Marcus Fizer
Encyclopedia
Darnell Marcus Lamar Fizer (born August 10, 1978 in Inkster, Michigan
) is an American professional basketball
player who is currently a free agent
.
. As a senior, Fizer was selected to play in the McDonald's All-American Game.
head coach Tim Floyd
became aware of Fizer's potential while coaching in Louisiana and interested Fizer in playing collegiate basketball at Iowa State University. Fizer became the first McDonald's All-American to wear the Cyclone uniform.
Tim Floyd left Iowa State to coach the Chicago Bulls
of the NBA after Fizer's freshman year and was replaced by Larry Eustachy
. While playing for both Floyd and Eustachy, Fizer accumulated many Big 12 Conference
and national accolades including All-Big 12 honorable mention (freshman), National first-team All-Freshman, first team All-Big 12 (sophomore and junior), Big 12 Player of the Year (junior), Big 12 Tournament
Most Outstanding Player (junior), and consensus first-team All-America (junior). He led the Big 12 in scoring his sophomore and junior seasons. Following a Big 12 regular season title Big 12 tournament title, and Elite Eight NCAA Tournament finish his junior year, Fizer elected to declare for the NBA Draft
.
Fizer is ranked fifth on ISU's career scoring list with 1,830 points recorded during his three years spent at ISU.
by the Chicago Bulls
, coached by Tim Floyd, the coach that recruited him to Iowa State. Many analysts suspected that the Bulls had drafted Fizer merely to trade him for another player, since the Bulls already had Elton Brand
at the power forward position. However, no such trade ever took place, and Fizer spent the next four years with the Bulls. He never averaged more than 12.3 points per game. Fizer tore his ACL
in late January 2003. In 2004 he was selected by the Charlotte Bobcats
in the expansion draft. Not making their final roster, he signed as a free agent
with the Milwaukee Bucks
. After one season in Milwaukee, he failed to sign a free agent deal with another team. In November 2005, he signed with the Austin Toros
of the NBA Development League
. On March 8, 2006, Fizer signed a 10-day contract with the Seattle SuperSonics
, but did not play any games for them. On March 31, 2006, he was named the NBA Development League
MVP for the 2005–2006 season. The same day, he was signed to a 10-day contract with the New Orleans Hornets.
He appeared in 289 career NBA games, making 35 starts and averaging 9.6 ppg, 4.6 rpg and 1.2 apg, shooting .435 from the floor and .691 from the free throw line in 20.9 mpg, and has scored 20+ points 17 times, with 10+ rebounds on 22 occasions in his four-year NBA career.
He played for the gold medal-winning United States team at the 2001 Goodwill Games
in Brisbane
, Australia while averaging 4.8 points and 3.0 rebounds, shooting .550 from the floor. In the summer of 2006 he signed a one-year contract with Polaris World Murcia
of the Spanish league ACB
. Then he played with Capitanes de Arecibo, in the Puerto Rico professional Basketball league (BSN). In 2007 Fizer signed a two year deal with the Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv. In the 2007–2008 season the Israeli Super League
club reached the Euroleague
championship game, eventually losing to CSKA Moscow
. Fizer was unable to play in the later stages of the Euroleague due to a knee injury that led to the termination of his contract with Maccabi just before the 2008–2009 season started.
In February 2010, Fizer signed with the Guaynabo Mets of Puerto Rico, along with Antoine Walker
.
ed players in the NBA. As of March 2006, he had 31 tattoos.
Inkster, Michigan
Inkster is a city in Wayne County of the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2010 census, the city population was 25,369. It is one of several suburbs in Metro Detroit whose population is majority or plurality African American.- History :...
) is an American professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player who is currently a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
.
High school career
Fizer played high school basketball at Arcadia High School in Arcadia, LouisianaArcadia, Louisiana
Arcadia is a town in and the parish seat of Bienville Parish in north Louisiana, United States. The population was 3,041 at the 2000 census....
. As a senior, Fizer was selected to play in the McDonald's All-American Game.
College career
CycloneIowa State Cyclones
The Iowa State Cyclones are the athletic teams of Iowa State University. The university is a member of the Big 12 Conference and competes in NCAA Division I, fielding 16 varsity teams in 12 sports.*Men's sports...
head coach Tim Floyd
Tim Floyd
Tim Floyd is an American college basketball coach and the current head coach of the University of Texas at El Paso Miners men's basketball team. He is also a former head coach of several teams in both the NCAA and the NBA, most recently the University of Southern California men's college...
became aware of Fizer's potential while coaching in Louisiana and interested Fizer in playing collegiate basketball at Iowa State University. Fizer became the first McDonald's All-American to wear the Cyclone uniform.
Tim Floyd left Iowa State to coach the Chicago Bulls
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
of the NBA after Fizer's freshman year and was replaced by Larry Eustachy
Larry Eustachy
Larry Eustachy is an American college basketball coach and the current head coach of The University of Southern Mississippi's men's basketball team. He was hired as head coach on March 25, 2004. He had previously been head coach of the men's basketball teams at Idaho , Utah State and Iowa State...
. While playing for both Floyd and Eustachy, Fizer accumulated many Big 12 Conference
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference of ten schools located in the Central United States, with its headquarters located in Las Colinas, a community in the Dallas, Texas suburb of Irving...
and national accolades including All-Big 12 honorable mention (freshman), National first-team All-Freshman, first team All-Big 12 (sophomore and junior), Big 12 Player of the Year (junior), Big 12 Tournament
Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament
The Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament is the championship men's basketball tournament in the Big 12 Conference. It is a single-elimination tournament of four rounds, with the top four seeds getting byes in the first round...
