TTM Stats
- Sent: 1/6/2020 | Received: 2/21/2020 | 45 Days
- ’94 Classic Four Sport, 8×10
- Address: Home (address from Sports Card Forum)
The Story of the Autograph
Charlie Ward is a former professional basketball player and Heisman Trophy winning college quarterback. He played from 1994 to 2005 with the New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs, and Houston Rockets.
Ward was born and raised in Thomasville, Georgia. He played a bunch of sports in high school and then went on to Florida State. In football he led the Seminoles to their first ever National Championship after winning the 1993 Orange Bowl. As mentioned earlier he also won the Heisman trophy (among many other awards) in that same season with what is now the fourth-largest margin of victory.
He also played college basketball for the Seminoles. They would make it as far as the Southeast Regional Final (Elite Eight) during his time there. He still holds career records for steals and steals in a game and ranks among the leaders in career assists. While he didn’t play baseball in college, that didn’t stop the Brewers from drafting him in the 59th round of the 1993 MLB Draft and the 18th round of the 1994 MLB Draft by the Yankees.
But it was basketball that Ward eventually played professionally. He had said that if not drafted as a first rounder in the NFL, he was going to basketball. So the New York Knicks drafted him in the first round of the 1994 NBA Draft with the 26th overall pick. He was a part of some of the big Knicks teams of that era but only played a little to start under Pat Riley. Jeff Van Gundy took over and Ward saw a lot more playing time. He was always a tough player and always seemed to play hard. He helped the Knicks reach the NBA Finals in 1999 against the eventual champion San Antonio Spurs.
The Knicks traded him to the Suns in 2004, but he was immediately cut and moved on to the Spurs to close out the season. He then signed with the Rockets the next season but injuries started to take their toll and he retired in 2005.
The Score on Charlie Ward – 8.0
This was a pretty interesting interaction with Charlie and his people. I sent a card original with no donation. I received a post card back asking for a donation for the autograph request ($15) and that if I didn’t want to send it they would send my card back. So I emailed them back and sent the money via Pay Pal and then I got back the card and they added the 8×10. I just thought that was a great way to do it instead of sending back with a slip of paper saying how much the autographs are. It’s definitely a way more friendly and positive interaction with how his folks did it.
As for the autograph, I mean I can’t go wrong as a Knicks fan to get the 8×10 back. But a Heisman Trophy winner signing a card with him in a college uniform is pretty great too. He has a pretty cool signature too.
Thanks Mr. Ward! I’m giving this return an 8.
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Information gathered using Wikipedia and Basketball Reference.