Greg Brown
Remember, you’re too small to play basketball, especially NCAA Division I basketball. Bunk! That’s essentially what Greg Brown told those people who thought he was not big enough to play a game controlled by giants. Brown proved to all the naysayers that there is room for the little man in the game of basketball.
Brown demonstrated that a 5’7″ guard can get the job done! He did so by taking the UNM Lobos all the way to the 1994 WAC basketball championship by beating BYU 79-72 in overtime. Without Brown, the Lobos wouldn’t have come close to winning the WAC title, the school’s first in over 16 years.
Praise rang from all over the country as Brown, a 1990 graduate of Albuquerque High School, progressed through his senior year. During his impressive career, Brown scored 30 or more points four times and complied career highs including scoring 42 points in a single game – in 34 minutes – against Texas-El Paso. For all his efforts, Brown was named Western Athletic Conference and District 7 Player of the Year in 1994. He garnered honorable mention All-America recognition from the United States Basketball Writers and The Sporting News.
Brown saved his biggest game for BYU. In the title-clinching victory at Provo, the next-to-last-game of the season, Brown was awesome. He scored 34 with 28 of those coming in the second half and overtime of the triumph. Brown scored 20 of the Lobos’ final 28 points, including 12 straight at one point. His three free throws – after drawing a 3-point foul with six seconds left in regulation – sent the game into overtime.
The crowning moment of Brown’s collegiate career and the jewel in his trophy case was being named the best senior player in the nation under six-feet tall. The award, the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award is given annually to the best player in the nation under six-feet. Named for the founder of basketball himself, Dr. James Naismith, the award signifies not only the best players in the nation under six-feet, but the best players overall – no matter what their size. Brown was the first UNM lettermen to receive this coveted award. He not only gained self-recognition, but recognition for his teammates, the University of New Mexico, all his coaches, the WAC, and the entire State of New Mexico.
Brown completed his college education at UNM with a bachelor’s degree in University Studies with an emphasis in Political Science. In 2005, Greg earned a Masters in Sports Administration. Brown commented, “the money I made from the book my mother wrote about my basketball career, The Little Point Guard, The Greg Brown Story: A Mother’s Perspective, helped to pay my graduate tuition at UNM.”
Not only was Brown an exemplary college athlete, he has carried on his life by giving back to his community – Albuquerque. Brown is a firm believer in giving of himself; his list of community service is daunting. He visits sick children, organizes basketball clinics for youth, encourages students to “stay on track,” cautions youth against drugs and has volunteered countless hours as a coach, advocate and mentor.
Brown has been employed by the City of Albuquerque as a Recreation Service Manager and Community Center Supervisor, where he uses his leadership skills honed during his athletic career.