Taj Gibson
Encyclopedia
Taj Jami Gibson is a professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls
of the National Basketball Association
(NBA). Following the 2010 signing of Carlos Boozer
, he has played as the second string power forward. Gibson played three seasons of collegiate basketball for the USC Trojans
and was selected 26th overall by the Bulls in the 2009 NBA Draft
.
.
Gibson played at the University of Southern California
, where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi
fraternity. As one of the oldest freshmen in the country at age 21 in 2007 he was named to the Pac-10 All-Freshman team. He helped beat rival UCLA in 2008.
Gibson was named to the 2009 All-Pac 10 Tournament Team by helping the Trojans
winning the Tournament Championship
at the Staples Center
.
, and was selected 26th overall by the Chicago Bulls
. He, along with fellow draft pick James Johnson
, signed with the Bulls in July, 2009. Gibson was the starting power forward for most of his rookie season with the Bulls and impressed many people with his high energy and good defense. During the All-Star Weekend
, Gibson played in the Rookie Challenge, where the Rookie team won for the first time since 2002
. The Bulls made the playoffs securing the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. Taj averaged 7.6 points per game and 7.0 rebounds while the Bulls lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round. At the end of his first season, Taj was selected to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
, who was expected to start at the beginning of the season rather than Gibson. Prior to the pre-season though, Boozer broke his hand, so Gibson started the first 15 games of the season. After Boozer's return, Gibson moved into a bench role for most of the season. At the end of the season, the Bulls made the playoffs as a 1st seed in the Eastern Conference.
On May 10, 2011, Gibson helped his team take a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals against Atlanta, making all of his 11 points in the fourth quarter.
| align="left" | 2009–10
| align="left" | Chicago
| 82 || 70 || 26.9 || .494 || .000 || .646 || 7.5 || 0.9 || 0.6 || 1.3 || 9.0
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
| align="left" | Chicago
| 80 || 19 || 21.8 || .466 || .125 || .680 || 5.7 || 0.7 || 0.5 || 1.3 || 7.1
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 162 || 89 || 24.4 || .482 || .125 || .659 || 6.6 || 0.8 || 0.6 || 1.3 || 8.0
| align="left" | 2010
| align="left" | Chicago
| 5 || 5 || 29.0 || .421 || .000 || .545 || 7.0 || .6 || .2 || .8 || 7.6
|-
| align="left" | 2011
| align="left" | Chicago
| 16 || 0 || 17.8 || .566 || .000 || .600 || 4.1 || .6 || .3 || 1.4 || 5.9
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 21 || 5 || 20.4 || .518 || 0.0 || .577 || 4.8 || .6 || .3 || 1.2 || 6.3
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 National Basketball Association
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...
(NBA). Following the 2010 signing of Carlos Boozer
Carlos Boozer
Carlos Austin Boozer, Jr. is an American professional basketball player with the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association...
, he has played as the second string power forward. Gibson played three seasons of collegiate basketball for the USC Trojans
USC Trojans
The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy...
and was selected 26th overall by the Bulls in the 2009 NBA Draft
2009 NBA Draft
The 2009 NBA Draft was held on June 25, 2009, the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S...
.
Early life
Gibson was born on June 24, 1985 in Brooklyn, N.Y. Gibson began his high school career at Telecommunications High in Brooklyn, N.Y. He then attended Stoneridge Prep as a sophomore and junior in Tarzana, California. During his senior year in 2006, he attended Calvary Christian in San Fernando, CaliforniaSan Fernando, California
San Fernando is a city located in the San Fernando Valley, in northwestern region of Los Angeles, California, United States. The population was 23,645 at the 2010 census, up from 23,564 at the 2000 census.-History:...
.
College career
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi
Phi Kappa Psi
Phi Kappa Psi is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania on February 19, 1852. There are over a hundred chapters and colonies at accredited four year colleges and universities throughout the United States. More than 112,000 men have been...
fraternity. As one of the oldest freshmen in the country at age 21 in 2007 he was named to the Pac-10 All-Freshman team. He helped beat rival UCLA in 2008.
