage products, built around its signature product: a line of sports drinks. Gatorade is currently manufactured by PepsiCo, distributed in over 80 countries...
Player of the Year and a fourth-team Parade Magazine All-American. For his high school accomplishments, McNamara was also named the 20th greatest athlete in Scranton-area history by the Scranton Times in 2004.
College
McNamara had offers from schools such as DukeDuke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
and Florida
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
, but chose to attend Syracuse.
2002-03
McNamara helped capture the school's first ever National ChampionshipNCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
in 2003. McNamara started every game his freshman year, helping lead the Orange to a 30-5 record, including a perfect 17-0 at home. He averaged 13 points, 4.6 assists and 2.2 steals a game while shooting 35 percent from 3-point range and 91 percent from the foul line.
McNamara showed early on that he was a clutch performer, nailing a game-winning 3-pointer as then-No. 17 Syracuse notched an 82-80 win over then-No. 10 Notre Dame in February. In a March game at Georgetown, McNamara missed a free-throw with 10 seconds left that allowed the Hoyas to force overtime. Until that point, McNamara had been a perfect 41-for-41 in conference play. However, McNamara made up for his miss, hitting two 3-pointers and adding another jumper in an 11-3 run to start overtime as Syracuse beat Mike Sweetney and the Georgetown Hoyas
Georgetown Hoyas
Georgetown's nickname is The Hoyas, but its mascot is "Jack the Bulldog." Various breeds of dogs have been used by the sports teams as mascots since the early 1900s. Several notable bull terriers like Sergeant Stubby and "Hoya" were used at football games in the 1920s, as was a Great Dane in the...
, 93-84. Ten of McNamara's 22 came in the extra frame.
In the NCAA Tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
second-round game against Oklahoma State, McNamara scored 14 points and added six assists as the Orangemen overcame a 13-point first-half deficit. In the semi-final game against T. J. Ford
T. J. Ford
Terrance Jerod "T. J." Ford is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for KK Zagreb. Having been awarded numerous top basketball accolades in high school and college, Ford entered the 2003 NBA Draft and was selected eighth overall by the Milwaukee Bucks...
and the University of Texas, the Orangemen won 95-84 behind a career-high 33 points from Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo Kiyan Anthony , nicknamed "Melo", is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association...
and 19 points and four steals from McNamara.
In the title game versus favored University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
, his six three pointers in the first half helped Syracuse open up an 18-point lead over the Jayhawks. In the second half, Syracuse held off a furious Kansas comeback, eventually winning the game 81-78 behind the stellar play of freshman star Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo Kiyan Anthony , nicknamed "Melo", is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association...
and a game-saving blocked shot by sophomore forward Hakim Warrick
Hakim Warrick
Hakim Hanif Warrick is an American professional basketball player in the NBA who is currently with the Phoenix Suns. Commonly nicknamed "Helicopter" and "Skinny", the 6'9", 219 lb forward was a major part the Syracuse Orange's run to the 2003 National Championship, often being most remembered...
. McNamara and Anthony were named to the All-Tournament team.
2003-04
McNamara and Warrick were left to guide the team in the 2003-2004 season after Anthony rode his heralded postseason play into the NBA. McNamara would not disappoint, averaging 17.2 points per game. He was also a Wooden and Naismith award candidate and Second Team All-Big East selection. McNamara and Warrick led the Orange to a 23-8 record and a five seed in the NCAA Tournament. McNamara scored 43 points, including a school-record nine three-point shots, as Syracuse outlasted Brigham Young UniversityBrigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
80-75 in the tournament's first round.
Syracuse built a 16-point lead over the University of Maryland
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
in the second round; they survived a furious Terrapins comeback in the 72-70 win. In the Sweet 16
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
McNamara had a game-high 24 points, but Syracuse could not overcome the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, 80-71. McNamara averaged 26.7 points in the three tournament games.
2004-05
In 2005 Syracuse finished 27-7 and captured the Big East post-season tournament title with a win over West Virginia UniversityWest Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...
. McNamara averaged 15.8 points and was named to the First Team All-Big East. The fourth-seeded Orange suffered a shocking overtime upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to the University of Vermont
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont comprises seven undergraduate schools, an honors college, a graduate college, and a college of medicine. The Honors College does not offer its own degrees; students in the Honors College concurrently enroll in one of the university's seven undergraduate colleges or...
. McNamara struggled through one of the worst games of his college career, scoring just 11 points and missing 14 of his 18 shots.
