Danny Fortson
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| Position | Power Forward-Center |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Weight | 260 lb (120 kg) |
| League | NBA |
| Born | March 27, 1976 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Nationality | USA |
| High school | Altoona Area, Shaler |
| College | Cincinnati |
| Draft | 10th overall, 1997 Milwaukee Bucks |
| Pro career | 1997–present |
| Former teams | Denver Nuggets (1997–1999) Boston Celtics (1999–2000) Golden State Warriors (2000–2003) Dallas Mavericks (2003–2004) Seattle SuperSonics (2004–2007) |
| Official profile | Info Page |
Daniel Anthony Fortson (born on March 27, 1976 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a professional basketball player at power forward/center formerly of the Seattle SuperSonics of the NBA. He was known for his upper body strength and it was reported that he was able to bench more than 300 pounds coming out of college.
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[edit] Early life
Although born in Philadelphia, Fortson grew up and was a High School basketball star in Altoona, Pennsylvania at Altoona Area High School before transferring to Pittsburgh's Shaler Area High School. He was a member of the prestigious JOTS squads for pre-college basketball prospects.
[edit] NBA career
Fortson began his pro career after being drafted 10th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks after a three-year collegiate career at the University of Cincinnati. He was immediately traded the same day to the Denver Nuggets. In his first year, he averaged double-digit points and the next year averaged a double-double in both points and rebounds. Before the 1999-2000 season, he was once again traded but to the Boston Celtics in a six-player deal. He missed the first 25 games of the season with a stress fracture in his right foot. He was traded to the Toronto Raptors on February 9, 2000 for Alvin Williams and Sean Marks, but the trade was rescinded two days later when Williams failed his physical.
Fortson did not play much with the Celtics and averaged only 7.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. Following that season, he was traded to the Golden State Warriors in a four-team trade. He averaged 16.7 points and 16.3 rebounds per game for the Warriors in the first six games of the 2000-01 season, but those were the only games he would play due to another stress fracture injury in his right foot. He returned the following season, but his performance was not nearly as strong as it was the previous year. In the 2002-03 season, Fortson mostly spent his time on the bench as most of his minutes went to Antawn Jamison and Troy Murphy. For the fourth time in his career, Fortson was again traded, this time in a nine-player deal to the Dallas Mavericks.
Fortson averaged only 11 minutes per game for the Mavericks, having to play behind forwards Dirk Nowitzki and Antoine Walker. Because of a need for a center who could make a jump shot, the Mavericks swapped Fortson for Calvin Booth with the Sonics in the offseason of 2004. Quickly, Fortson was back in the rotation and became a fan favorite in Seattle because of his physical play and rebounding prowess.
Fortson is a frequent target of foul calls by referees because of his physical play. As a result, Fortson registered the second-highest technical foul total among all active players during the 2004-05 season. During the 2005-06 season, Fortson's popularity and playing time diminished.
After returning from a two-game suspension on January 2, 2006, Fortson called NBA senior vice president of basketball operations Stu Jackson a "gangster" for the nearly $200,000 in fines Fortson was docked for his latest transgression with an official.[1]
As of the 2008 All Star break, Fortson remains unsigned. It is not publicly known if he will return to the NBA or basketball in the future.
