Amar'e Stoudemire

Stoudemire is listed at and.

Although Stoudemire has suffered from chronic knee problems and has undergone microfracture surgery on his knees, he has won the 2003 NBA Rookie of the Year Award, made six appearances in the NBA All-Star Game, was a first-team All-NBA selection in 2007, and won a bronze medal with the United States men's national basketball team at the 2004 Olympic Games.

His off-court ventures include a record label, a clothing line, acting and a series of children's books for Scholastic Press.

Stoudemire's first name had previously been listed in the Phoenix Suns media guide as Amaré or Amare, but it was changed to Amar'e in October 2008. Stoudemire told NBA.com that his name had always been spelled Amar'e, but the media had been spelling it incorrectly since he joined the NBA.

Stoudemire was born in Lake Wales, Florida, a small city within an hour's drive of Orlando. Stoudemire's parents, Carrie and Hazell, divorced at a young age. Together they had two sons: Hazell Jr. and Amar'e. Stoudemire's mother did agricultural work, picking oranges in Florida, but she migrated north to Upstate New York during the fall to pick apples. Upon divorcing Hazell, she met another man, Artis Wilmore. Together they had a child, Marwan, who became Stoudemire's half brother. Hazell died of a heart attack when Stoudemire was 12, and his mother was in and out of prison for things such as petty theft and forgery during that time. Read Less