Back in the 90s, when I was a huge Georgetown Hoyas’ fan, Victor Page had a brilliant 2-year run under coach John Thompson. A flashy lefty not afraid to dunk on anyone or fire up a heat check with a defender in his jersey, Page was fearless and confident. He was named MVP of the Big East tournament in 1996 (the year Ray Allen topped Allen Iverson in the finals) even though UConn rallied to beat Georgtown for the crown. When Iverson left for the NBA, Page averaged 22 ppg as a sophomore and it seemed like he could have a pro career. It’s criminal that there are no videos of Page’s time at Georgetown on the internet.

Also criminal? Victor Page. The guy’s had a tough life – he had cocaine charges and gun charges as a senior in high school – and recently was arrested for 4th degree burglary. This horrendous mugshot is making the rounds. Why is Page wearing an eye patch? He was shot in the eye while sitting in his car in DC two days before Thanksgiving in 2003. Where did it all go wrong for the former Big East star? This fantastic NY Times story from 2006 says it all:

But Page second-guesses the middle months of 1997. At a predraft camp in Chicago, he spent an evening at a hotel bar, in plain sight of N.B.A. team officials, then stayed out all night and missed workouts in the morning.

Instead of being drafted by the N.B.A., he went 11th in the C.B.A. draft. The N.B.A.’s Minnesota Timberwolves signed him in September, but he was cut a few weeks later — after, Page said, he was involved in a fight outside a hotel in St. Louis, injured his arm, then lied about it to team officials.

Page’s criminal history in the last decade is lengthy and scary:

In 2004, Page was arrested for carrying a pistol without a license; he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and received probation. In 2005, he was arrested for theft, but the case was dismissed; Page said it was a misunderstanding after he had borrowed a friend’s car.A few weeks ago, Page’s name resurfaced in news accounts when a 19-year-old cousin of his named Jerome Stroud was sentenced to 91 years in prison for his role in the killing of two teenagers in 2004. Court documents submitted by the prosecution said that Stroud’s motive was to retaliate for the shooting of Page, The Washington Post reported.

It’s amazing I’ve gotten this far without mentioning the “Christmas Day Massacre,” which is the story of the time Page was playing in a CBA game, got upset, and took a broomstick from under the hoop and attacked a player. I won’t even ask how Page got into an elite University like Georgetown – Billy Packer once told me a story about how his wife asked Thompson how Allen Iverson got into the school and it didn’t go over well.

[Hat Tip: Ballin is a Habit]