06-01-2021, 04:59 PM
Mark E. Eaton (January 24, 1957 – May 28, 2021) was an American professional basketball player who spent his entire career (1982–1993) with the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was named an NBA All-Star in 1989 and was twice voted the NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1985, 1989). Though limited offensively, the 7-foot-4-inch (2.24 m) Eaton become one of the best defensive centers in NBA history. He led the league in blocks four times and holds the NBA records for single-season blocks (456) and career blocked shots per game average (3.50).
After graduating in 1975, Eaton attended the Arizona Automotive Institute in Phoenix and graduated as a service technician. He worked as an auto mechanic and making $20,000 a year when he was eventually discovered by Tom Lubin while repairing cars in Anaheim in April 1977.[3] Lubin, a chemistry professor, was an assistant basketball coach at Cypress College, and his encouragement led Eaton to enroll at the community college in 1978 and try out for the basketball team.[3][4]
After his freshman year at Cypress, Eaton was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in the 1979 NBA draft with the 107th pick in the 5th round.[3] He was eligible to be drafted because he was already four years out of high school in 1979. However, he opted to return to college basketball.[5] Eaton developed into a solid junior college player. He averaged 14.3 points per game in two seasons at Cypress, and led the school to the California junior college title as a sophomore in 1980.[3]
Eaton transferred to University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1980, but did not see much action in his two seasons with the Bruins, playing for head coach Larry Brown one season and then Larry Farmer the next. In Eaton's senior season in 1981–82, Farmer vowed to give him a shot to start, but heralded freshman Stuart Gray got the nod instead.[5] Eaton played just 42 total minutes, averaging 1.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11 games. He was initially disappointed with his inability to play effectively in college. At a summer pickup game, Wilt Chamberlain saw Eaton's frustration, and explain that Eaton needed to focus on protecting the basket, getting rebounds, and passing the ball to quicker guards, rather than trying to compete with smaller, quicker players in scoring. Eaton cited Chamberlain's advice as the turning point in his basketball career.[6][7][8]
Because of his lack of playing time at UCLA, few NBA teams had interest in Eaton after he finished his college career. However, the Utah Jazz saw him as a potentially dominant defender and selected him with the 72nd pick in the fourth round of the 1982 NBA draft.[9][10] Utah coach Frank Layden later explained his choice by quoting Red Auerbach's old axiom, "you can't teach height".[11] Also the team's general manager, Layden discouraged him from playing in Europe and signed him to a five-year contract, with the first season guaranteed, for a reported $500,000.[5][9] In his rookie season, Eaton made an immediate impact. He started 32 games,[12] replacing Danny Schayes after the cash-stapped Jazz traded the center mid-season.[3] Eaton finished the season with a then-franchise record 275 blocked shots while averaging only 19 minutes per game.[9][13] His 3.4 blocks per game ranked third in the NBA, behind Atlanta's Tree Rollins and San Diego's Bill Walton.[14]
Eaton continued to improve in his second season with the Jazz. In 82 games, he grabbed a team-leading 595 rebounds and blocked 351 shots (breaking his own franchise record). His 4.28 blocks per game led the NBA, well ahead of Rollins (who finished second with 3.60 blocks per game).[10] During the season, he failed to block the hook shot which gave Kareem Abdul-Jabbar his 31,421st point to break the NBA career scoring record held by Chamberlain.[15] Eaton's strong defense helped the Jazz win their first Midwest Division title make their first playoff appearance.[16]
Eaton's third season (1984–85) was spectacular. He blocked 456 shots, shattering the NBA record for most blocked shots in a single season set during the 1973–74 season by Elmore Smith, who had blocked 393 shots for the Los Angeles Lakers. Eaton averaged 5.56 blocks per game, more than double the league's second-ranked shot-blocker that season (Houston's Hakeem Olajuwon with 2.68 blocks per game).[17] In addition, Eaton averaged 11.3 rebounds per game, ranking fifth in the league in that category. For his efforts, he was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team and was honored as the NBA Defensive Player of the Year.[10] On April 26, 1985, Eaton made ten blocks in a 96–94 loss to the Rockets,[18] becoming the first NBA player to record ten blocks in a playoff game (later tied by Olajuwon and Andrew Bynum).[19]
