Rolando Blackman

Last updated

Rolando Blackman
Dal halloffame 18.jpg
Blackman with the Dallas Mavericks in 1990
Personal information
Born (1959-02-26) February 26, 1959 (age 65)
Panama City, Panama
NationalityPanamanian / American
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school William E. Grady (Brooklyn, New York)
College Kansas State (1977–1981)
NBA draft 1981: 1st round, 9th overall pick
Selected by the Dallas Mavericks
Playing career1981–1997
Position Shooting guard
Number22, 20
Career history
1981–1992 Dallas Mavericks
1992–1994 New York Knicks
1994–1995 AEK Athens
1995–1996 Olimpia Milano
1996–1997 CSP Limoges
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points 17,623 (18.0 ppg)
Rebounds 3,278 (3.3 rpg)
Assists 2,981 (3.0 apg)
Stats   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg at NBA.com
Stats   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg at Basketball-Reference.com
College Basketball Hall of Fame
Inducted in 2015

Rolando Antonio Blackman (born February 26, 1959) is a Panamanian-American former professional basketball player. He was a four-time NBA All-Star who spent most of his career with the Dallas Mavericks. He holds the Mavericks' franchise single-game record for free throws made (22).

Contents

Blackman was born in Panama City, Panama, and raised in Brooklyn, New York, from the age of eight.

Playing career

College basketball

After being raised in Brooklyn, Blackman attended Kansas State University where he played basketball under coach Jack Hartman. At Kansas State, Blackman had a number of noteworthy achievements:

Prior to his senior season, Blackman also was selected as a starter for the 1980 Summer Olympics basketball team, but did not participate in the Olympics because of the U.S. Olympic boycott. He did however receive one of 461 Congressional Gold Medals created especially for the spurned athletes. [1]

In his senior year Blackman led Kansas State into the West Regional of the NCAA tournament as the #8 seed. They defeated #9 seed University of San Francisco in the first round. Then KSU pulled an iconic upset of #1 seed Oregon State, 50–48, in the second round, punctuated by Blackman's game-winning jumper with three seconds left in the game. Next up was #4 seed Illinois, whom they defeated 57–52 in the semi before losing to #2 seed North Carolina 82–68 in the West Regional final.

In 1996, after the Big Eight Conference expanded to the Big 12, Blackman was named to the AP all-time All-Big Eight basketball team. Blackman's number 25 jersey was retired by Kansas State February 17, 2007 in a ceremony at halftime during a game against Iowa State. In 2015, he was inducted into National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. [2]

Professional career

Dallas Mavericks (1981–1992)

Rolando Blackman was drafted by the Mavericks in the first round (9th overall) of the 1981 NBA draft. He became the first Panamanian-born player in the NBA. Blackman had an immediate impact on the team, averaging 13.3 PPG in his rookie season. He was given a good amount of minutes in his career, getting around 24 minutes per game in his rookie campaign. He played well but the Mavericks weren't good until the 1983–1984 season. That was also Blackman's best statistical season as he averaged a career high 22.4 PPG and lead the franchise to its first ever playoff appearance. The Mavericks managed to beat the Seattle SuperSonics and reach the second round before ultimately losing to the Los Angeles Lakers. On February 17, 1986, Blackman set the Mavericks single-game record for free throws made and attempted in a 22–23 performance. [3] Despite putting up amazing stats, Blackman missed the all star game that year, although he did make it the following year. He would go on to be named an NBA All-Star four times in his career. At the 1987 All-Star Game, Blackman tied the game at the end of regulation with two free throws. [4] The West team would go on to win in overtime. As for the Mavericks, they played well and even had a magical season in 1987–1988 where they managed to reach the Western Conference Finals. This appearance happened to be the franchise's first Conference Finals appearance in its history. The Mavericks made it far but fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in 7 games. After this series the Mavericks began to decline and wouldn't achieve the same amount of success until much later on in the Dirk Nowitzki era. Blackman continued to play well and averaged around 19 PPG for the next few seasons, however the Mavericks fell off in the standings. By the 1991–1992 season, Blackman was 32 years old and the Mavericks entered a stage of rebuilding. By the 1992 off-season Blackman's time with the team was finished. Blackman made 6,487 field goals with the Mavericks and scored 16,643 points, which was a franchise record for 18 years – until broken by Dirk Nowitzki on March 8, 2008. In his 865 games with the Mavericks, Blackman never fouled out of a game.

New York Knicks (1992–1994)

On June 24, 1992, Blackman was traded to the New York Knicks for a 1995 first-round pick (which became Loren Meyer). Blackman spent his final two seasons in the NBA with the New York Knicks. In his last season in New York, he was reunited with former Dallas teammate Derek Harper. The team made it to the NBA Finals where they lost to the Houston Rockets in seven games. One of Blackman's most notable games as a Knick was when he hit the game winning shot in Game 4 of the 1993 Eastern Conference Semi-finals against the Charlotte Hornets, hitting a jump shot with five seconds left in the game that put the Knicks up by two. Blackman still played well in the twilight years of his career, but his age was finally getting to him and his time in the NBA was over. On July 6, 1994, the Knicks waived Blackman.

