Meet the professional of professionals, Donte ‘Hammer’ Harrison. Hammer has been with the Globetrotters longer than anyone else on the roster (16 years and counting!) and his experience and work ethic precede his high flying dunks and record-holding moves. If you are looking for an inspiring story of overcoming adversity and a late start to achieve a lofty goal, look no further than Globetrotters dunking sensation Hammer Harrison.
Hammer once broke every finger on his right hand and right wrist. When he was 11, he broke both of his legs, an injury that required a month of confinement to a…
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Meet the professional of professionals, Donte ‘Hammer’ Harrison. Hammer has been with the Globetrotters longer than anyone else on the roster (16 years and counting!) and his experience and work ethic precede his high flying dunks and record-holding moves. If you are looking for an inspiring story of overcoming adversity and a late start to achieve a lofty goal, look no further than Globetrotters dunking sensation Hammer Harrison.
Hammer once broke every finger on his right hand and right wrist. When he was 11, he broke both of his legs, an injury that required a month of confinement to a wheelchair and three months of physical therapy. The resulting pain prevented him from playing intense competitive sports for five years.
When he was 17, Hammer experienced a five-inch growth spurt and took up basketball, quickly seeing it as an avenue to accomplish great things. After high school, he enrolled at Sullivan Community College (N.Y.), played basketball every single day to improve his skills, and walked on to the basketball team his second year. That year, the team put together a dream season, going undefeated on their way to the 2007 NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship. Hammer was the leading scorer for his team in the title game. Hammer then played at Hampton University, where he led the Pirates in field goal percentage and blocked shots in the 2008- 09 season and was the team’s second-leading rebounder.
When you attend a Globetrotters game, you might see Hammer attempt some long trick shots, and he is the proud owner of the Guinness World Records® record for the “Longest Underhand Basketball Shot,” an astounding 85 feet 4.25 inches.
Hammer also received a degree in computer graphics. “I’m really into computer technology and the development of new gadgets, and I build computers from scratch,” says Hammer, who dreams of someday opening his own graphic design studio.
He enjoys the adrenalin rush of extreme sports like bungee jumping, so for the Globetrotters' third annual World Trick Shot Day, Hammer took a leap off of the Stratosphere in Las Vegas and made the world's highest basketball bungee dunk from 855 feet in the air. He also enjoys skydiving and has jumped out of an airplane over 30 times, including a skydiving slam dunk for World Trick Shot Day in 2019. In his spare time, he likes riding jet skis, reading, boating, fishing, and playing ping pong. His hidden talents include cooking and riding a unicycle.
As a Globetrotter, he’s traveled to all 50 U.S. States. Hammer has made appearances on GAC’s Top 20 Countdown, and ABC’s Good Morning America. He was a part of a first-ever visit to the United Nations headquarters in New York City with his Globetrotter teammates in November 2019.
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