Details
Hometown: San Jose, CANWBA Classification: 1
Position: Guard
Bio
Don Bearden (aka Big Don) has been playing for the Golden State Road Warriors for 9 years. He previously played for the San Jose Pacific Spartans and the San Jose Golden Spokes. He has been involved in wheelchair sports for about 30 years, coaching at a local Junior Wheelchair Sports team for about 15 years. He enjoyed coaching “since it was a chance to provide the younger
players with guidance and support and show them that hard work will pay off, and also be a mentor and a role model to them.”
Don also plays competitive wheelchair tennis and is ranked in the world wheelchair tennis rankings. He’s traveled in and
out of the country to compete in ITF (Internation Tennis Federation) tournaments in places such as Korea and Japan, and
also within the States at locations such as Atlanta, Reno, Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Jose. A highlight in tennis was reaching the quarterfinals in doubles at the US Wheelchair tennis Open.
Before playing competitive basketball, Don was involved in other wheelchair sports such as track & field, table tennis, and archery. Highlights include when he was chosen to represent the United States in the World Disabled Track & Field Championships in 1992.
In personal life, Don is a Software Engineer for a big firm. He has worked in the high tech industry for about 15 years. He graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in Computer Science.