Retirement from the NBA

Shortly after being released, he retired from the league. Following the 1993–94 season, he had career totals of 17,623 points, 3,278 rebounds and 2,981 assists. Blackman was NBA's all-time scoring leader among Hispanic/Latin players (born in Iberian, Latin American & Spanish-speaking countries) until March 6, 2015, when Pau Gasol overtook him. Blackman's number 22 jersey was retired by the Mavericks on March 11, 2000. [5]

Europe

Blackman signed with the Greek League team AEK Athens BC in the middle of the 1994–95 season. Coached by Vlade Đurović, they finished the season in a disappointing eight place.

Over the summer of 1995, Blackman moved to Olimpia Milano, where he was brought in by head coach Bogdan Tanjević. Playing in the Italian League on a team including Dejan Bodiroga, Gregor Fučka, Nando Gentile, and Alessandro De Pol, Blackman, who turned 37 during the season, helped them win both the Italian League title and the Italian Basketball Cup by averaging 15.3 points per game. Blackman was named MVP of the Italian Cup series. Olimpia also reached the Korać Cup final, losing to Efes Pilsen Istanbul in the home-and-away series.

Blackman transferred to Limoges CSP in the summer of 1996, essentially brought along by coach Tanjević who earlier signed to be the club's new head coach.

Post-playing career

In 2000, Blackman was tapped to be the defensive coordinator for the Mavericks under coach Don Nelson. The next year, he served as an assistant coach for the German National team and helped lead them to a bronze medal at the 2002 World Basketball Championships in Indianapolis. During the 2004–05 season, Blackman was hired as one of the Mavericks television analysts, along with Matt Pinto and Bob Ortegel. For the 2005–06 season, Blackman returned to the Mavericks' bench, serving his first season as a full-fledged assistant coach. In July 2006 he was promoted to the position of Director of Player Development.

In August 2010, Blackman was hired as an assistant coach for the Turkey national basketball team by head coach Bogdan Tanjević, in advance of the 2010 FIBA World Championship tournament. [6] Blackman stated that he took the job specifically to work again with Tanjević, who had been his coach in Milan. [7]

During the 2006 NBA Finals, Blackman's former coach with the New York Knicks, Pat Riley, admitted, publicly for the first time, that sitting Rolando Blackman in favor of John Starks during Games 6 and 7 of the 1994 NBA Finals was the biggest coaching mistake in his career, and that he has never forgiven himself for it. [8]

Personal life

He has four children and resides in Dallas, Texas.

Blackman is on the board of directors of the Assist Youth Foundation. The foundation's goal is to advance opportunities for underprivileged kids in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and across the globe.

Blackman is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. Blackman continues to contribute to his chapter, Beta Psi, as well as the Kansas State University community.

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GPGames 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

YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
1981–82 Dallas 821624.1.513.250.7683.11.30.60.413.3
1982–83 Dallas 756231.3.492.200.7803.92.50.50.417.7
1983–84 Dallas 818137.3.546.091.8124.63.60.70.522.4
1984–85 Dallas 818035.0.508.300.8283.73.60.80.219.7
1985–86 Dallas 828134.0.514.138.8363.53.31.00.321.5
1986–87 Dallas 808034.5.495.333.8843.53.30.80.321.0
1987–88 Dallas 716936.3.473.000.8733.53.70.90.318.7
1988–89 Dallas 787837.8.476.353.8543.53.70.80.319.7
1989–90 Dallas 808036.7.498.302.8443.53.61.00.319.4
1990–91 Dallas 808037.1.482.351.8653.23.80.90.219.9
1991–92 Dallas 757433.7.461.385.8983.22.70.70.318.3
1992–93 New York 603323.9.443.425.7891.72.60.40.29.7
1993–94 New York 55117.6.436.357.9061.71.40.50.17.3
Career98081532.7.493.343.8403.33.00.70.318.0
All-Star4022.0.592–.8133.33.31.30.517.8

Playoffs

YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
1984 Dallas 10–39.7.531–.8414.14.00.60.423.9
1985 Dallas 4442.3.511.500.9476.54.80.50.532.8
1986 Dallas 101037.1.497.000.7923.53.20.80.120.8
1987 Dallas 4438.3.493.000.9173.54.30.50.023.5
1988 Dallas 171739.5.483.000.8873.24.50.90.218.1
1990 Dallas 3342.3.444.4001.0003.04.32.00.720.0
1993 New York 15014.3.344.267.8331.11.10.20.14.2
1994 New York 605.7.273.500–0.50.50.00.01.3
Career693831.0.484.290.8692.93.10.60.216.1

