Sixers' Robert Covington has come a long way

CHICAGO - The story of Robert Covington's unlikely success is best illustrated by his being cut from the McArthur Middle School team in the fifth, sixth, and eighth grades. He probably would have also been released in the seventh grade had his parents not pulled the plug first due to them being unhappy with his school work.

But the native of Chicago's West Side, who moved to nearby Bellwood, Ill., at the age of 9, is scheduled to show folks here that dreams do come true with a lot of hard work. The shooting guard/swingman will play in the United Center for the first time when the Sixers face the Chicago Bulls at 8 p.m. Saturday. He'll have 80 well-wishers at the game.

"I was a Bulls fan as a kid," said Covington, who wears No. 33 for former Bulls great Scottie Pippen. "Now that I'm going against them, this is a good homecoming for me."

The 6-foot-9, 215-pound has indeed had a success story since the Sixers signed him on Nov. 15.

Of the Sixers' healthy players, Covington is the leading scorer at 13.1 points per game and shooting 38.6 percent on three-pointers.

The 24-year-old scored a career-best 27 points while making 4 of 6 three-pointers in Wednesday's 119-90 loss to the Washington Wizards.

In a season where the Sixers (18-61) are trying to identify keepers, Covington has a chance to remain in the team's plans.

His role could be "clearly to space the floor so Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel have room to operate," coach Brett Brown said. "It's just like we used to see Danny Green or Gary Neal [with the San Antonio Spurs] or whomever. You need people to stretch the floor."

His parents, Teresa and Dennis Bryant, and former AAU coach Kevin Dockery will be among the many well-wishers on hand to see him stretch the floor against the Bulls (47-32).

All three had a lot to do with helping Covington make this moment possible.

Teresa was tough on her son when it came to school work. It was her decision to not allow him to try out in the seventh-grade because his grades weren't up to her high standards. She's also encouraged his coaches to demand the most from her son.  Dennis – Covington's stepfather – has worked the graveyard shift at the United States Post Office for years. However, he would often change his schedule to take his eldest of three sons to his sporting events. And Dockery has been trusted mentor for some time.  Even now, if Dockery not at a Sixers' game, you best believe the two are on the phone talking about it afterwards.

But back during his days at McArthur, Covington was self-taught and often overlooked player.

Unable to make the middle-school team, he got his basket fix on youth AAU squads and playing ball in the backyard.  Determined to get better, Covington spent a lot of his free time shooting jumpers.

That repetition and growth helped to him become at standout at Proviso West High School. He grew from 5-9 to 6-3 during his freshman year. Then he grew to 6-7 by the time he was a junior.  As a senior during the 2008-09 season, Covington averaged 18 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocks en route to being named the West Suburban Conference Player of the Year.

"My favorite play was called 'Shoot the ball, Rob… Shoot the ball!'" said Tommie Miller, Covington's high school coach. "I only ran that play for Rob."

Miller recalls that Covington's shortcoming as being "not selfish enough."

He thinks Covington's sharing the ball too much might have led to Sacramento State and Tennessee State being the only Division I schools to offer him a scholarship. He chose to play for then-first-year head coach John Cooper at Tennessee State.

Over time, Cooper, who coached TSU during Covington's first three seasons, realized he had an NBA talent.

"He had the ability to shoot the ball with size and [athletic] abilities," said Cooper, now the head coach at Miami of Ohio. "That is a skill set at this day in age in the NBA that can be very valuable."

However, Covington went undrafted before signing a free-agent deal with the Houston Rockets on July 15, 2013. He spent most of last season with Rockets' NBA Development League team, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

He excelled in the D-League garnering rookie of the year and all-star game MVP honors.  The Rockets released him during this season's training camp.

"As many times as people tell me I can't do something that's just more motivation," Covington said. "No matter what I did, people told me I wasn't going to be able to make it. But I never listened to them because I knew I could do anything if I put my mind to it.

With my family behind me, I knew I could do anything. Nobody can stop me but myself. That's the way I think about it."

Note: Nerlens Noel (right ankle sprain) and Luc Mbah a Moute (left sore shoulder) won't play Saturday. They will be listed day-to-day after that. Point guard Ish Smith (groin injury) is expected to play against the Bulls.

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