(In the photo above, Nate Robinson visits Seahawks training camp in 2011)
Former University of Washington standout and three-time NBA slam dunk champion Nate Robinson worked out for the Seattle Seahawks on Monday.
The 32-year-old Seattle native enjoyed a long NBA career after being a first-round pick in 2005, but he also held onto the dream of playing another sport professionally. In a video he put out in March, Robinson said he intended to pursue an NFL career.
"If you ask people around here, they'll know," Robinson said in the video. "Nate Robinson, his best sport is football. And people tell me all the time, if anybody can do it, go play football, it's you."
Robinson was a three-sport star at Rainier Beach high school, excelling in football, basketball and track and field, then attended Washington on a football scholarship before deciding to focus on basketball after playing both sports as a freshman. In his freshman year at Washington, Robinson appeared in 13 games, starting six at cornerback. Robinson made 34 tackles that season and had two interceptions, including a fourth-quarter pick in Washington's dramatic triple-overtime Apple Cup victory.
"I haven't played in 11 years, 12 years, but I know how to tackle, I how to play, I know how to hit, I know how to catch, I can get picks, I can get deflections," Robinson said in the video. "… I know it all. If somebody gave me a real opportunity, I know I could play."
Robinson, a big Seahawks fan and one-time 12 Flag raiser, was given that opportunity to show what he can do on Monday. Where things go from there remains to be seen.