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dallas Mavericks</span> National Basketball Association team in Dallas

The Dallas Mavericks are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The team plays its home games at the American Airlines Center, which it shares with the National Hockey League's Dallas Stars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jason Kidd</span> American basketball player and coach (born 1973)

Jason Frederick Kidd is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely regarded as one of the greatest point guards and passers of all time, Kidd was a 10-time NBA All-Star, a five-time All-NBA First Team member, and a nine-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. He won an NBA championship in 2011 as a member of the Dallas Mavericks and was a two-time gold medal winner in the Olympics with the U.S. national team in 2000 and 2008. He was inducted as a player into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In October 2021, Kidd was honored as one of the league's greatest players of all time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Hardaway</span> American basketball player (born 1966)

Timothy Duane Hardaway Sr. is an American former professional basketball player. Hardaway played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers. He was a five-time NBA All-Star and All-NBA Team selection. Hardaway won a gold medal with the United States national basketball team at the 2000 Summer Olympics. He was known for his crossover dribble which was dubbed the "UTEP two-step" by television analysts. In 2022 Hardaway was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Bibby</span> American basketball player (born 1978)

Michael Bibby is an American former professional basketball player. He played professionally for 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He last served as the head coach for Hillcrest Prep Academy in Phoenix, Arizona. Bibby played college basketball for the Arizona Wildcats, with whom he won the 1997 NCAA Championship. He was drafted second overall by the Vancouver Grizzlies in the 1998 NBA draft.

Latrell Fontaine Sprewell is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Golden State Warriors, the New York Knicks, and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the National Basketball Association (NBA). During his career, Sprewell received four NBA All-Star selections, an All-NBA First Team selection, and an NBA All-Defensive Second Team selection. He helped the Knicks reach the 1999 NBA Finals and the Timberwolves to the 2004 Western Conference finals. Sprewell's career was overshadowed by a 1997 incident in which he choked and punched then-Warriors coach P. J. Carlesimo during practice, which resulted in a 68-game suspension.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derek Harper</span> American basketball player (born 1961)

Derek Ricardo Harper is an American former professional basketball player. A second-team All-American at the University of Illinois, he was the 11th overall pick of the 1983 NBA draft and spent 16 seasons as a point guard in the National Basketball Association with the Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, and Los Angeles Lakers. Harper is widely regarded as one of the best players to never have been selected to an All-Star game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Van Exel</span> American basketball coach and former player

Nickey Maxwell Van Exel is an American professional basketball coach and former player who last served as an assistant coach for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Van Exel played for six NBA teams from 1993 through 2006. He was an NBA All-Star with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raef LaFrentz</span> American basketball player

Raef Andrew LaFrentz is an American former professional basketball power forward and center who played for the Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, and Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born and raised in Iowa, LaFrentz attended the University of Kansas and was drafted in 1998 by the Denver Nuggets. He was known for his perimeter shooting and his shot blocking abilities. In 2019–20 LaFrentz became an assistant basketball coach at Decorah High School in Decorah, Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herb Williams</span> American basketball player (born 1958)

Herbert L. Williams is an American former basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for eighteen seasons from 1981 to 1999. Williams served as the interim head coach and the assistant coach of the NBA's New York Knicks. He was last an assistant coach for the New York Liberty of the WNBA.

The 1981 NBA draft was the 35th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 9, 1981, before the 1981–82 season. The draft was broadcast in the United States on the USA Network. In this draft, 23 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Dallas Mavericks won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Detroit Pistons were awarded the second pick. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was automatically eligible for selection. Before the draft, five college underclassmen announced that they would leave college early and would be eligible for selection. The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 223 players.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Aguirre</span> American basketball player (born 1959)

Mark Anthony Aguirre is an American former basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Aguirre was chosen as the first overall pick of the 1981 NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks after playing three years at DePaul University. Aguirre played in the NBA from 1981 until 1994 and won two championships with the Detroit Pistons after being traded to Detroit from Dallas in exchange for Adrian Dantley. Aguirre was a three-time All-Star for Dallas. Aguirre was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Cardinal</span> American basketball player (born 1977)

Brian Lee Cardinal is an American former professional basketball player. He played 456 games in the NBA between 2000 and 2012, and won an NBA championship with the Dallas Mavericks in 2011. Before his NBA career, he was one of the best players in the history of Purdue University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DeShawn Stevenson</span> American basketball player (born 1981)

DeShawn Stevenson is an American former professional basketball player. Stevenson played for six teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) during a 13-year career. He originally committed to play at the University of Kansas, but decided to enter the NBA directly from high school and was picked by the Utah Jazz with the 23rd selection of the 2000 NBA draft. He was a member of the Dallas Mavericks team that won an NBA championship in 2011. In 2017, Stevenson joined Power, one of the eight BIG3 basketball league teams.

