Canadian NBA star charged with reckless driving in Indiana

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Having a bum ankle apparently didn’t stop Zach Edey from putting his foot to the floor while driving earlier this week.

The Memphis Grizzlies centre, who was born and raised in Toronto, has been charged with reckless driving after being pulled over by police for speeding earlier this month.

Edey allegedly was driving 101 mph (161 km/h) in a 55 mph (88 km/h) zone on the evening of May 1.

According to Fox 59, an Indiana State Trooper pulled over the 23-year-old big man, who was driving a Kia Sorento, at 7:03 p.m. and issued him a citation.

Edey reportedly told the officers that the only reason he was driving at that speed was because he was trying to pass another vehicle.

The incident occurred in Tippecanoe County, Ind., which is where Purdue University is based. Edey spent four seasons playing NCAA hoops there for the Boilermakers.

Edey appeared in a photo posted by the school on May 6 alongside several current Purdue players and other alumni.

Edey reportedly is to be due to be in Tippecanoe Superior 6 court on Monday to face the misdemeanor charge of reckless driving.

The 7-foot-3 Canadian is coming off a solid rookie season with Grizzlies. He was named to the NBA’s all-rookie first team after notching 9.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game over the 66 contests he appeared in and collecting 85 total blocks.

During his time with Purdue, Edey was a two-time NCAA player of the year and was selected ninth overall by Memphis in last year’s draft.

However, his sophomore season likely will have a delayed start after Edey underwent surgery on his left ankle earlier this month. The big man required the procedure to repair and restabilize his ankle after spraining it again during off-season training. He also had missed 12 games early in his rookie season due to a sprained ankle.