53 Facts About LaMarcus Aldridge

1.

LaMarcus Nurae Aldridge was born on July 19,1985 and is an American former professional basketball player.

2.

LaMarcus Aldridge played college basketball for two seasons with the Texas Longhorns.

3.

LaMarcus Aldridge retired after two weeks due to an irregular heartbeat, but returned to the Nets the following season after receiving medical clearance.

4.

Widely known for his signature fadeaway jump shot, LaMarcus Aldridge has been selected to five All-NBA teams and is a seven-time NBA All-Star.

5.

LaMarcus Aldridge attended Seagoville High School, where he became a second-team Parade All-American and Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 4A Player of the Year.

6.

LaMarcus Aldridge declared for the 2004 NBA draft but ultimately withdrew his name.

7.

However, in April 2006, after the end of his second year with the Longhorns, LaMarcus Aldridge announced that he would leave college to enter the 2006 NBA draft.

8.

LaMarcus Aldridge was drafted second overall in the 2006 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls, only to have his rights traded to the Portland Trail Blazers for their pick, Tyrus Thomas, and Viktor Khryapa, shortly after.

9.

On March 31,2007, in the first quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers, LaMarcus Aldridge was taken to Providence Hospital in Portland for shortness of breath and irregular heartbeat.

10.

LaMarcus Aldridge was one of six players named to the 2007 NBA All-Rookie first team; he tied for fifth place with Toronto Raptors player Jorge Garbajosa.

11.

LaMarcus Aldridge elevated his play in his second season, with career highs in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals, and finished third in voting for the NBA Most Improved Player Award.

12.

LaMarcus Aldridge played inconsistently to start the season, adjusting to more defensive pressure.

13.

LaMarcus Aldridge called the first 15 games "the worst funk" of his life but gradually improved as the season went on.

14.

LaMarcus Aldridge developed his offensive game over the course of the season, still relying heavily on his midrange fade away shot.

15.

LaMarcus Aldridge finished the season averaging 18.1 points and 7.5 rebounds.

16.

LaMarcus Aldridge scored over 20 points in half of the last 28 games of the season.

17.

LaMarcus Aldridge received more minutes and offensive opportunities as a result.

18.

LaMarcus Aldridge further emerged as both a player and a leader after Brandon Roy went out with knee problems in December 2010.

19.

LaMarcus Aldridge was runner-up to Kevin Love for the Most Improved Player Award, and voted to the All-NBA Third Team with 135 votes.

20.

LaMarcus Aldridge was named a reserve on the Western Conference All-Star team in 2012.

21.

In 2013, LaMarcus Aldridge was named an All-Star for the second time in his career.

22.

LaMarcus Aldridge averaged 21.1 points per game, a career-high 9.1 rebounds per game and recorded a career-high 2.6 assists per game in 37.7 minutes per game.

23.

On November 23,2013, in a game against the Warriors, LaMarcus Aldridge was involved in an altercation after Warriors center Andrew Bogut became entangled with Joel Freeland.

24.

The very same day, LaMarcus Aldridge was named Western Conference Player of the Week for the fourth time in his career.

25.

The award came in the midst of an 11-game win streak for the Blazers, during which LaMarcus Aldridge averaged 21.1 points, 11.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 2.5 blocks per game.

26.

Alongside teammate Damian Lillard, LaMarcus Aldridge was voted in as a reserve for the 2014 NBA All-Star Game, his third straight appearance.

27.

LaMarcus Aldridge finished fifth in the frontcourt fan voting, garnering over 600,000 votes.

28.

LaMarcus Aldridge suffered a lower back contusion during the third quarter of a game versus the San Antonio Spurs on March 12,2014.

29.

LaMarcus Aldridge missed the next seven games but returned in time to help the Blazers secure their 30th playoff berth and first since 2011.

30.

LaMarcus Aldridge joined Michael Jordan, Jerry West, Allen Iverson, and Tracy McGrady as the only players in NBA history to score 89 or more points in the first two games of a playoff series.

31.

Ultimately, LaMarcus Aldridge had a career season in 2014, winning three Western Conference Player of the Week awards, and recording career highs in points per game, rebounds per game, free-throw percentage, defensive rebounds, and double-doubles.

32.

On December 9,2014, in a game against the Detroit Pistons, LaMarcus Aldridge passed Terry Porter for second on the franchise's all-time scoring list with 11,333 career points.

33.

On March 20,2015, LaMarcus Aldridge became the Trail Blazers' all-time leader in rebounds by recording 10 against the Orlando Magic.

34.

LaMarcus Aldridge averaged a career-best 23.4 points per game, made a league-best 659 field goals, and was voted onto the All-NBA Second Team.

35.

On July 9,2015, LaMarcus Aldridge signed a four-year, $80 million contract with the San Antonio Spurs.

36.

LaMarcus Aldridge averaged 26.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.5 blocks while shooting.

37.

LaMarcus Aldridge made his first nine attempts while scoring 20 points in the opening period, his most in any quarter with the Spurs.

38.

LaMarcus Aldridge had failed to get out of the second round in his previous six postseason trips.

39.

LaMarcus Aldridge became the first Spur to score 34 points with 12 rebounds in a playoff game since Tim Duncan against the Phoenix Suns in 2008.

40.

LaMarcus Aldridge closed out a disappointing series with his second eight-point effort against the Warriors.

41.

LaMarcus Aldridge entered Game 4 averaging 18 points but was held to 4-for-11 shooting in 22 minutes in the series finale.

42.

On October 16,2017, LaMarcus Aldridge signed a three-year, $72.3 million contract extension with the Spurs, with only $7 million guaranteed in the final year of the extension.

43.

LaMarcus Aldridge became the first player in the NBA to score 18,000 or more points and grab 8,000 or more rebounds since 2006.

44.

On November 7,2019, against the Oklahoma City Thunder, LaMarcus Aldridge recorded a season-high 39 points in a winning effort.

45.

LaMarcus Aldridge was a reserve in the three games that he did play, the first time he came off the bench since he was a rookie with Portland.

46.

LaMarcus Aldridge was averaging 13.7 points and 4.5 rebounds in 25.9 minutes per game for the season.

47.

On March 25,2021, LaMarcus Aldridge reached a contract buyout agreement with San Antonio.

48.

On March 28,2021, LaMarcus Aldridge signed with the Brooklyn Nets.

49.

On September 3,2021, LaMarcus Aldridge re-signed with the Nets after he received medical clearance to return to playing professional basketball.

50.

On March 31,2023, LaMarcus Aldridge announced his retirement for a second time.

51.

LaMarcus Aldridge and his ex-partner have a son together, who was born in 2009.

52.

LaMarcus Aldridge's cousin, Marlon Hairston, is a midfielder for Columbus Crew SC of Major League Soccer.

53.

In 2007, LaMarcus Aldridge was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, a heart ailment.