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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
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| Born | (1970-11-26)26 November 1970 (age 54) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Nationality | British / American | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 270 lb (122 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | |||||||||||||||
| College |
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| NBA draft | 1995:undrafted | ||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1995–2003 | ||||||||||||||
| Position | Power forward /center | ||||||||||||||
| Number | 13, 26 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| 1987–1988 | Manchester United | ||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | Cleveland Cavaliers | ||||||||||||||
| 1996 | Cholet | ||||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Panathinaikos | ||||||||||||||
| 1997 | Virtus Bologna | ||||||||||||||
| 1997–1998 | Sheffield Sharks | ||||||||||||||
| 1998–1999 | CSP Limoges | ||||||||||||||
| 1999–2001 | Orlando Magic | ||||||||||||||
| 2001–2003 | Utah Jazz | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NBA statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Points | 1,837 (6.2 ppg) | ||||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 772 (2.6 rpg) | ||||||||||||||
| Assists | 228 (0.8 apg) | ||||||||||||||
Stats at NBA.com  | |||||||||||||||
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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John Uzoma Ekwugha Amaechi// ⓘ,OBE (/əˈmeɪtʃi/; born 26 November 1970) is an Englishpsychologist,consultant and former professionalbasketball player. He playedcollege basketball for theVanderbilt Commodores andPenn State Nittany Lions, and professional basketball in theNational Basketball Association (NBA). Amaechi played in France, Greece, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States. Since retiring from basketball, Amaechi has worked as a psychologist and consultant, establishing his company Amaechi Performance Systems.
In February 2007, Amaechi became the first former NBA player to publiclycome out as gay after doing so in his memoirMan in the Middle.[1] Since then, he has been regarded as "one of the world's most high-profile gay athletes".[2]
Amaechi was born inBoston in the United States, to an English mother and aNigerianIgbo father.[3] He and his two younger sisters were raised by their mother in theHeaton Moor suburb ofStockport, England, with him attending Tithe Barn Primary School before moving on to theStockport Grammar School. He first played basketball at the age of 17, coached by Joe Forber, who he has described as a father figure.[3] He then signed for theManchester United basketball team, later known as the Manchester Eagles.[4] His form for Manchester United led Amaechi move to the United States to play high school basketball atSt. John's Jesuit High School inToledo, Ohio. He began playingcollege basketball atVanderbilt University but transferred toPenn State, where he was a two-time First Team Academic All-American selection.
The 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m), 270 pounds (120 kg)centre wasundrafted and then signed with theCleveland Cavaliers in 1995. Amaechi became the first undrafted player to start in his first NBA game as the Cavaliers' starting centre,Michael Cage, did not play in the season opener due to injury. Amaechi played 28 games for the Cavaliers during the1995–96 season, then played for two years forCholet andLimoges in France;Virtus Bologna in Italy;Panathinaikos in Greece; andSheffield Sharks in the United Kingdom. In September 1996, he won theFIBA Intercontinental Cup with Panathinaikos, being the highest scorer (alongsideFragiskos Alvertis) in the team with 59 points in three games of the tournament. In the 1997–98 season he played withVirtus Bologna but left mid-season.[citation needed]
He returned to the US, signing with theOrlando Magic in 1999. In the1999–2000 season he averaged 10.5 points in 21.1 minutes per game. Amaechi was known for turning down a $17 million contract offer from theLos Angeles Lakers in 2000, opting to remain in Orlando for $600,000 per year.[5] Amaechi went on to play for theUtah Jazz from 2001 to 2003.