The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas, USA, belonging to the NBA. In their history, the Mavericks have won one NBA championship, four division titles, and two conference championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hubert Davis</span> American basketball player and coach (born 1970)

Hubert Ira Davis Jr. is an American college basketball coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels men's team. Before his coaching career, Davis played for North Carolina from 1988–1992 and in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors, Dallas Mavericks, Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons, and New Jersey Nets from 1992 to 2004. He holds the franchise single-season and career three-point field goal shooting percentage records for both the Knicks and the Mavericks. He is the nephew of Walter Davis, another former Tar Heel and NBA player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devin Harris</span> American basketball player (born 1983)

Devin Lamar Harris is an American sports analyst and former professional basketball player. He played for 15 seasons, mostly with the Dallas Mavericks and New Jersey Nets.

The 1992–93 New York Knicks season was the 47th season for the Knicks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). During the off-season, the Knicks acquired Charles D. Smith, Doc Rivers and Bo Kimble from the Los Angeles Clippers, acquired All-Star guard Rolando Blackman from the Dallas Mavericks, and Tony Campbell from the Minnesota Timberwolves, and later signed free agent Herb Williams in November. The team also selected shooting guard Hubert Davis from the University of North Carolina with the 20th overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft. For the season, the Knicks changed their primary logo, adding a silver triangle behind a redesigned text of the word "Knicks" and an orange basketball. The team slightly redesigned their uniforms, replacing the previous Knicks logo with the newer logo on the right leg of their shorts. The Knicks' new logo remained in use until 1995, when they added the city name "New York" above their logo, while the uniforms lasted until 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Thomas (basketball)</span> American basketball player (born 1977)

Timothy Mark Thomas is an American basketball coach and former professional player. He was a highly ranked prospect while playing at Paterson Catholic High School in his hometown of Paterson, New Jersey. Thomas played college basketball for the Villanova Wildcats and declared for the 1997 NBA draft after his freshman season. He spent thirteen seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas Mavericks. Thomas serves as the head coach of the boys basketball team at Paramus Catholic High School in Paramus, New Jersey.

The 1991–92 NBA season was the Mavericks' 12th season in the National Basketball Association. The Mavericks had the sixth pick in the 1991 NBA draft, and selected Doug Smith from the University of Missouri. Prior to the start of the season, Roy Tarpley was banned from the NBA for violating the league's substance abuse policy for a third time. Fat Lever missed most of the season again due to injury, only playing in just 31 games, as the Mavericks began to regret acquiring him from the Denver Nuggets for two first round draft picks. After a 12–15 start, the Mavericks struggled and went on an 11-game losing streak as they lost 19 of 20 games. At midseason, the team traded James Donaldson to the New York Knicks in exchange for Brian Quinnett. The Mavericks got even worse posting a 15-game losing streak in March, and finishing fifth in the Midwest Division with a 22–60 record.

The 1989–90 NBA season was the Mavericks' 10th season in the National Basketball Association. A year after missing the playoffs, the Mavericks received the eighth overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft, and selected Randy White out of Louisiana Tech, and later on fired head coach John MacLeod at the end of November, replacing with him Richie Adubato. However, things would not all go smoothly for the Mavericks as Roy Tarpley found himself in hot water again, as he was arrested in November for driving under the influence of drugs. The Mavericks played above .500 for the first half of the season, holding a 26–22 record at the All-Star break. As the season progressed, the team released Adrian Dantley to free agency; Dantley averaged 14.7 points per game in 45 games with the team. The Mavericks finished third in the Midwest Division with a 47–35 record.

References

  1. ↑ Caroccioli, Tom; Caroccioli, Jerry (2008). Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. Highland Park, IL: New Chapter Press. pp. 243–253. ISBN   978-0942257403.
  2. ↑ "Blackman, Buckner, Havlicek headline class of 2015 Hall of Fame inductees". NCAA.com. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Dallas Mavericks 2020–21 Media Guide" (PDF). Dallas Mavericks. 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
  4. ↑ "NBA.com's Favorite All-Star Memories: Rolando Blackman, 1987". www.nba.com. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  5. ↑ NBA.com History: This Date in History – March
  6. ↑ http://www.ballineurope.com/national-teams/rolando-blackman-turkey-assistant-coach-7415/ BallinEurope.com: Turkiye'ye hosgeldiniz, Rolando Blackman!
  7. ↑ Article title FIBA: Turkey bring in Blackman as assistant
  8. ↑ http://articles.nydailynews.com/2006-06-08/sports/18322204_1_knicks-pat-riley-patrick-ewing [ dead link ]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.