Although he was not a significant offensive contributor, the Jazz relied heavily on Eaton for his shot-blocking, rebounding, and occasional "tippy toe" dunks. With the emergence of superstars Karl Malone and John Stockton, the Jazz became one of the best teams in the NBA. Eaton's stifling defense was a major factor in Utah's success. He continued to rank among NBA leaders in blocked shots, leading the league in 1986–87 and 1987–88.[10] In 1988–89, he averaged 10.3 rebounds per game (seventh in the NBA) and 3.84 blocks per game (second behind Golden State's Manute Bol).[3] He was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the second time in his career, and was also named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team (for the third time in his career).[10] In addition, he was chosen to play in the 1989 NBA All-Star Game,[3] joining teammates Malone and Stockton on the Western Conference team. It was the first time that the Jazz had three players in the All-Star Game.[20]
In his last few years with the Jazz, Eaton was slowed by knee and back injuries. He remained an imposing defensive presence, but his rebounding and shot-blocking abilities slowly declined. During the 1992–93 season, knee surgery and back problems limited him to 64 games, where he averaged 17.3 minutes per game, both career lows. A degenerative back ailment forced him to drop out of training camp and miss the 1993–94 season. After therapy failed to correct the problem, he announced his retirement from basketball in September 1994.[21]
After his retirement, Eaton worked for KJZZ-TV in Salt Lake City, providing color commentary and analysis for television broadcasts of Utah Jazz and University of Utah basketball games.[26]
Eaton was a partner in a Salt Lake City-area restaurant named Tuscany.[27]
He was a president/board member of the National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) from 1997 to 2007.[28][29][30]
He founded and served as chairman of the Mark Eaton Standing Tall for Youth organization, which provided sports and outdoor activities for at-risk children in Utah. He was a motivational speaker.[31]
In the 2013 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Jazz player Jeremy Evans jumped over a seated Eaton to dunk the ball.[32] In later years, he became a mentor to Jazz center Rudy Gobert, who joined Eaton as the only other player in the franchise's history to be named defensive player of the year.[1]
Eaton died on May 28, 2021, at age 64, after a bicycle accident in Park City, Utah. He was found unresponsive by a passerby and was pronounced dead at the hospital.[12]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Eaton
After graduating in 1975, Eaton attended the Arizona Automotive Institute in Phoenix and graduated as a service technician. He worked as an auto mechanic and making $20,000 a year when he was eventually discovered by Tom Lubin while repairing cars in Anaheim in April 1977.[3] Lubin, a chemistry professor, was an assistant basketball coach at Cypress College, and his encouragement led Eaton to enroll at the community college in 1978 and try out for the basketball team.[3][4]
After his freshman year at Cypress, Eaton was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in the 1979 NBA draft with the 107th pick in the 5th round.[3] He was eligible to be drafted because he was already four years out of high school in 1979. However, he opted to return to college basketball.[5] Eaton developed into a solid junior college player. He averaged 14.3 points per game in two seasons at Cypress, and led the school to the California junior college title as a sophomore in 1980.[3]
Eaton transferred to University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1980, but did not see much action in his two seasons with the Bruins, playing for head coach Larry Brown one season and then Larry Farmer the next. In Eaton's senior season in 1981–82, Farmer vowed to give him a shot to start, but heralded freshman Stuart Gray got the nod instead.[5] Eaton played just 42 total minutes, averaging 1.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11 games. He was initially disappointed with his inability to play effectively in college. At a summer pickup game, Wilt Chamberlain saw Eaton's frustration, and explain that Eaton needed to focus on protecting the basket, getting rebounds, and passing the ball to quicker guards, rather than trying to compete with smaller, quicker players in scoring. Eaton cited Chamberlain's advice as the turning point in his basketball career.[6][7][8]