He was traded to theHouston Rockets before the2003–04 season in exchange forGlen Rice,[6] and, though he was an active player, he did not participate in any games for them. The Rockets later traded him andMoochie Norris to theNew York Knicks forClarence Weatherspoon before the Knicks bought him out of his contract and he eventually retired from playing the sport.[7]
| 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 |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG | PIR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996–97 | Panathinaikos | 16 | — | 24.9 | .549 | — | .677 | 5.8 | .5 | 1.1 | .0 | 11.0 | — |
| 1997–98 | Virtus Bologna | 6 | — | 14.2 | .542 | — | .647 | 3.8 | .5 | .3 | .0 | 6.2 | — |
| Career | 22 | — | 19.6 | .546 | — | .662 | 4.8 | .5 | .7 | .0 | 8.6 | — | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995–96 | Cleveland | 28 | 3 | 12.8 | .414 | — | .576 | 1.9 | .3 | .2 | .4 | 2.8 |
| 1999–00 | Orlando | 80 | 53 | 21.1 | .437 | .167 | .766 | 3.3 | 1.2 | .4 | .5 | 10.5 |
| 2000–01 | Orlando | 82 | 36 | 20.9 | .400 | .000 | .631 | 3.3 | .9 | .3 | .4 | 7.9 |
| 2001–02 | Utah | 54 | 0 | 10.9 | .325 | — | .638 | 2.0 | .5 | .1 | .2 | 3.2 |
| 2002–03 | Utah | 50 | 1 | 9.5 | .314 | — | .481 | 1.5 | .4 | .3 | .1 | 2.0 |
| Career | 294 | 93 | 16.4 | .403 | .077 | .671 | 2.6 | .8 | .3 | .3 | 6.2 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Cleveland | 1 | 0 | 2.0 | .000 | — | — | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 |
| 2001 | Orlando | 4 | 0 | 7.3 | .375 | — | .750 | .8 | .8 | .8 | .5 | 2.3 |
| 2003 | Utah | 2 | 0 | 8.0 | .250 | — | .500 | .5 | .0 | .0 | .0 | 2.0 |
| Career | 7 | 0 | 6.7 | .308 | — | .625 | .6 | .4 | .4 | .3 | 1.9 | |
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Amaechi came out of retirement to represent England during the2006 Commonwealth Games inMelbourne, helping theEngland team win the bronze medal. In all, Amaechi appeared in 18 games for England.[8]
He has worked in the media, particularly as a commentator on basketball for British TV shows covering the NBA, and for theBBC during Olympic games. In addition, Amaechi was a judge on the BBC SeriesThe Speaker in 2009.[9] He has also been a regular guest host of theBBC Radio Manchester Business show with Steven Saul[10] and has appeared onThe Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz onESPN Radio as a guest and guest co-host.
Amaechi owns Amaechi Performance Systems, which is a consultancy working with numerous companies to improve leadership and communication skills and organisational diversity.[11]
Amaechi is a member of theAmerican Psychological Association,[12] theBritish Psychological Society (BPS),[13] the BPS Division of Organisational Psychology and the BPS Psychological Testing Centre.[14] Amaechi also became a senior fellow at the centre for Emotional Literacy and Personal Development at theUniversity of Central Lancashire (UCLAN) in the United Kingdom.[15]
Amaechi is also involved with the ABC Foundation inManchester, which encourages children to become involved in sports and their communities by building youth sports centres throughout the United Kingdom. The first such facility, the Amaechi Basketball Centre, was built in Manchester, not far from Amaechi's childhood home of Stockport.[16] The venue is also home to theEnglish Basketball League'sManchester Magic (men) andManchester Mystics (women), both of which are owned by Amaechi.
In a radio interview, Amaechi said that he was returning to education to get a PhD in psychology. "I want to do something more meaningful in my life," he said. Amaechi also explained why he played for Orlando in 2000 for much less than the $17 million offered to him by the Lakers; his answer was that Orlando had signed him in 1999 when no other team would. "There are many people who are asked what their word is worth, and when people ask me that I can say, 'At least $17 million.'"[17] Amaechi retired from the NBA in 2003[18]
Amaechi is the first NBA player to share that he isgay.[18] In February 2007, Amaechi spoke about hissexuality onESPN'sOutside the Lines program. He also released a book,Man in the Middle, published byESPN Books, which discusses his career and life as acloseted professional athlete. Amaechi is the firstNational Basketball Association (NBA) player to speak publicly about being gay.[19][20]
Few male team sports players in the United States have come out as gay. FormerMajor League Baseball playerBilly Bean wrote an op-ed in support of Amaechi's decision.[21][22]
Cyd Zeigler, the co-founder ofOutsports.com, a website dedicated to the gay contribution to sports, said, "I don't think (Amaechi's declaration) will have any effect on his ability to do that," referring to Amaechi's businesses and charitable work. "You will have some people who will raise an eyebrow," Zeigler added.[23]
In a 2002 interview withScotland on Sunday, Amaechi had previously spoken about gays in the NBA: "If you look at our league, minorities aren't very well represented. There's hardly any Hispanic players, no Asian-Americans, so that there's no openly gay players is no real surprise. It would be like an alien dropping down from space. There'd be fear, then panic: they just wouldn't know how to handle it."[24]
In May 2007, a few months after coming out, Amaechi said he had "underestimated America", adding that he had expected the "wrath of a nation" but it never materialised.[25] He made these statements despite having been the subject of death threats a few months earlier.[26]
In August 2008, Amaechi was sent to Beijing to do Olympic Men's and Women's Basketball broadcasts and reporting for the BBC. There, he wrote a blog with fellow activist and photographerJeff Sheng in partnership withAmnesty International. He used Sheng's knowledge of Mandarin and experience in Beijing to interview with both locals and the athletes.[27]
In 2008, Amaechi made several appearances onShirts & Skins, a reality series onLOGO Television. He acted as team "mentor" and "psychologist" to the San Francisco Rockdogs, a gay basketball team, and shared his experiences on basketball, life, and coming out.[28] In 2010, Amaechi made public that he had been denied entry to a gay bar inManchester, allegedly because the doorman felt he was "big, black and could be trouble". He said he was considering legal action.[29]
One widely publicized response to Amaechi's announcement came from former NBA playerTim Hardaway, who stated that he would demand that a gay player be removed from his team: "First of all I wouldn't want him on my team. Second of all, if he was on my team I would really distance myself from him because I don't think that's right and I don't think he should be in the locker room when we're in the locker room. Something has to give. If you have 12 other ball players in your locker room that's upset and can't concentrate and always worried about him in the locker room or on the court or whatever, it's going to be hard for your teammates to win and accept him as a teammate."[30] Hardaway later apologised for his remarks.
Some players gave Amaechi public support: formerMagic teammateGrant Hill said: "the fact that John has done this, maybe it will give others the comfort or confidence to come out as well, whether they are playing or retiring."Shaquille O'Neal told theNew YorkDaily News, "If he was on my team, I guess I would have to protect him from the outsiders, I'm not homophobic or anything. I'm not the type who judges people, I wish him well."[31]Charles Barkley said: "It shouldn't be a big deal to anybody. I know I've played with gay players and against gay players and it just shouldn't surprise anybody or be any issue."[31]
However, the prevailing public statements from NBA players tended toward an expression of mixed feelings on the matter.Steven Hunter said that he would accept an openly gay teammate "as long as he [didn't] make any advances toward me. As long as he came to play basketball like a man and conducted himself like a good person, I'd be fine with it." That sentiment was echoed, though less tactfully,[32] byShavlik Randolph, who said that "as long as you don't bring your gayness on me I'm fine. As far as business-wise, I'm sure I could play with him. But I think it would create a little awkwardness in the locker room."[33]Pat Garrity warned that an openly gay player could expect to face both acceptance and hostility from his teammates. He said that "they would have teammates that would accept them for being a good person and a good teammate, and there would be people who would give him a hard time about it. I think that's true if you're playing basketball or in an office job. That's just how the world is right now."LeBron James said, "With teammates you have to be trustworthy, and if you're gay and you're not admitting that you are, then you are not trustworthy. So that's like the No. 1 thing as teammates – we all trust each other.... It's a trust factor, honestly. A big trust factor."[33]
Amaechi was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Science by Manchester Metropolitan University on 19 July 2007 in recognition of his achievements not only as an athlete and broadcaster, but also for his charitable work with the National Literacy Trust, theNational Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) and the establishment of the ABC Foundation to encourage children to become involved in sport and their community.[34]
Amaechi was appointedOfficer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the2011 Birthday Honours for services to sport and the voluntary sector.[35][36] He was also conferred with an Honorary Doctorate of Arts by theUniversity of East London.[37]
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