Pervis Ellison facts for kids
Ellison at the 1987 Pan American Games
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
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| Born | April 3, 1967 Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
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| High school | Savannah (Savannah, Georgia) | |||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | |||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) | |||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||
| College | Louisville (1985–1989) | |||||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 1989 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall | |||||||||||||
| Selected by the Sacramento Kings | ||||||||||||||
| Pro career | 1989–2000 | |||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||
| 1989–1990 | Sacramento Kings | |||||||||||||
| 1990–1994 | Washington Bullets | |||||||||||||
| 1994–2000 | Boston Celtics | |||||||||||||
| 2000 | Seattle SuperSonics | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
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| Career NBA statistics | ||||||||||||||
| Points | 4,494 (9.5 ppg) | |||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 3,170 (6.7 rpg) | |||||||||||||
| Assists | 691 (1.5 apg) | |||||||||||||
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Medals
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Pervis Ellison (born April 3, 1967) is a former American basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). People called him "Never Nervous Pervis" when he played for the University of Louisville. This was because he played very well in important games. He led Louisville to a national championship. After college, he was the very first player chosen in the 1989 NBA Draft. His time as a professional player was often affected by injuries. However, he still won the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 1992.
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College Basketball Star
Pervis Ellison was 6 feet 9 inches tall and played as a center for the University of Louisville. He started every game for all four years he was there. His coach was Denny Crum.
Winning a National Championship
In his first year, Pervis helped Louisville win its second national championship in 1986. In the championship game against Duke, he scored 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Louisville won 72-69. Pervis was named the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player. He was only the second freshman ever to win this award.
Professional NBA Career
In 1989, Pervis Ellison was the first player picked in the 1989 NBA draft by the Sacramento Kings. One of his teammates, Danny Ainge, gave him a new nickname: "Out of Service Pervis." This nickname came about because Pervis often had injuries during his professional career.
Early Career and Injuries
An injury kept Pervis from playing in 48 of the 82 games during his first year. After that, he was traded to the Washington Bullets. On April 6, 1991, Pervis had one of his best games. He scored 30 points and got 12 rebounds in a win against the Indiana Pacers.
Most Improved Player Award
Even though he sometimes played as a backup in the 1990–1991 season, Pervis became a full-time starter the next year. He won the NBA Most Improved Player award. That season, he averaged 20.0 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 2.68 blocks per game. On January 31, 1992, he had another amazing game. He scored 19 points, grabbed 19 rebounds, made 6 assists, blocked 5 shots, and stole the ball 2 times against the Knicks.
Later Career and Retirement
More injuries continued to affect Pervis's career. He had knee problems that kept him out of many games in the 1992–93 and 1993–94 seasons. He then signed with the Boston Celtics in 1994. However, he didn't play right away because he was still recovering from his knee issues.
Later, a broken toe kept him out of most games between 1996 and 1998. After playing in only 69 games over three seasons with the Celtics, he joined the Seattle SuperSonics in 2000. He played only nine games before he decided to retire from basketball.
Life After Playing
After retiring, Pervis Ellison coached basketball for Life Center Academy in Burlington, New Jersey. He lives in Voorhees Township, New Jersey. His son, Malik Ellison, also played basketball for him at Life Center Academy and is now a professional basketball player.
Career Highlights
- Won the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 1992.
- Won the NCAA championship with Louisville in 1986.
- Named NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player in 1986.
- Was a first-team All-American in 1989.
- Named Metro Conference Co-Player of the Year in 1988.
- His number 42 jersey was retired by Louisville Cardinals.
Images for kids
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Pervis Ellison playing in 1987.
See also
- List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 2000 points and 1000 rebounds
