SPENCER HAYWOOD - Transformative sports figure

Spencer Haywood is a former professional basketball player and Olympic Gold Medalist.

Haywood became a transformative figure in sports history when he legally challenged the NBA's "four-year rule" which was a requirement that a player could not be drafted by an NBA team until four years after graduating from high school. This resulted in the landmark U.S. Supreme Court Case Haywood vs. National Basketball Association and the decision to open the league to younger players under the hardship rule.

Over a 14-year professional career, he earned a multitude honors.

LEGACY