Nazr Mohammed
Encyclopedia
Nazr Tahiru Mohammed [NAW-zee] (born September 5, 1977) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 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 with the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

's Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ; their home court is at Chesapeake Energy Arena....

. He plays the center
Center (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...

 position. He is 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) and 250 lb (113.4 kg). He is aggressive in offensive rebounding and putbacks.

Early life

The son of an immigrant from Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...

, Mohammed was raised in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 and attended high school at Kenwood Academy
Kenwood Academy
Kenwood Academy is a public 4-year high school located in the Kenwood neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, USA. Kenwood Academy accepts high school students living in its attendance area: From Lake Michigan to Cottage Grove Avenue east to west, and 47th to the Midway Plaisance north to south...

. Mohammed entered the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...

 in the fall of 1995 at a hefty 315 pounds, and saw little playing time during their NCAA Championship
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...

 season. After slimming down for his sophomore year, Mohammed shared the starting center spot with Jamaal Magloire
Jamaal Magloire
Jamaal Dane Magloire is a Canadian professional basketball player who last played for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . The , center was selected out of the University of Kentucky by the Charlotte Hornets with the 19th overall pick in the 2000 NBA Draft, after withdrawing...

 and was a key contributor in 1997, when the Cats were runners-up to Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...

. Mohammed would once again share the starting post position with Magloire in 1998, and once again they would bring the NCAA Championship home to Kentucky for the second time in three years.

NBA career

After his junior year, Mohammed was faced with a decision on whether to come back to school or enter the draft, and ultimately decided to enter the 1998 NBA Draft
1998 NBA Draft
The 1998 NBA Draft took place on June 24, 1998 at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This draft helped turn around three struggling franchises: the Dallas Mavericks, the Sacramento Kings, and the Toronto Raptors....

. He was selected by the Utah Jazz
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

 in the first round, as the 29th pick overall. Utah traded his rights to the Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...

 for a future first round pick, which would turn out to be Quincy Lewis in the 1999 NBA Draft. He would spend two and a half seasons in Philadelphia. He then played for the Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association .-The first years:...

 through the middle of the 2004 season, at which point he went to the New York Knicks
New York Knicks
The New York Knickerbockers, prominently known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...

.
Mohammed split the 2004–05 season between the Knicks and the Spurs (who acquired him in a trade for Malik Rose
Malik Rose
Malik Jabari Rose is an American former professional basketball player, and current broadcaster, serving as a studio analyst for the New York Knicks, and the lead color analyst for the NBA D-League team, the Austin Toros.-High school and college:Rose graduated from Overbrook High School in...

). In a combined 77 games for both teams, he averaged 9.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game. He won the 2005 NBA title
2005 NBA Finals
The 2005 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 2004-05 National Basketball Association season. The San Antonio Spurs of the Western Conference faced the Detroit Pistons of the Eastern Conference for the title, with the Spurs holding home court advantage. The series was played under a...

 with the San Antonio Spurs as a member of their starting lineup.

During Mohammed's second season in San Antonio he shared the starting center position with Rasho Nesterovič, averaging 6.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game during the regular season. He was a key contributor to the team's first round series victory over Sacramento, averaging 7.0 points per game and nailing his second career three-point basket late in Game 1. Mohammed, however, played sparingly in the team's second round series loss to the Dallas Mavericks
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...

. After the season, he turned down a four-year contract extension and did not return to the Spurs. On July 4th, 2006, it was announced that he had come to terms on an agreement with the Detroit Pistons to become their starting center. After beginning the season in the starting five, the arrival of Chris Webber
Chris Webber
Mayce Edward Christopher "Chris" Webber, III , nicknamed C-Webb, is a retired American professional basketball player. He is a five-time NBA All-Star, a former All-NBA First Teamer, a former NBA Rookie of the Year, and a former #1 overall NBA Draftee...

 on January 16, 2007 made him gradually fall out of the team's rotation, the culmination being his 5 minutes in two postseason contests. He averaged 5.6 points and 4.5 rebounds in 51 games (33 starts), with about 15 minutes of action per game.

