Ex-NBA First-Round Pick In Hot Water, Arrested For Gas Station Robbery Attempt

Donte Greene struggled to make his mark in the NBA and was a basketball journeyman. Donte Greene Facebook Page

KEY POINTS

Donte Greene was arrested for attempted robbery in Indiana
Greene was unarmed during the robbery attempt as captured on video footage
Greene had a rocky basketball career and played four seasons in the NBA

A former NBA first-round pick has reportedly been arrested for trying to rob a gas station in Indiana last November 8.

The ex-NBA cager was identified as Donte Greene, the 28th overall pick of the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2008 NBA Draft before being traded first to the Houston Rockets and then the Sacramento Kings.

According to court records in a report by the South Bend Tribune, Greene allegedly lunged towards a convenience store clerk at the Phillips 66 gas station in Elkhart County after telling the man to give him all the money.

The employee tried to call the police, but the 34-year-old player told him not to do so.

The incident was reportedly called in by workers from another store who were the ones who called 911.

Ironically, police were in the area responding to a call about a drunk driver according to a report from Fox News.

It was added in court documents that video footage already showed the former Syracuse player acting strangely.

Greene took off his shirt but was allegedly not armed at the time of the attempted robbery.

When cops arrived, they arrested Greene and booked him at the Elkhart County jail.

He is now facing charges of robbery, intimidation, and interfering in the reporting of a crime.

The 6-foot-11 hardly made an impact in the four seasons he played in the NBA as he played in 253 games averaging 6.1 points and 2.4 rebounds in 16.8 minutes of action.

Failing to hit his stride in the NBA, Greene took his act overseas as he saw action in several leagues such as the Chinese Basketball Association, Lebanese Basketball League, Saudi Basketball League and Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

The former Syracuse player's last stint was with the Taichung Wagon Suns of the T1 league in 2021.

However, he was no longer on the final roster for the 2021-22 season.

In 2017, he suited up for TNT KaTropa in the PBA to fill in for Lou Amundson, a short-term replacement the team got to replace Denzel Bowles.

According to then-coach Nash Racela, Greene was taken in because he was a known scorer.

However, his PBA run was cut short after seven games as TNT opted to replace him with Joshua Smith.

Greene normed 29 points, 14.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.4 blocks in seven games for TNT KaTropa.