Gibson was named to the 2009 All-Pac 10 Tournament Team by helping the Trojans
USC Trojans
The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy...
winning the Tournament Championship
2009 Pacific-10 Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2009 Pacific Life Pacific-10 Conference Men's Basketball Tournament began with the first round on March 11, 2009 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, with quarterfinals on March 12, semifinals on March 13, and the finals on March 14...
at the Staples Center
Staples Center
Staples Center is a multi-purpose sports arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. Opening on October 17, 1999, it is one of the major sporting facilities in the Greater Los Angeles...
.
2009-10 season
Gibson declared for the 2009 NBA Draft2009 NBA Draft
The 2009 NBA Draft was held on June 25, 2009, the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S...
, and was selected 26th overall 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...
. He, along with fellow draft pick James Johnson
James Johnson (basketball)
James Patrick Johnson is an American basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association. He was drafted 16th overall in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls. Johnson was the starting power forward for the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest University from 2007-2009...
, signed with the Bulls in July, 2009. Gibson was the starting power forward for most of his rookie season with the Bulls and impressed many people with his high energy and good defense. During the All-Star Weekend
2010 NBA All-Star Game
The 2010 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game between players selected from the National Basketball Association 's Western Conference and the Eastern Conference that was played on February 14, 2010 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. This game was the 59th edition...
, Gibson played in the Rookie Challenge, where the Rookie team won for the first time since 2002
2002 NBA All-Star Game
The 2002 NBA All-Star Game was played on Sunday, February 10, 2002 at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, home of the Philadelphia 76ers. The game was the 51st annual All-Star game. The Western All-Stars defeated the East 135-120. Kobe Bryant of the L.A. Lakers won the MVP award....
. The Bulls made the playoffs securing the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. Taj averaged 7.6 points per game and 7.0 rebounds while the Bulls lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round. At the end of his first season, Taj was selected to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
2010-11 season
During the off-season, the Bulls signed power forward Carlos BoozerCarlos Boozer
Carlos Austin Boozer, Jr. is an American professional basketball player with the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association...
, who was expected to start at the beginning of the season rather than Gibson. Prior to the pre-season though, Boozer broke his hand, so Gibson started the first 15 games of the season. After Boozer's return, Gibson moved into a bench role for most of the season. At the end of the season, the Bulls made the playoffs as a 1st seed in the Eastern Conference.
On May 10, 2011, Gibson helped his team take a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals against Atlanta, making all of his 11 points in the fourth quarter.
College
| College | Year | GP | MPG | SPG | BPG | RPG | APG | PPG | FG% | FT% | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USC USC Trojans The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy... |
2006–07 | 37 | 32.4 | .5 | 1.9 | 8.7 | 1.5 | 12.2 | .558 | .623 | .000 |
| USC USC Trojans The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy... |
2007–08 | 33 | 32.1 | .7 | 2.5 | 7.8 | 1.3 | 10.8 | .580 | .594 | .000 |
| USC USC Trojans The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy... |
2008–09 | 35 | 33.7 | 1.0 | 2.9 | 9.0 | 1.3 | 14.3 | .601 | .659 | .000 |
Regular season
|-| 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" | Chicago
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...
| 82 || 70 || 26.9 || .494 || .000 || .646 || 7.5 || 0.9 || 0.6 || 1.3 || 9.0
|-
| 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" | Chicago
| 80 || 19 || 21.8 || .466 || .125 || .680 || 5.7 || 0.7 || 0.5 || 1.3 || 7.1
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 162 || 89 || 24.4 || .482 || .125 || .659 || 6.6 || 0.8 || 0.6 || 1.3 || 8.0
Playoffs
|-| align="left" | 2010
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" | Chicago
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...
| 5 || 5 || 29.0 || .421 || .000 || .545 || 7.0 || .6 || .2 || .8 || 7.6
|-
| align="left" | 2011
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" | Chicago
| 16 || 0 || 17.8 || .566 || .000 || .600 || 4.1 || .6 || .3 || 1.4 || 5.9
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 21 || 5 || 20.4 || .518 || 0.0 || .577 || 4.8 || .6 || .3 || 1.2 || 6.3