Mohammed was traded from the Detroit Pistons
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...

 to 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...

 on December 14th, 2007, in exchange for Primož Brezec
Primož Brezec
Primož Brezec is a Slovenian professional basketball player with Lokomotiv Kuban of the Russian Super League. He is a 7 ft 1 in tall center. Brezec has played seven seasons in the NBA.-Europe:...

 and Wálter Herrmann
Wálter Herrmann
Walter Herrmann Heinrich is an Argentine professional basketball player. He is listed at 6'9" and 225 lbs. He was a key member of the Argentinian national basketball team that won the gold medal during the 2004 Olympic Basketball Tournament...

. He had a season-high 20 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists, and a season-high 4 blocks against the Knicks on December 21st.

On February 11, 2008, Nazr scored a season high 22 points, and pulled down 11 rebounds against the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

.

On February 11, 2010, Nazr scored 21 points, and vacuumed a season high 20 rebounds against the Minnesota Timberwolves
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . Founded in 1989, the team is currently owned by Glen Taylor...

. He continues to be an extremely effective player when getting significant playing time, and has proven that throughout his career.

On February 24, 2011, Nazr Mohammed was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder, while forward D.J. White and guard Morris Peterson
Morris Peterson
Morris Peterson, Jr. is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent.- College career :...

 were sent to the Charlotte Bobcats.

Regular season

|-
| align="left" | 1998–99
| align="left" | Philadelphia
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...


| 26 || 0 || 4.7 || .357 || .000 || .571 || 1.4 || .1 || .2 || .2 || 1.6
|-
| align="left" | 1999–00
| align="left" | Philadelphia
| 28 || 3 || 6.8 || .389 || .000 || .545 || 1.8 || .1 || .1 || .4 || 1.9
|-
| align="left" | 2000–01
| align="left" | Philadelphia
| 30 || 3 || 6.5 || .466 || .000 || .500 || 1.8 || .1 || .2 || .2 || 3.2
|-
| align="left" | 2000–01
| align="left" | Atlanta
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association .-The first years:...


| 28 || 19 || 25.6 || .480 || .000 || .765 || 9.0 || .6 || .8 || 1.0 || 12.3
|-
| align="left" | 2001–02
| align="left" | Atlanta
| 82 || 73 || 26.4 || .461 || .000 || .617 || 7.9 || .4 || .8 || .7 || 9.7
|-
| align="left" | 2002–03
| align="left" | Atlanta
| 35 || 0 || 12.7 || .421 || .000 || .634 || 3.7 || .2 || .5 || .6 || 4.6
|-
| align="left" | 2003–04
| align="left" | Atlanta
| 53 || 1 || 17.7 || .493 || .000 || .627 || 5.0 || .4 || .4 || .5 || 6.5
|-
| align="left" | 2003–04
| align="left" | New York
New York Knicks
The New York Knickerbockers, prominently known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...


| 27 || 23 || 24.9 || .563 || .000 || .525 || 7.7 || .6 || 1.2 || .9 || 9.1
|-
| align="left" | 2004–05
| align="left" | New York
| 54 || 54 || 28.1 || .509 || .000 || .708 || 8.1 || .5 || 1.0 || 1.0 || 10.9
|-
| align="left" | 2004–05
| align="left" | San Antonio
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....


| 23 || 5 || 18.0 || .387 || .000 || .571 || 6.4 || .3 || .2 || 1.4 || 6.2
|-
| align="left" | 2005–06
| align="left" | San Antonio
| 80 || 30 || 17.4 || .504 || .000 || .785 || 5.2 || .5 || .3 || .6 || 6.2
|-
| align="left" | 2006–07
| align="left" | Detroit
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...


| 51 || 33 || 15.2 || .532 || .000 || .610 || 4.5 || .2 || .5 || .8 || 5.6
|-
| align="left" | 2007–08
| align="left" | Detroit
| 21 || 0 || 10.9 || .475 || .000 || .433 || 3.5 || .3 || .3 || .4 || 3.3
|-
| align="left" | 2007–08
| align="left" | Charlotte
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...


| 61 || 29 || 23.3 || .520 || .000 || .617 || 6.9 || 1.1 || .6 || .9 || 9.3
|-
| align="left" | 2008–09
2008–09 NBA season
The 2008–09 NBA season was the 63rd season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 28, 2008, and ended on Wednesday, April 15, 2009...


| align="left" | Charlotte
| 39 || 1 || 8.7 || .406 || .000 || .550 || 2.0 || .2 || .1 || .4 || 2.7
|-
| align="left" | 2009–10
2009–10 NBA season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, and ended on Wednesday, April 14, 2010....