2005-06
One of only two players left from the championship team, McNamara and Syracuse struggled through the 2005-2006 regular season. Two highlights were the 38 points McNamara scored against Davidson CollegeDavidson College
Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina. The college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently ranked in the top ten liberal arts colleges in the country by U.S. News and World Report magazine, although it has recently dropped to 11th in U.S. News...
, the second-most points ever scored by a Syracuse player at the team's home arena, the Carrier Dome
Carrier Dome
The Carrier Dome is a 49,250-seat domed sports stadium located on the campus of Syracuse University in the University Hill neighborhood of Syracuse, New York, USA. It is home to the Syracuse Orange football, basketball, and lacrosse teams. High school football championships are also held in "The...
, and a 30-point performance against the visiting Louisville Cardinals
Louisville Cardinals
The Louisville Cardinals are the athletic teams representing the University of Louisville. A member of the Big East Conference since 2005, they are known nationally as traditional powers in men's basketball, women's volleyball, and dance team...
. Syracuse finished with a losing record in the Big East; the team was in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament unless it secured the conference's automatic bid by winning the Big East's postseason tournament.
Prior to the conference tournament two separate publications, Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
and the Syracuse Post-Standard
Syracuse Post-Standard
The Post-Standard is the major daily newspaper servicing the greater Syracuse, New York, metro area. Affiliated with Syracuse.com, it is owned by Advance Publications. The Post-Standard features regular political commentary from Sean Kirst and local commentary by Dick Case. It is home-delivered in...
conducted polls of Big East players and assistant coaches. In each poll, McNamara was voted the Big East's "Most Overrated" player.
Fueled by the negative press, and despite an injured leg, McNamara led Syracuse on an unprecedented run to the Big East tournament title. In the first round he hit a running one-handed three-point shot with less than a second left in the game to spur Syracuse past the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
, 74-73. Following the game Jim Boeheim unleashed a passionate defense of his star player to the attending media.
The next day McNamara hit a three-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation to tie number-one ranked University of Connecticut
University of Connecticut
The admission rate to the University of Connecticut is about 50% and has been steadily decreasing, with about 28,000 prospective students applying for admission to the freshman class in recent years. Approximately 40,000 prospective students tour the main campus in Storrs annually...
and eventually led Syracuse to an overtime upset. McNamara finished with 17 points and 13 assists, one assist shy of the Big East Tournament record.
Syracuse fell behind Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
in the tournament's semi-finals, Syracuse's third game in three days. McNamara hit five three-pointers in the second half—including one in the last minute of the game—to slash the Hoyas' lead to one. He dished out an assist to freshman guard Eric Devendorf
Eric Devendorf
Eric Devendorf is an American professional basketball player from Bay City, Michigan who came from Oak Hill Academy and played for the Syracuse University Orange. He currently plays for the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League....
to put Syracuse in the lead following a Georgetown turnover and forced another turnover in the closing seconds to clinch the game.
McNamara had 14 points and 6 assists in Syracuse's 65-61 championship game win over the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
. Syracuse became the first team to win four games in four days and capture the Big East Tournament Championship.
McNamara won the Dave Gavitt
Dave Gavitt
David "Dave" Gavitt was a American college basketball coach and athletic director at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island...
Award as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. He donned a tee-shirt with the mocking retort, "Overrated?!!" as he helped cut down the nets.
McNamara's career came to an unceremonious end in the first round of the 2006 NCAA Tournament. Severely hobbled by his leg injury and exhausted from the run in the Big East tournament, he scored only two points in just 23 minutes of play as fifth-seeded Syracuse was upset by Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
. It marked the only game in his career McNamara was held without a field goal. The Orange finished with a 23-12 record.
College career
McNamara started all 135 games he played in his four years and graduated with a degree in Communication and Rhetorical Studies in May 2006. A 2006 Associated PressAssociated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
Honorable Mention All-American, McNamara was named by Big East head coaches to the league's All-Freshman team in 2003, to the All Big East second team in 2004 and to the All Big East first team in 2005 and 2006.
His career statistics rank among the greats in Syracuse's school history. He finished fourth in points scored (2099), first in minutes played (4781), second in steals (258), third in assists (648), first in three-point shots made (400) and attempted (1131), and first in career free-throw percentage (89.1%).
In 63 career Big East games, McNamara set conference records for three-pointers made (183) and career free-throw percentage (91.7%). His 400 career three-pointers ranked sixth all-time in NCAA history.
McNamara was also named the 2006 winner of the Chip Hilton Player of the Year Award
Chip Hilton Player of the Year Award
The Chip Hilton Player of the Year Award is presented to a men's college basketball player who is a senior and who has demonstrated personal character both on and off the court, similar to the fictional Chip Hilton character depicted by Hall of Fame coach Clair Bee in the classic Chip Hilton series...
. The award is presented annually by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to a senior Division I men's player who demonstrates outstanding character, leadership, and talent.
McNamara left Syracuse as one of the most beloved players in Orange basketball history; his final regular-season game at the Carrier Dome
Carrier Dome
The Carrier Dome is a 49,250-seat domed sports stadium located on the campus of Syracuse University in the University Hill neighborhood of Syracuse, New York, USA. It is home to the Syracuse Orange football, basketball, and lacrosse teams. High school football championships are also held in "The...
on March 5, 2006, was the arena's first-ever advance sellout for a basketball game. The final attendance of 33,633, at that time an all-time NCAA record for an on-campus regular-season game, included more than 3,000 fans—dubbed "McNamara's Band" by the media—from the Scranton area (according to media reports more than 60 buses made the two hour trip from Scranton to Syracuse for the game). Among those people coming up from Scranton were McNamara's parents, who were in attendance for every game in his college career. Syracuse lost the game to highly-ranked Villanova University
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
; McNamara led all scorers with 29 points.
McNamara's popularity continues to this date, as he can currently be seen in local television advertisements in Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
, including the ad for Fernandez Automall. On August 16, 2006, The Scranton Red Barons, Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, gave the first 6,000 fans through the gates at PNC Field a Gerry McNamara bobblehead doll. The doll was featured on the Scranton-set television show The Office, placed on the desk of the character of Dwight Schrute
Dwight Schrute
Dwight Kurt Schrute III is a character on NBC's The Office portrayed by Rainn Wilson. He originally exactly resembled Gareth Keenan from the original UK version of The Office. Dwight is the top salesman and former acting manager for the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company and has won numerous awards for...
.
Statistics
| Year | GP | Min | Pts | FG% | FT% | 3P% | Rebs | Asts | Stls | Blks | TOs | PFs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-03 | 35 | 36.2 | 13.3 | 40.1 | 90.9 | 35.7 | 2.3 | 4.4 | 2.4 | 0.1 | 2.5 | 1.9 |
| 2003-04 | 31 | 36.2 | 17.2 | 38.5 | 87.2 | 38.9 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
| 2004-05 | 34 | 35.6 | 15.8 | 37.0 | 87.4 | 34.0 | 2.3 | 4.9 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 2.9 | 1.8 |
| 2005-06 | 35 | 35.2 | 16.0 | 35.3 | 90.2 | 33.4 | 2.7 | 5.9 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 3.3 | 1.3 |
| TOTALS | 135 | 35.5 | 15.5 | 37.5 | 88.8 | 35.4 | 2.5 | 4.8 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 2.8 | 1.7 |
Team USA
McNamara was one of 13 players who accepted invitations to attend the 2005 USA Basketball men’s trials and training camp from July 28-August 4, 2005. The team, coached by Villanova’s Jay Wright, won the gold medal at the World University Games in Izmir, Turkey.McNamara played in all eight games and started four as the U.S. went a perfect 8-0. In those games, he averaged 8.4 points, 1.9 rebounds and a squad-best 2.6 assists per game. McNamara finished off the tournament with 13 points and five rebounds to help the Americans win the gold-medal game over previously unbeaten Ukraine, 85-70.
Professional career
Before he graduated from Syracuse University, McNamara was drafted No. 1 overall in the 2006 United States Basketball LeagueUnited States Basketball League
The United States Basketball League , often abbreviated to the USBL, was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985. The final champions are the Kansas Cagerz, who won the title game on July 1, 2007.-History:...
draft held on April 11, 2006 by the Northeast Pennsylvania Breakers
Northeast Pennsylvania Breakers
The NEPA Breakers are a former members of the American Basketball Association and the United States Basketball League.The team featured Willie Chandler and Dave Januzzi. After a hot start, the team left the ABA and applied for admission to the USBL, due to instability in the ABA.- External links :***...
. However, McNamara decided not to sign with the Breakers and instead focus on the upcoming 2006 NBA Draft
2006 NBA Draft
The 2006 NBA Draft was held on June 28, 2006 at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players,...
by participating in the annual NBA Pre-Draft Camp.
