The career of a professional basketball player is constantly judged through statistics, but for Sacramento Kings’ shooting guard Arron Afflalo, his NBA journey began by not becoming another statistic in the city of Compton, California.
Afflalo, 30, spent his early life in the Los Angeles County where gang violence had increased by 200 percent from 1984 to 1991 and homicides had peaked to a record-breaking number of 2,589 in 1992, according to News Week and the LA Times, respectively.
“When you grow up in Compton in those years — you’re 10, 11, 12 and in your teenage years — your city and environment can be very influential.