 Kupec from 1975Michiganensian | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1953-01-26)January 26, 1953 (age 72) Oak Lawn, Illinois, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Listed weight | 220 lb (100 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Oak Lawn Community (Oak Lawn, Illinois) |
| College | Michigan (1972–1975) |
| NBA draft | 1975: 4th round, 56th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Playing career | 1975–1988 |
| Position | Center /power forward |
| Number | 41, 25 |
| Career history | |
| 1975–1977 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 1977–1978 | Houston Rockets |
| 1978–1980 | Olimpia Billy Milano |
| 1981–1982 | Squibb Cantù |
| 1982–1983 | Siv Bergamo |
| 1983–1985 | Viola Reggio Calabria |
| 1985–1986 | Mister Day Siena |
| 1986–1988 | Spondilatte Cremona |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career NBA and LBA statistics | |
| Points | 6,384 (14.9 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 2,101 (4.9 rpg) |
| Assists | 453 (1.1 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Charles Jerome "C. J." Kupec (born January 26, 1953) is an American formerbasketballsmall forward in theNational Basketball Association for theLos Angeles Lakers andHouston Rockets. He also was a member of theOlimpia Billy Milano,Squibb Cantù,SAV Bergamo,Viola Reggio Calabria,Mister Day Siena andSpondilatte Cremona in Europe. He playedcollege basketball for theMichigan Wolverines.
Kupec attendedOak Lawn Community High School. He was thecenter of the team at six-foot-six. He also practicedAmerican football.
As a senior in 1971, he contributed to a second-place finish in the final single-class tournament, while receiving Tournament MVP honors. He scored 87 points and pulled down 48 rebounds in four games. He scored 28 points in the super-sectional win againstNew Trier East High School. He posted 17 rebounds in the semifinal win overSpringfield Lanphier High School. In 2007, theIllinois High School Association named Kupec one of the100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament.[1]
He averaged 23.2 points per game and set a career OLCHS record with 2,377 total points (before the three point rule).
Kupec accepted a basketball scholarship from theUniversity of Michigan. He also playedfootball.
As a junior, he was named the starter atcenter, averaging 13.7 points and 11.6 rebounds (led theBig Ten Conference). As a senior, he averaged 18.1 points (third in theBig Ten Conference) and 8.4 rebounds. He also was the first player in school history to serve as the basketball team captain in consecutive years.[2]
Kupec was selected by theLos Angeles Lakers in the 4th round (56th overall) of the1975 NBA draft. He also was selected by theSpirits of St. Louis in the fifth round of the 1975ABA Draft.[3] He wasKareem Abdul-Jabbar's backup atcenter for two years. He was waived on September 27, 1977.[4] He averaged 4.2 points, 2.3 rebounds and 9.8 minutes per contest in two seasons.
On September 31, 1977, he was claimed off waivers by theHouston Rockets.[5] He averaged 4 points, 1.9 rebounds and 12.8 minutes in 49 games. On July 26, 1978, he was traded to theMilwaukee Bucks, in exchange for a 1979 4th round draft pick (#76-Sammy Drummer).[6] He was released on September 28, 1978.[7]
In 1978, he signed with theOlimpia Billy Milano of theLega Basket Serie A in Italy. He was known as having an excellent outside touch, so much so, that his shots from well over 7 meters were called "K bombs", although his personal style placed the ball sideways to the body and not above the head. Together with teammateMike D'Antoni, he was one of the main leaders of the "rebirth" of theOlimpia Billy Milano team, under the name "Billy", coached byDan Peterson, that saw its return from bad seasons and relegation to the second-tier leagueA2. The team was called the "bassotti band" due to the low average height of the team, so much so, that Kupec was the startingcenter despite his 6–6 feet height.
In 1982, he won theEuroLeague title with theSquibb Cantù. In 1984, he was able to begin fully exploiting his shooting ability with theViola Reggio Calabria, after the adoption of the three-point shooting rule by the league.
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
Source[8]
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975–76 | L.A. Lakers | 16 | 3.4 | .250 | .636 | 1.4 | .3 | .2 | .0 | 1.7 |
| 1976–77 | L.A. Lakers | 82 | 11.1 | .447 | .772 | 2.4 | .6 | .2 | .0 | 4.7 |
| 1977–78 | Houston | 49 | 12.8 | .426 | .818 | 1.9 | 1.0 | .2 | .1 | 4.0 |
| Career | 147 | 10.8 | .427 | .772 | 2.1 | .7 | .2 | .0 | 4.1 | |
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | L.A. Lakers | 11 | 5.2 | .444 | .714 | 1.5 | .4 | .3 | .0 | 1.9 |
