Nick Anderson (basketball) facts for kids
Anderson in 2012
|
|
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 20, 1968 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| High school | Simeon Career Academy (Chicago, Illinois) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 228 lb (103 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Illinois (1987–1989) |
| NBA Draft | 1989 / Round: 1 / Pick: 11th overall |
| Selected by the Orlando Magic | |
| Pro career | 1989–2002 |
| Career history | |
| 1989–1999 | Orlando Magic |
| 1999–2001 | Sacramento Kings |
| 2001–2002 | Memphis Grizzlies |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 11,529 (14.4 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 4,064 (5.1 rpg) |
| Steals | 1,114 (1.4 spg) |
Nelison "Nick" Anderson, born on January 20, 1968, is a former American professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for teams like the Orlando Magic, Sacramento Kings, and Memphis Grizzlies.
Nick grew up in Chicago, Illinois. He played high school basketball at Simeon Career Academy. In 1986, he was named "Illinois Mr. Basketball". He led his team to a city championship and a high national ranking.
After high school, Nick played basketball for three years at the University of Illinois. The Orlando Magic then chose him in the 1989 NBA draft. Today, Nick works for the Magic in different roles off the court. In 2004, he was chosen for the "Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team".
Contents
College Basketball Journey
Nick Anderson went to the University of Illinois for three years. He played on the team that reached the NCAA Final Four in 1989. This team was called the "Flyin' Illini" by sports announcer Dick Vitale.
Some of Nick's teammates were Kendall Gill, Stephen Bardo, Kenny Battle, Lowell Hamilton, and Marcus Liberty. Most of these players, except Lowell Hamilton, later played in the NBA.
Nick's NBA Career
Starting with the Magic
Nick left college early to join the 1989 NBA draft in 1989. The Orlando Magic picked him as the 11th player in the first round. The Magic was a brand new team that season, so Nick was their very first player ever chosen in the draft.
The Magic was a young team, and Nick was one of their best players. Because they were a new team, the Magic got to pick early in the draft for several years. They picked players like Dennis Scott in 1990 and Shaquille O'Neal in 1992. In 1993, they traded for Penny Hardaway.
In his first few seasons, Nick was the Magic's main scorer. He led the team in points per game during the 1991–92 season. As the team got more talented players, Nick's scoring role became smaller. However, he still started most games. On April 23, 1993, he scored a career-high 50 points in a game against New Jersey.
In the 1994–95 season, Nick led Orlando in three-pointers with 179. He averaged 15.9 points per game. The Magic won 57 games that year. They finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference. They also won their first ever Atlantic Division title.
Playoffs in 1995
In the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Magic played against the Chicago Bulls. Michael Jordan had recently returned to the Bulls after trying to play baseball. He was wearing number 45 instead of his famous number 23.
At the end of Game One, Nick famously stole the ball from Jordan. This led to the game-winning basket for the Magic. Nick later said that Jordan "didn't look like the old Michael Jordan." He also said that "No. 45 doesn't explode like No. 23 used to." Jordan then went back to wearing his old number 23 in the next game. He scored 38 points, and the Bulls won. But the Magic bounced back and won the series. They advanced to their first ever NBA Finals.
Game One of the 1995 NBA Finals was against the Houston Rockets. The Rockets were the defending champions. The Magic were up by three points late in the game. Nick Anderson, who usually made about 70% of his free throws, missed four free throws in a row. These shots could have won the game for Orlando.
Soon after, Kenny Smith of the Rockets made a three-pointer. This tied the game and sent it into overtime. The Rockets won the game in overtime. They eventually swept the Magic, winning their second NBA Championship in a row. Because of this moment, some Orlando fans started calling Nick names like "Nick the Brick."
After 1995
Nick played well in the 1995–96 season. But his season ended early because of a wrist injury in the Eastern Conference Finals. After that, Nick's career changed. He suddenly had trouble making free throws.
In the 1996–97 season, Nick's free throw percentage dropped to a very low 40.4%. His scoring average also went down to 12.0 points per game. He often had to be taken out of close games because he couldn't make his free throws.
His struggles continued into the 1997–98 season. By January 27, he was only averaging 6.5 points per game. His free throw percentage was a very low 36.3%. However, in the second half of that season, Nick played much better. His scoring average jumped to 22.6 points per game. His free throw percentage improved to 67.6%, which was close to his usual average. He finished the season averaging 15.3 points per game.
Nick played for the Magic through the 1998–99 season. After that, he was traded to the Sacramento Kings. He left Orlando as the team's all-time leading scorer. He was the last player from the Magic's first team, having played for them for ten seasons.
He played two seasons in Sacramento. He averaged 10.8 points per game in his first season there. He played 21 games the next season. In his final season, he played 15 games for the Memphis Grizzlies.
Today, Nick Anderson works for the Orlando Magic in their community relations department. He also works as a commentator for Fox Sports Florida. He appears on the Magic's pre-game, halftime, and post-game shows.
