Etan Thomas

Etan Thomas

Thomas with the Wizards in 2008
Personal information
Born (1978-04-01) April 1, 1978
Harlem, New York
Nationality American
Listed height 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight 260 lb (118 kg)
Career information
High school Booker T. Washington
(Tulsa, Oklahoma)
College Syracuse (1996–2000)
NBA draft 2000 / Round: 1 / Pick: 12th overall
Selected by the Dallas Mavericks
Playing career 2000–2011
Position Center / Power forward
Number 36
Career history
2001–2009 Washington Wizards
2009–2010 Oklahoma City Thunder
2010–2011 Atlanta Hawks
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Dedrick Etan Thomas (/ɛtɑːˈn/; born April 1, 1978) is an American retired professional basketball player who played 9 seasons in the NBA. He is also a published poet, freelance writer, and motivational speaker.

College

Thomas played his college basketball at Syracuse University from 1996–2000, where he averaged 11 points per game and almost 7 rebounds per game and graduated with a degree in business management.[1] His senior year he was named Big East Defensive Player of the Year. At the end of his Syracuse career, Thomas was drafted 12th overall in the 2000 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks. He also played basketball at Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa, OK, where he was a teammate of De'mond Parker, R.W. McQuarters and Ryan Humphrey.

Professional career

Without ever playing a game for the Mavericks, he was traded to the Washington Wizards in 2001. He averaged 4.3 points and 3.9 rebounds throughout the 2001–02 season.

On June 23, 2009, he was traded along with Oleksiy Pecherov, Darius Songaila, and a first-round draft pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Randy Foye and Mike Miller.[2]

On July 27, 2009, he was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder along with a 2010 second-round draft pick and a conditional 2010 second-round draft pick in exchange for guards Chucky Atkins and Damien Wilkins.[3]

On September 2, 2010, it was announced that the Atlanta Hawks had signed Thomas.[4]

Health concerns

During the Wizards' training camp for the 2007–08 NBA season, a routine physical examination discovered that he had a leaking aortic valve. On October 11, 2007, Thomas successfully underwent open heart surgery. He returned to play for the Wizards on October 29, 2008, a full year after his surgery. In his first game back, he had 10 points and eight rebounds.[5]

In 2011, he starred in the dramatic production of "Our Town" by Thornton Wilder.

Personal life

His name is derived from the 18th dynasty "heretic pharaoh" Akhenaten, an ancient Egyptian king.[6]

In 2005, Thomas released a book of poetry titled More Than an Athlete: Poems by Etan Thomas which included works critical of former Wizards head coach Doug Collins.

Political activism and social causes

In September 2005, Thomas was one of several celebrities to speak at an anti-war rally in Washington, D.C.[7] He also spoke out at the September 15, 2007 anti-war protest in Washington D.C.[8] He regularly posts blogs for The Huffington Post.[9]

Thomas actively supported Barack Obama's 2008 campaign for U.S. president. On August 16, 2008, he appeared with Democratic National Committee chair Howard Dean at stops in northern Virginia as part of the Democratic National Committee's "Register for Change" bus tour to encourage local voter registration drives. Thomas gave speeches at two stops in Fairfax County[10] and the City of Alexandria.

Described by NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul Jabbar as “The Poetic voice of his generation” and by hip hop artist Chuck D of Public Enemy as “A Portal of our future” Etan Thomas has made his mark far beyond the boundaries of a basketball court. Never afraid to voice his opinions he has been an outspoken pillar in the community. Recipient of the 2010 National Basketball Players Association Community Contribution Award as well as the 2009 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Foundation Inc Legacy Award. His body of work includes serving as a Surrogate for Barack Obama ’08 Presidential Campaign; A guest speaker with DNC Chair Gov. Howard Dean during the “Register For Change” 50 State Bus Tour Campaign.

In 2005 Thomas released a collection of poems called More Than An Athlete; In January 2013 he released Voices Of The Future a collection of poems and essays from young writers from around the country on topics such as Racism, Trayvon Martin, President Obama, Gun Violence, Aids etc. On May 2012 he released his 2nd book called Fatherhood (Rising To The Ultimate Challenge) and started a Fatherhood Movement in which he goes from city to city holding panels and town hall meetings to discuss Fatherhood. In each city he recruits different celebrities to join him in inspiring an entire generation. He takes his message to prisons, Universities, churches, high schools, middle schools and various conventions including The NAACP convention and The Congressional Black Caucus. His writings have appeared in CNN, ESPN, The Washington Post, Huffington Post, Hoopshype.com and slamonline, as well as his personal website and Twitter account.

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2001–02 Washington 47 0 13.1 .536 .000 .554 3.9 .1 .4 .7 4.3
2002–03 Washington 38 0 13.5 .492 .000 .638 4.3 .1 .2 .6 4.8
2003–04 Washington 79 15 24.1 .489 .000 .647 6.7 .9 .5 1.6 8.9
2004–05 Washington 47 10 20.8 .502 .000 .528 5.2 .4 .4 1.1 7.1
2005–06 Washington 71 9 15.8 .533 .000 .600 3.9 .2 .3 1.0 4.7
2006–07 Washington 65 32 19.2 .574 .000 .558 5.8 .4 .3 1.4 6.1
2008–09 Washington 26 7 11.8 .485 .000 .696 2.5 .2 .1 .7 3.1
2009–10 Oklahoma City 23 1 14.0 .456 .000 .591 2.8 .0 .2 .7 3.3
2010–11 Atlanta 13 0 6.3 .476 .000 .800 1.8 .2 .1 .3 2.5
Career 409 74 17.3 .513 .000 .603 4.8 .4 .3 1.0 5.7

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2005 Washington 8 0 15.8 .655 .000 .455 4.5 .3 .0 .9 6.0
2006 Washington 3 0 6.0 .400 .000 .500 2.0 .0 .7 .7 2.0
2007 Washington 4 4 21.0 .412 .000 .667 5.5 .3 .5 .8 5.0
2010 Oklahoma City 2 0 8.5 .833 .000 1.000 2.0 .0 .0 .0 6.0
2011 Atlanta 1 0 7.0 .000 .000 .000 1.0 .0 .0 .0 .0
Career 18 4 14.0 .559 .000 .541 3.8 .2 .2 .7 4.8

References

  1. ↑ "End the NBA draft age limit". ESPN.com. April 12, 2012. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Source: Foye, Miller head to Wiz". ESPN.com. June 24, 2009. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Timberwolves trade Etan Thomas, picks to Thunder for Damien Wilkins, Chucky Atkins". InsideHoops.com. July 27, 2009. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Hawks Sign Etan Thomas". NBA.com. September 2, 2010. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Wizards' Thomas back -- as starter, no less -- after heart surgery". SI.com. November 6, 2008. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  6. ↑ "NBA.com : Etan Thomas Bio Page". NBA.com. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  7. ↑ Zirin, Dave (September 27, 2005). "The Speech Everyone Is Talking About: Etan Thomas". Commondreams.org. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  8. ↑ "In Defense of Barack Obama". Huffingtonpost.com. November 2, 2007. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  9. ↑ Etan Thomas – Huffington Post
  10. ↑ Howard Dean’s Register for Change Bus Tour

External links

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Etan Thomas.
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