Despite being projected as a second round pick in some mock drafts, McNamara was not drafted. However, he was invited to participate in the Orlando Pro Summer League in Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
playing for the Orlando Magic
Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic is a professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association and are currently coached by Stan Van Gundy...
. At the conclusion of the league, McNamara was not offered a contract with the Magic.
On September 4, 2006, he signed a one-year contract to play for Olympiacos BC
Olympiacos BC
Olympiacos B.C. , also known simply as Olympiacos and Olympiacos Piraeus, is a Greek professional basketball club, part of Olympiacos CFP, based in Piraeus. The basketball club, founded in 1931, is one of the most successful in Greece and a traditional powerhouse in European competitions...
, but only for Euroleague 2006-07
Euroleague 2006-07
The Euroleague is an international basketball club competition for elite clubs throughout Europe. The 2006-2007 season featured 24 competing teams from 13 different countries. The draw for the groups was held on September 14, 2006 in Athens. The competition began on October 24, 2006 at the Olympic...
games. After playing just one minute in the team's first five games, McNamara reached a contract settlement and left the team and returned to the United States in November 2006. It is estimated he was paid $90,000 for that one minute. While he was in Greece, McNamara was drafted in the sixth round of the Continental Basketball Association
Continental Basketball Association
The Continental Basketball Association was a professional men's basketball league in the United States, which has been on hiatus since the 2009 season.- History :...
draft by the Albany Patroons
Albany Patroons
The Albany Patroons were a professional basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association ....
on September 26, 2006. The Patroons held McNamara's rights until 2008.
On December 12, 2006, McNamara signed with the Bakersfield Jam
Bakersfield Jam
The Bakersfield Jam is an expansion franchise of the National Basketball Association Development League that began play in 2006-07. It plays its home games at the newly-built Jam Events Center in Bakersfield, California, United States, which had been built as their practice facility...
, an NBA Development League
NBA Development League
The NBA Development League, or NBA D-League, is the National Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. Known until summer 2005 as the National Basketball Development League , the NBA D-League started with eight teams in the fall of 2001...
team located in Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....
. McNamara was named as a reserve to the Western Conference's All-Star team and played in the Gillette D-League All-Star Game on February 17, 2007, in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
. He scored 2 points and recorded 5 assists. He finished the 2006-2007 season averaging 10.8 points and 5.2 assists in 41 games.
On June 29, 2007, McNamara was invited to try out for the Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...
' summer league team. Despite a sprained ankle he made the team and played in both Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
and Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
summer leagues.
After not being offered a contract by the 76ers, McNamara decided to return to Greece by signing a $400,000 contract on August 21, 2007 to play for the Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
team Panionios BC for the Greek A1 League 2007-08
A1 Ethniki 2007-08
-Standings:Pts=Points, Pld=Matches played, W=Matches won, L=Matches lost, F=Points for, A=Points against, D=Points difference-Results:-Playoffs bracket:...
season. He played his last game for the team on November 6, 2007, and was let go the next day, just four games into the season. McNamara played three of the four games and scored just seven points. Ironically he was replaced on the roster by former Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
star Mateen Cleaves
Mateen Cleaves
Mateen Ahmad Cleaves is an American former professional basketball player who played in six NBA seasons. He is currently a music talent manager....
with whom he shared minutes on the Bakersfield Jam the prior season.
On February 15, 2008, McNamara signed a contract with Latvian basketball team BK Ventspils. After his brief stint in Latvia, McNamara returned to the United States after being invited to participate in the Utah Jazz
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
's training camp on September 17, 2008, but McNamara was waived on October 27, 2008.
On January 7, 2009, McNamara signed with the NBA Development League's Reno Bighorns, joining him with former SU stars Damone Brown
Damone Brown
Damone Lamar Brown is an American professional basketball player, formerly in the NBA. He is a 6'9" and 212 lb forward. After playing college basketball at Syracuse University, he was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round of the 2001 NBA Draft...
and Donte Greene
Donté Greene
Donté Dominic Greene is an American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the NBA...
. Three days later, McNamara made his debut against his former team, the Bakersfield Jam, and scored six points and recorded six assists in a 93-91 victory. However, on March 7, 2009 McNamara was waived by the Reno Bighorns citing personal reasons, and it was reported that McNamara was considering ending his playing career.
Coaching career
On July 22, 2009, it was announced that McNamara would be returning to Syracuse University as a graduate student. He is currently enrolled as a Master of ScienceMaster of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
candidate in the School of Education's Instructional Design, Development and Evaluation program. In addition to taking classes, McNamara joined the basketball team's coaching staff as a graduate assistant.