THE NEBRASKA 100

Kerry Trotter may not be the most famous basketball player to come out of the state of Nebraska, but he's one of the most accomplished.

Trotter starred at Omaha Creighton Prep, where he was a two-time all-state selection and was Nebraska's first -- and only -- player named to the McDonald's High School All-American team. He averaged 26.8 points a game his senior season in 1982, which is widely regarded as the year of the most-talented senior class in Nebraska history.

Getting the chance to play in the McDonald's All-America game is still one of the accomplishments of which he is most proud. He still can recall his stats from the game, in which he played with the likes of Wayman Tisdale, Johnny Dawkins and Brad Daugherty. "I had 14 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists, so I had a pretty good game," Trotter said.

After high school, Trotter headed to Milwaukee, where he had four productive seasons at Marquette, the last three as a starter.

Passed over by the NBA draft, Trotter headed overseas, where the left-handed sharp-shooter flourished for Castors Braine, a team in suburban Brussels, Belgium.

"For me the NBA draft didn't work out and I was disappointed at the time, but going overseas? It was, a 'Why not?'" said Trotter, who ended his Marquette career in the top 10 in assists and steals and was one of 16 players to score 1,000 points and pull down 500 rebounds. "But if it didn't work overseas, I got my degree. So there was no pressure on me to play well."

But play well he did, averaging nearly 30 points a game in his first five seasons. He was named the league's most valuable player twice.

Trotter got so big in Belgium that he signed a deal with Nike, which gave him shoes, gear and printed Kerry Trotter posters.

After retiring in 1997, Trotter returned to Omaha and helped establish Jesuit Middle School (now named Jesuit Academy), which had opened the year before.

In 2012, Trotter was inducted into the Nebraska Black Sports Hall of Fame.

-- Cody Ortiz