Rick Fox facts for kids
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Fox in 2019
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 24, 1969 Toronto, Canada |
| Nationality | Canadian / Bahamian |
| High school |
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| Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Listed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | North Carolina (1987–1991) |
| NBA Draft | 1991 / Round: 1 / Pick: 24th overall |
| Selected by the Boston Celtics | |
| Pro career | 1991–2004 |
| Career history | |
| 1991–1997 | Boston Celtics |
| 1997–2004 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 8,966 (9.6 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 3,517 (3.8 rpg) |
| Assists | 2,649 (2.8 apg) |
Ulrich Alexander Fox (born July 24, 1969) is a famous Bahamian-Canadian actor. He was also a professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was part of the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers. Before that, he played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Rick Fox also owned an eSports team called Echo Fox. He left the team in October 2019.
Rick Fox has appeared in many TV shows and movies. Some of his acting roles were in Oz, He Got Game, One Tree Hill, and Holes.
Contents
Early Life and Basketball Beginnings
Rick Fox was born in Toronto, Canada, on July 24, 1969. His mother, Dianne Gerace, was an Olympic high jumper. His father, Ulrich Fox, was Bahamian. When Rick was young, his family moved to Bahamas. He went to Kingsway Academy in Nassau.
Even though he had never played organized basketball, he joined his high school team. He also played high school basketball in Warsaw, Indiana. He became a very good player. However, he was not allowed to play his senior year. This was because he had completed too many semesters between the Bahamas and Indiana. Despite this, he was still chosen for the Indiana All-Star team in 1987. He then went on to play college basketball at the University of North Carolina.
Professional Basketball Career
Rick Fox had a long and successful career in the NBA. He played for two well-known teams.
Playing for the Boston Celtics (1991–1997)
The Boston Celtics chose Rick Fox in the 1991 NBA draft. He was the 24th pick overall. He was the first rookie to start on opening night for the Celtics since Larry Bird in 1979. In his first year, he averaged 8 points per game. He was named to the 1992 NBA All-Rookie Second Team.
By the 1995–96 season, Fox became the main small forward for the Celtics. He scored double-digit points regularly. In the 1996–97 season, he had his best year with the Celtics. He averaged 15.4 points per game. He also made 101 three-point shots.
Playing for the Los Angeles Lakers (1997–2004)
In 1997, Rick Fox joined the Los Angeles Lakers. He played and started in all 82 games during the 1997–98 season. He averaged 12 points per game. In the playoffs, the Lakers reached the Western Conference Finals.
In the 1999–2000 season, the Lakers made it to the 2000 NBA Finals. They played against the Indiana Pacers. Rick Fox played in all 23 playoff games. In Game 6 of the Finals, he hit a very important three-pointer. This shot helped the Lakers win the game and the NBA title. It was Rick Fox's first championship.
The next season, 2000–01, Fox started in most games. He averaged 9.6 points per game. The Lakers swept through the first three rounds of the playoffs. They reached the 2001 NBA Finals against the Philadelphia 76ers. Fox scored 19 points in Game 1. The Lakers then won the next four games. This gave them their second straight championship. In the final game, Fox scored 20 points.
In the 2001–02 season, Fox played and started in all 82 regular season games. He also played in all 19 playoff games. The Lakers had a tough 7-game series against the Sacramento Kings. Fox scored 13 points in the Lakers' Game 7 victory. In the 2002 NBA Finals, the Lakers swept the New Jersey Nets in 4 games. This win gave them their third straight NBA title. Fox averaged 9.8 points and 6.3 rebounds in that series.
Rick Fox retired from basketball after the 2003–04 season. He had played 13 seasons in the NBA.
Playing for Canada's National Team
Rick Fox also played basketball for Canada. He represented his country twice. He played in the 1990 and 1994 FIBA World Championships.
Acting Career
Rick Fox started acting while he was still playing in the NBA. After retiring from basketball, he continued his acting career.
Acting During His NBA Career
In 1994, Fox appeared in the movie Blue Chips. He played a basketball player. In 1996, he was in the film Eddie with Whoopi Goldberg. He also played Chick Deagan in the 1998 film He Got Game, directed by Spike Lee.
From 1997 to 2003, Fox had a recurring role on the TV show Oz. He played a prison inmate named Jackson Vahue. In 2003, he appeared in the Walt Disney Pictures film Holes. He played Clyde 'Sweetfeet' Livingston, a baseball player. He also had roles in TV shows like 1-800-Missing and The Fairly OddParents.
Acting After His NBA Career
After leaving the NBA, Rick Fox continued to act. In 2006, he played Daunte in the TV series One Tree Hill. This show was about basketball. In 2007, he appeared in Ugly Betty with his former wife, Vanessa Williams.
He also played a fictional version of himself in the TV show The Game. In 2008, he had a main role in Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns. He played Harry, a coach. In 2011, he was a guest star on The Big Bang Theory. He played Glenn, Bernadette's ex-boyfriend.
Rick Fox has appeared in many other TV shows and films. These include Melrose Place, Body of Proof, Mom, Sharknado, and Shameless. From 2018 to 2019, he co-starred in the Morning Show Mysteries films for Hallmark Channel. He also played Darius Nash on the OWN series Greenleaf.
In 2022, the Bahamian government made Rick Fox their Ambassador-at-large for Sports.
Reality Television Appearances
Rick Fox has also been on several reality TV shows.
In 2010, he was a contestant on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. He danced with professional partner Cheryl Burke. They finished in sixth place. He also appeared on Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?. In 2017, he was a contestant on the Chopped Star Power actors competition. He came in second place.
Professional Gaming and Echo Fox
Rick Fox is also interested in professional gaming, known as eSports. In 2015, he and his partner Amit Raizada bought a professional League of Legends team. They renamed it Echo Fox.
However, in 2019, there were problems within the company. One of the co-founders used racist language. This led to an investigation by Riot Games, which runs the LCS (League of Legends Championship Series). Riot Games ordered Echo Fox to remove the person who used the racist language. If they did not, they would have to sell their spot in the LCS.
Rick Fox decided to leave Echo Fox. He stated that the "racism" and "threats to my family" made it impossible for him to stay. He officially left the organization in November 2019.
Personal Life
Rick Fox has a son from a previous relationship. His son is very interested in gaming. This helped Rick Fox get involved in the eSports world.
In 1999, Rick Fox married actress and singer Vanessa Williams. They have a daughter together. They later divorced in 2004. However, they remained friends. They even worked together on the TV show Ugly Betty years later.
From 2009 to 2014, Rick Fox dated actress Eliza Dushku.
In January 2020, there was a false report that Rick Fox was in a helicopter crash. This was the same crash that killed his former teammate Kobe Bryant. However, Rick Fox and his family quickly confirmed that he was safe.
Images for kids
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Fox in 2019
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Fox with Los Angeles Lakers, 2002
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Fox holding a producer credit for The 1 Second Film in May 2006
See also
- List of Canadian sports personalities
- List of people banned or suspended by the NBA