Most Outstanding Player (junior), and consensus first-team All-America (junior). He led the Big 12 in scoring his sophomore and junior seasons. Following a Big 12 regular season title Big 12 tournament title, and Elite Eight NCAA Tournament finish his junior year, Fizer elected to declare for the NBA Draft
NBA Draft
The NBA Draft is an annual event in which the thirty teams from the National Basketball Association can draft players who are eligible and wish to join the league. These players are usually amateur U.S. college basketball players, but international players are also eligible to be drafted...
.
Fizer is ranked fifth on ISU's career scoring list with 1,830 points recorded during his three years spent at ISU.
Professional career
Fizer was selected with the fourth pick of the 2000 NBA Draft2000 NBA Draft
The 2000 NBA Draft was held on June 28, 2000 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Until 2011, it was the last draft held at the home arena of an NBA team; the following and subsequent drafts have all taken place at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York. This draft is...
by the Chicago Bulls
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
, coached by Tim Floyd, the coach that recruited him to Iowa State. Many analysts suspected that the Bulls had drafted Fizer merely to trade him for another player, since the Bulls already had Elton Brand
Elton Brand
Elton Tyron Brand is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association...
at the power forward position. However, no such trade ever took place, and Fizer spent the next four years with the Bulls. He never averaged more than 12.3 points per game. Fizer tore his ACL
Anterior cruciate ligament
The anterior cruciate ligament is a cruciate ligament which is one of the four major ligaments of the human knee. In the quadruped stifle , based on its anatomical position, it is referred to as the cranial cruciate ligament.The ACL originates from deep within the notch of the distal femur...
in late January 2003. In 2004 he was selected by the Charlotte Bobcats
Charlotte Bobcats
The Charlotte Bobcats is a professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association. The Bobcats were established in 2004 as an expansion team, two seasons after Charlotte's previous NBA...
in the expansion draft. Not making their final roster, he signed as a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
with the Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....
. After one season in Milwaukee, he failed to sign a free agent deal with another team. In November 2005, he signed with the Austin Toros
Austin Toros
The Austin Toros are a NBA Development League minor league basketball team based in Cedar Park, Texas, United States.The team plays home games at Cedar Park Center.Their logo is the design of a bull and basketball with the state of Texas in the background...
of the NBA Development League
NBA Development League
The NBA Development League, or NBA D-League, is the National Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. Known until summer 2005 as the National Basketball Development League , the NBA D-League started with eight teams in the fall of 2001...
. On March 8, 2006, Fizer signed a 10-day contract with the Seattle SuperSonics
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington that played in the Pacific and Northwest Divisions of the National Basketball Association from 1967 until 2008. Following the 2007–08 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, and now plays as...
, but did not play any games for them. On March 31, 2006, he was named the NBA Development League
NBA Development League
The NBA Development League, or NBA D-League, is the National Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. Known until summer 2005 as the National Basketball Development League , the NBA D-League started with eight teams in the fall of 2001...
MVP for the 2005–2006 season. The same day, he was signed to a 10-day contract with the New Orleans Hornets.
He appeared in 289 career NBA games, making 35 starts and averaging 9.6 ppg, 4.6 rpg and 1.2 apg, shooting .435 from the floor and .691 from the free throw line in 20.9 mpg, and has scored 20+ points 17 times, with 10+ rebounds on 22 occasions in his four-year NBA career.
He played for the gold medal-winning United States team at the 2001 Goodwill Games
Goodwill Games
The Goodwill Games was an international sports competition, created by Ted Turner in reaction to the political troubles surrounding the Olympic Games of the 1980s...
in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Australia while averaging 4.8 points and 3.0 rebounds, shooting .550 from the floor. In the summer of 2006 he signed a one-year contract with Polaris World Murcia
CB Murcia
Club Baloncesto Murcia, S.A.D., also known as UCAM Murcia by sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball team based in Murcia, Region of Murcia, Spain. The team plays in ACB...
of the Spanish league ACB
Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto
The Liga ACB, known as the Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in Spain. It was founded in 1956 with the name of Liga Nacional. The league changed its name to the current one in 1983. The league is rated as one of the three "A" level European...
. Then he played with Capitanes de Arecibo, in the Puerto Rico professional Basketball league (BSN). In 2007 Fizer signed a two year deal with the Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv. In the 2007–2008 season the Israeli Super League
Ligat Winner
Ligat HaAl , or the Israeli Basketball Super League, is the top tier of league basketball competition in Israeli basketball, making it Israel's primary basketball competition. For sponsorship reasons, the league is also referred to as Ligat Loto , lit...
club reached the Euroleague
Euroleague
Euroleague Basketball, commonly known as the Euroleague, is the highest level tier and most important professional club basketball competition in Europe, with teams from up to 18 different countries, members of FIBA Europe. For sponsorship reasons, for five seasons starting with 2010–2011, it is...
championship game, eventually losing to CSKA Moscow
PBC CSKA Moscow
PBC CSKA Moscow is a Russian professional basketball team that is based in Moscow, Russia. The club is a member of the VTB United League. It is often referred to in the West as "Red Army" for its past affiliation with the Soviet Army. CSKA has won two titles between 2006 and 2009 in Europe's...
. Fizer was unable to play in the later stages of the Euroleague due to a knee injury that led to the termination of his contract with Maccabi just before the 2008–2009 season started.
In February 2010, Fizer signed with the Guaynabo Mets of Puerto Rico, along with Antoine Walker
Antoine Walker
Antoine Devon Walker is an American professional basketball player who most recently played for the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League...
.
Personal
Fizer was one of the most heavily tattooTattoo
A tattoo is made by inserting indelible ink into the dermis layer of the skin to change the pigment. Tattoos on humans are a type of body modification, and tattoos on other animals are most commonly used for identification purposes...
ed players in the NBA. As of March 2006, he had 31 tattoos.