1. Mark Edward Eaton was an American professional basketball player who spent his entire career with the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association.
40 Facts About Mark Eaton
1. 2.
The 7-foot-4-inch Eaton became one of the best defensive centers in NBA history.
3.
Mark Eaton led the league in blocks four times and holds the NBA single-season records for blocks and blocked shots per game average, as well as career blocked shots per game.
4.
Mark Eaton was a reserve on his high school basketball team before graduating and working as an auto mechanic.
5.
Mark Eaton was discovered by an assistant coach at Cypress College, who persuaded Eaton to enroll at the community college and play basketball.
6.
Mark Eaton transferred to play college basketball for the UCLA Bruins, but he was used sparingly.
7.
Mark Eaton was drafted in the fourth round of the 1982 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz as a long-term project.
8.
Mark Eaton helped transform the Jazz from a last-place team into a perennial playoff team.
9.
Mark Edward Eaton was born on January 24,1957, in Inglewood, California, and grew up in Southern California.
10.
Mark Eaton returned to Orange County and worked as an auto mechanic, making $20,000 a year, when he was eventually discovered by Tom Lubin while repairing cars in Anaheim in April 1977.
11.
Mark Eaton had previously discovered Swen Nater, who did not play in high school but went on to a long, pro career.
12.
Lubin's encouragement led Mark Eaton to enroll at the community college in 1978 and try out for its basketball team.
13.
Mark Eaton was eligible to be drafted because he was already four years removed from high school.
14.
Mark Eaton developed into a solid junior college player under head coach Don Johnson.
15.
Mark Eaton 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.
16.
Mark Eaton transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles in 1980, but did not see much action in his two seasons with the Bruins.
17.
Mark Eaton played just 41 total minutes that season, averaging 1.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11 games.
18.
Mark Eaton was initially disappointed with his inability to play effectively in college.
19.
At a summer pickup game, Wilt Chamberlain saw his frustration, and encouraged Mark Eaton 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.
20.
Mark Eaton cited Chamberlain's advice as the turning point in his basketball career.
21.
Mark Eaton paid for two tryout camps, but only received an offer of $15,000 to play in Israel and another for $25,000 in Monte Carlo.
22.
Mark Eaton had worn No 35 at UCLA, but the number was already taken on the Jazz by Darrell Griffith, prompting Mark Eaton to choose the reversed No 53.
23.
Mark Eaton made an immediate impact as a rookie, starting 32 games and replacing Danny Schayes after the cash-strapped Jazz traded the center mid-season.
24.
Mark Eaton finished the season with a then-franchise record 275 blocked shots while averaging only 19 minutes per game.
25.
Mark Eaton averaged 5.56 blocks per game, an NBA single-season record that was more than double the league's second-ranked shot-blocker that season.
26.
Mark Eaton was not on the All-Star ballot that year after being one of the final cuts.
27.
Mark Eaton's stifling defense was a major factor in Utah's success.
28.
Mark Eaton was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the second time in his career and received his third selection to the NBA All-Defensive First Team.
29.
Utah coach Jerry Sloan countered by decreasing Mark Eaton's playing time and employing his own small lineup with backup center Mike Brown.
30.
Mark Eaton spent his entire 11-year NBA career with the Utah Jazz, helping transform the franchise from perennial 50-game losers to perennial 50-game winners.
31.
Mark Eaton is the NBA's all-time leader in blocks per game, with a career average of 3.50.
32.
In 2014, Mark Eaton had his jersey retired at Westminster High School and at Cypress College, along with Swen Nater and head coach Don Johnson.
33.
Mark Eaton hosted a radio talk show before Jazz games.
34.
Mark Eaton was a partner in Salt Lake City-area restaurants Tuscany and Franck's.
35.
Mark Eaton was a founder and chairman of the Mark Eaton Standing Tall for Youth organization, which provided sports and outdoor activities for at-risk children in Utah.
36.
Mark Eaton was a motivational speaker, and published the book The Four Commitments of a Winning Team.
37.
In later years, Mark Eaton became a mentor to Jazz center Rudy Gobert, who joined him as the only other player in the franchise's history to be named defensive player of the year.
38.
On May 28,2021, Mark Eaton biked with a neighbor to lunch.
39.
Mark Eaton died after a bicycle accident about a block from his home in Park City, Utah.
40.
Mark Eaton was found unresponsive by a passerby and was pronounced dead at the hospital.