| align="left" | Charlotte
| 58 || 29 || 17.0 || .553 || .000 || .648 || 5.2 || .5 || .3 || .7 || 7.9
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
2010–11 NBA season
The 2010–11 NBA season was the 65th season of the National Basketball Association . The 2011 NBA All-Star Game was played on February 20, 2011 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat in six games, 4 games to 2, to win their first NBA title, and...


| align="left" | Charlotte
| 51 || 30 || 16.7 || .502 || .000 || .591 || 4.9 || .3 || .3 || .9 || 7.3
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
| align="left" | Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ; their home court is at Chesapeake Energy Arena....


| 24 || 7 || 17.9 || .573 || .000 || .625 || 4.8 || .3 || .7 || .4 || 6.9
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 771 || 340 || 17.9 || .494 || .000 || .641 || 5.4 || .4 || .5 || .7 || 6.9

Playoffs

|-
| align="left" | 1998–99
1999 NBA Playoffs
The 1999 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1998-99 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs by defeating the eighth-seeded Eastern Conference champion New York Knicks four games to one...


| align="left" | Philadelphia
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...


| 3 || 0 || 1.0 || .000 || .000 || .000 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0
|-
| align="left" | 2003–04
2004 NBA Playoffs
The 2004 NBA Playoffs were the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2003–04 season. Consisting of 16 teams in two conferences, the playoffs involved about two months of play. The playoffs were conducted in seven-game series, with the team with the better record holding home court...


| align="left" | New York
New York Knicks
The New York Knickerbockers, prominently known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...


| 4 || 4 || 24.3 || .500 || .000 || .688 || 5.8 || .3 || 1.5 || .8 || 10.3
|-
| align="left" | 2004–05
2005 NBA Playoffs
The 2005 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2004–05 season.The San Antonio Spurs, the number two ranked team in the Western Conference, won the 2005 NBA Playoffs by defeating the defending champions, the Detroit Pistons, 4-3 in the NBA Finals...


| align="left" | San Antonio
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....


| 23 || 23 || 23.0 || .528 || 1.000 || .638 || 6.7 || .3 || .6 || 1.0 || 7.1
|-
| align="left" | 2005–06
2006 NBA Playoffs
The 2006 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2005–06 season. The Miami Heat won the first championship in the history of the franchise by defeating the Dallas Mavericks 4-2 in the 2006 NBA Finals...


| align="left" | San Antonio
| 8 || 3 || 11.8 || .733 || 1.000 || .722 || 3.9 || .1 || .4 || .8 || 4.5
|-
| align="left" | 2006–07
2007 NBA Playoffs
The 2007 NBA Playoffs was the postseason to the National Basketball Association's 2006–2007 season.There were four rounds of postseason action, all of them in a best-of-seven format, with teams seeded on a bracket. The team with the better record wasn't necessarily the basis of seeding teams in...


| align="left" | Detroit
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...


| 2 || 0 || 3.0 || .500 || .000 || 1.000 || 1.5 || .0 || .0 || .0 || 2.5
|-
| align="left" | 2009–10
2010 NBA Playoffs
The 2010 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2009–10 season. The playoffs started on April 17, 2010 with ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...


| align="left" | Charlotte
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...


| 4 || 0 || 12.0 || .579 || .000 || .667 || 2.0 || .5 || .2 || .5 || 6.0
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
2011 NBA Playoffs
The 2011 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2010–11 season. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs, all seeded 1 to 8 in a tournament bracket, with all rounds in a best-of-seven format. The 2011 NBA Playoffs began on...


| align="left" | Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ; their home court is at Chesapeake Energy Arena....


| 14 || 0 || 10.6 || .412 || .000 || .400 || 2.3 || .0 || .3 || .4 || 2.3
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 58 || 30 || 15.9 || .524 || 1.000 || .649 || 4.3 || .2 || .5 || .7 || 5.2

Career highs

  • Points: 30 2 times
  • Rebounds: 20 3 times
  • Assists: 4 4 times
  • Steals: 5 @ L.A. Lakers 11/10/06
  • Blocks: 8 @ New Jersey 12/14/04

Personal life

Mohammed is a faithful Muslim who fasts for Ramadan. He had lost nearly ten pounds during 2004-05 season because of his fasting.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK