Eldridge Recasner facts for kids
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | December 14, 1967 New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
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| High school | Alfred Lawless (New Orleans, Louisiana) | |||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | |||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) | |||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||
| College | Washington (1986–1990) | |||||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 1990 / Undrafted | |||||||||||||
| Pro career | 1990–2002 | |||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||
| 1990–1991 | TTL Bamberg | |||||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Louisville Shooters | |||||||||||||
| 1992 | Presto Ice Cream Kings | |||||||||||||
| 1992–1993 | Yakima Sun Kings | |||||||||||||
| 1993–1994 | Galatasaray | |||||||||||||
| 1994–1995 | Yakima Sun Kings | |||||||||||||
| 1995 | Denver Nuggets | |||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | Houston Rockets | |||||||||||||
| 1996–1998 | Atlanta Hawks | |||||||||||||
| 1999–2001 | Charlotte Hornets | |||||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | Los Angeles Clippers | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
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| Career NBA statistics | ||||||||||||||
| 3-point FG % | 41% | |||||||||||||
| free throw % | 89% | |||||||||||||
| Games | 296 | |||||||||||||
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Medals
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Eldridge David Recasner (born December 14, 1967) is an American former professional basketball player. He was a talented guard who played for the Washington Huskies in college. He was even named to the All-Pac-10 Conference team three times!
After college, Eldridge played in different professional leagues around the world. He played in Europe and the Philippine Basketball Association before joining the National Basketball Association (NBA). In the NBA, he played for teams like the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, and Los Angeles Clippers.
In the 1994–95 season, he won the MVP award in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA). He also led his team, the Yakima Sun Kings, to win the league championship that year. After his success in the CBA, he joined the NBA. He played in the NBA for seven more seasons. He was known for his excellent shooting, making 41% of his three-point shots and 89% of his free throws.
Eldridge was a great three-point shooter in his first four full NBA seasons. However, he suffered injuries in an accident before the 1999–2000 season. After that, he wasn't able to play at the same high level. Later in his career, he became an assistant coach for the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Growing Up and College Basketball
Eldridge Recasner was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. His uncles first taught him how to play basketball when he was in fifth grade. He played his first organized game in junior high school. In that first game, he accidentally scored in the wrong basket! This happened because he had learned to play on a half-court with only one hoop.
As a kid, Eldridge looked up to famous basketball players like Dr. J, George Gervin, and Marques Johnson. He went to Alfred Lawless High School in New Orleans. There, he was teammates with another future NBA player, Robert Pack. Eldridge was a senior when Robert was a sophomore.
In junior high, Eldridge wore jersey number 32. But in high school, he changed to number 14. He chose this number to honor his birthday, December 14.
Eldridge went to the University of Washington to play for the Huskies. He spent his first year, the 1985–86 season, as a redshirt. This means he practiced with the team but didn't play in games. He was part of the 1990 graduating class at Washington.
He was a three-time All-Pac-10 guard. He was even chosen for the Washington Huskies all-20th-century team. Eldridge was also the first player to be a captain for the Huskies three times. He studied architecture in college, though some say he studied black history.
One time, Eldridge scored 29 points against the undefeated and top-ranked Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team. He was guarding their star player, Sean Elliott, in that game. Even though the Huskies lost, it was an impressive performance.
Playing Professional Basketball
Eldridge Recasner, who is 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 190 pounds, was never picked in the NBA draft. However, he still had a long and successful professional career.
After college, he played for TTL Bamberg in Germany during the 1990–91 season. Then, he played in the Global Basketball Association in 1991–92. He also played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) for the Presto Ice Cream Kings in 1992. He played alongside famous Filipino players like Allan Caidic and Vergel Meneses.
After that, he returned to Washington state to play in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA). He played for the Yakima Sun Kings in the 1992–93 and 1994–95 seasons. Yakima was close to Seattle, where his college, the University of Washington, is located. He also played in Turkey in 1993–94.
In 1995, after leading the Yakima Sun Kings to the CBA championship and being named the league's MVP, he got his chance in the NBA. He signed a 10-day contract with the Denver Nuggets in March 1995 and played in three games.
For the 1995–96 NBA season, he signed with the Houston Rockets as a free agent. He considered joining the two-time defending NBA champions the highlight of his career. He even earned a starting spot as a point guard over more experienced players. In one of his first games as a starter, he made five out of six three-point shots in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons.
He then signed with the Atlanta Hawks for the 1996–97 and 1997–98 seasons. These were his most productive NBA seasons. He scored nearly 1000 points, grabbed over 250 rebounds, and made over 200 assists in 130 games with the Hawks.
He later joined the Charlotte Hornets in January of the 1998–99 season and stayed for parts of four seasons. He finished his playing career in January 2002 with two 10-day contracts for the Los Angeles Clippers.
Eldridge played in four post-seasons with three different teams. Three of those teams made it to the second round of the NBA playoffs. He had an impressive career three-point shooting percentage of 41% (239 out of 584 shots). In the 1997–98 season, he was among the league's top 10 three-point shooters. He also had an excellent career free throw percentage of 89% (235 out of 265 shots).
In a 1997 NBA Playoff game against the Chicago Bulls, Eldridge got very hot. He scored 11 quick points in the fourth quarter, almost helping the Hawks come back to tie the series. At one point, after his hot shooting, the Bulls assigned superstar Michael Jordan to guard him. This helped the Bulls stop the Hawks' comeback.
Eldridge was such a good free throw shooter that in 1998, he was on a streak of 36 successful free throws in a row. In one game, his team was down by three points with only 2.3 seconds left. He was fouled and had two free throws. His team needed him to make the first and miss the second on purpose, but he was so good he couldn't miss!
Before the 1999–2000 season, Eldridge was injured in a car accident. He missed 52 games because of his injuries. When he returned to play, he only played in seven games and wasn't able to perform at his previous level.
In 2004, Eldridge was named an assistant coach for the Bellevue Blackhawks in the American Basketball Association.
Personal Life
Eldridge Recasner lives in Bellevue, Washington, during the basketball off-season. He is married to Karen, and they have four children: Sydney, Erin, Lauren, and Eldridge III. Eldridge and Karen got married on August 14, 1993. During his NBA career, his mother, Joyce, and sister, Schwuan, lived in New Orleans, while he lived in Bellevue.
See also
In Spanish: Eldridge Recasner para niños