Awards and Recognition
High School Honors
- 1986 – IHSA 1st Team All-State
- 1986 – Parade Magazine 2nd Team All-American
- 1986 – McDonald's All-American
- 1986 – Illinois Mr. Basketball
- 2013 – Inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame as a player.
College Honors
- 1988 – Illini Co-MVP (Most Valuable Player)
- 1988 – 2nd Team All-Big Ten
- 1988 – Honorable Mention All American
- 1989 – Illini MVP
- 1989 – 1st Team All-Big Ten
- 1989 – NCAA All-Regional Team (MOP - Most Outstanding Player)
- 1989 – Honorable Mention All American
- 1989 – First player ever drafted by the Orlando Magic.
- 2004 – Chosen for the "Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team".
- 2008 – Honored as one of the 33 honored jerseys at the State Farm Center. This shows he is one of the most famous basketball players in University of Illinois history.
- 2017 – Inducted into the Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame.
College Statistics
University of Illinois
| Season | Games | Points | PPG | Field Goals | Attempts | Avg | Free Throws | Attempts | Avg | Rebounds | Avg | Assists | APG | Blocks | BPG | Steals | SPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987–88 | 33 | 525 | 15.9 | 223 | 390 | .572 | 77 | 120 | .642 | 217 | 6.6 | 53 | 1.6 | 28 | 0.8 | 37 | 1.1 |
| 1988–89 | 36 | 647 | 18.0 | 262 | 487 | .538 | 99 | 148 | .669 | 285 | 7.9 | 72 | 2.0 | 32 | 0.9 | 57 | 1.6 |
| Totals | 69 | 1,172 | 17.0 | 485 | 877 | .553 | 176 | 268 | .657 | 502 | 7.3 | 125 | 1.8 | 60 | 0.9 | 94 | 1.4 |
NBA Career Statistics
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Regular Season Stats
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989–90 | Orlando | 81 | 9 | 22.0 | .494 | .059 | .705 | 3.9 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 11.5 |
| 1990–91 | Orlando | 70 | 42 | 28.2 | .467 | .293 | .668 | 5.5 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 14.1 |
| 1991–92 | Orlando | 60 | 59 | 36.7 | .463 | .353 | .667 | 6.4 | 2.7 | 1.6 | 0.6 | 20.0 |
| 1992–93 | Orlando | 79 | 76 | 37.0 | .449 | .353 | .741 | 6.0 | 3.4 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 20.0 |
| 1993–94 | Orlando | 81 | 81 | 34.7 | .478 | .322 | .672 | 5.9 | 3.6 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 15.8 |
| 1994–95 | Orlando | 76 | 76 | 34.1 | .476 | .415 | .704 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 15.8 |
| 1995–96 | Orlando | 77 | 77 | 35.3 | .442 | .391 | .692 | 5.4 | 3.6 | 1.6 | 0.6 | 14.7 |
| 1996–97 | Orlando | 63 | 61 | 34.3 | .397 | .353 | .404 | 4.8 | 2.9 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 12.0 |
| 1997–98 | Orlando | 58 | 44 | 29.3 | .455 | .360 | .638 | 5.1 | 2.1 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 15.3 |
| 1998–99 | Orlando | 47 | 39 | 33.6 | .395 | .347 | .611 | 5.9 | 1.9 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 14.9 |
| 1999–00 | Sacramento | 72 | 72 | 29.1 | .391 | .332 | .487 | 4.7 | 1.7 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 10.8 |
| 2000–01 | Sacramento | 21 | 0 | 8.0 | .246 | .256 | – | 1.2 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 1.8 |
| 2001–02 | Memphis | 15 | 0 | 14.6 | .276 | .271 | .556 | 2.2 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 4.0 |
| Career | 800 | 636 | 31.2 | .446 | .356 | .667 | 5.1 | 2.6 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 14.4 | |
Playoff Stats
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Orlando | 3 | 3 | 40.0 | .382 | .400 | .750 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 1.7 | 0.7 | 14.3 |
| 1995 | Orlando | 21 | 21 | 38.8 | .448 | .383 | .683 | 4.8 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 14.2 |
| 1996 | Orlando | 11 | 11 | 38.0 | .433 | .286 | .622 | 5.0 | 1.9 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 14.2 |
| 1997 | Orlando | 5 | 5 | 26.0 | .333 | .267 | .000 | 5.8 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 5.6 |
| 1999 | Orlando | 4 | 4 | 38.0 | .367 | .262 | .737 | 6.8 | 2.3 | 2.3 | 0.0 | 20.8 |
| 2000 | Sacramento | 5 | 5 | 26.4 | .324 | .350 | .875 | 3.4 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 7.2 |
| Career | 49 | 49 | 36.0 | .413 | .333 | .678 | 4.9 | 2.2 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 13.1 | |
See also
In Spanish: Nick Anderson para niños