Because of his lack of playing time at UCLA, few NBA teams had interest in Eaton after he finished his college career. However, the Utah Jazz saw him as a potentially dominant defender and selected him with the 72nd pick in the fourth round of the 1982 NBA draft.[9][10] Utah coach Frank Layden later explained his choice by quoting Red Auerbach's old axiom, "you can't teach height".[11] Also the team's general manager, Layden discouraged him from playing in Europe and signed him to a five-year contract, with the first season guaranteed, for a reported $500,000.[5][9] In his rookie season, Eaton made an immediate impact. He started 32 games,[12] replacing Danny Schayes after the cash-stapped Jazz traded the center mid-season.[3] Eaton finished the season with a then-franchise record 275 blocked shots while averaging only 19 minutes per game.[9][13] His 3.4 blocks per game ranked third in the NBA, behind Atlanta's Tree Rollins and San Diego's Bill Walton.[14]
Eaton continued to improve in his second season with the Jazz. In 82 games, he grabbed a team-leading 595 rebounds and blocked 351 shots (breaking his own franchise record). His 4.28 blocks per game led the NBA, well ahead of Rollins (who finished second with 3.60 blocks per game).[10] During the season, he failed to block the hook shot which gave Kareem Abdul-Jabbar his 31,421st point to break the NBA career scoring record held by Chamberlain.[15] Eaton's strong defense helped the Jazz win their first Midwest Division title make their first playoff appearance.[16]
Eaton's third season (1984–85) was spectacular. He blocked 456 shots, shattering the NBA record for most blocked shots in a single season set during the 1973–74 season by Elmore Smith, who had blocked 393 shots for the Los Angeles Lakers. Eaton averaged 5.56 blocks per game, more than double the league's second-ranked shot-blocker that season (Houston's Hakeem Olajuwon with 2.68 blocks per game).[17] In addition, Eaton averaged 11.3 rebounds per game, ranking fifth in the league in that category. For his efforts, he was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team and was honored as the NBA Defensive Player of the Year.[10] On April 26, 1985, Eaton made ten blocks in a 96–94 loss to the Rockets,[18] becoming the first NBA player to record ten blocks in a playoff game (later tied by Olajuwon and Andrew Bynum).[19]
Although he was not a significant offensive contributor, the Jazz relied heavily on Eaton for his shot-blocking, rebounding, and occasional "tippy toe" dunks. With the emergence of superstars Karl Malone and John Stockton, the Jazz became one of the best teams in the NBA. Eaton's stifling defense was a major factor in Utah's success. He continued to rank among NBA leaders in blocked shots, leading the league in 1986–87 and 1987–88.[10] In 1988–89, he averaged 10.3 rebounds per game (seventh in the NBA) and 3.84 blocks per game (second behind Golden State's Manute Bol).[3] He was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the second time in his career, and was also named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team (for the third time in his career).[10] In addition, he was chosen to play in the 1989 NBA All-Star Game,[3] joining teammates Malone and Stockton on the Western Conference team. It was the first time that the Jazz had three players in the All-Star Game.[20]
In his last few years with the Jazz, Eaton was slowed by knee and back injuries. He remained an imposing defensive presence, but his rebounding and shot-blocking abilities slowly declined. During the 1992–93 season, knee surgery and back problems limited him to 64 games, where he averaged 17.3 minutes per game, both career lows. A degenerative back ailment forced him to drop out of training camp and miss the 1993–94 season. After therapy failed to correct the problem, he announced his retirement from basketball in September 1994.[21]
After his retirement, Eaton worked for KJZZ-TV in Salt Lake City, providing color commentary and analysis for television broadcasts of Utah Jazz and University of Utah basketball games.[26]
Eaton was a partner in a Salt Lake City-area restaurant named Tuscany.[27]
He was a president/board member of the National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) from 1997 to 2007.[28][29][30]
He founded and served as chairman of the Mark Eaton Standing Tall for Youth organization, which provided sports and outdoor activities for at-risk children in Utah. He was a motivational speaker.[31]
In the 2013 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Jazz player Jeremy Evans jumped over a seated Eaton to dunk the ball.[32] In later years, he became a mentor to Jazz center Rudy Gobert, who joined Eaton as the only other player in the franchise's history to be named defensive player of the year.[1]
Eaton died on May 28, 2021, at age 64, after a bicycle accident in Park City, Utah. He was found unresponsive by a passerby and was pronounced dead at the hospital.[12]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Eaton
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated Communist but instead the people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists -- Hannah Arendt.