Former NBA Pro Chris Herren to speak at Prep

Former NBA professional basketball player and motivational speaker Chris Herren will make a presentation at Prep about his harrowing story as a rising basketball star who fell into substance abuse and later recovered.

Herren will speak to the entire Prep student body on Monday, Dec. 3 at 11:20 a.m. at Alumni Hall. Parents are welcome to attend.

Herren was a high school basketball legend from Fall River, Mass., who scored more than 2,000 career points and was named to the 1994 McDonald's All-American team. He was recruited by top colleges, featured in Sports Illustrated and became the focus of an acclaimed book, Fall River Dreams. He was drafted by the Denver Nuggets in 1999 and was traded to the Boston Celtics after his rookie season, but fell into substance abuse — first alcohol, then cocaine and Oxycontin, finally heroin.

Alcohol and drug-free since August 1, 2008, Herren has refocused his life to put his sobriety and family above all else.He shares his story in his memoir, Basketball Junkie, as well as in numerous interviews throughout the Emmy nominated ESPN Films documentary Unguarded, of which he is the subject.

To support his vision, Herren founded The Herren Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing treatment navigation, educational and mentoring programs to those touched by addiction and to educate people of all ages on the dangers of substance abuse one person, one family at a time.