P.J. Brown
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| Position | Center/Power forward |
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| Height | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) |
| Weight | 239 lb (108 kg) |
| League | NBA |
| Team | Boston Celtics |
| Jersey | #93 |
| Born | October 14, 1969 Detroit, Michigan |
| Nationality | USA |
| High school | Winnfield Senior HS (Winnfield, Louisiana) |
| College | Louisiana Tech |
| Draft | 2nd round, 29th overall, 1992 New Jersey Nets |
| Pro career | 1993–present |
| Former teams | Panionios BC (1992–1993) New Jersey Nets (1993–1996) Miami Heat (1996–2000) Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets (2000–2006) Chicago Bulls (2006–2007) |
| Awards | NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1997, 1999, 2001) NBA Sportsmanship Award (2004) J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award (1997) |
| Official profile | Info Page |
Collier Brown, Jr. (born October 14, 1969 in Detroit, Michigan), commonly referred to as P.J. Brown, is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the NBA's Boston Celtics. The 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m), 239 lb (108 kg/17.1 st) center/power forward was selected out of Louisiana Tech University by the New Jersey Nets with the 29th overall pick in the 1992 NBA Draft, but began his NBA career only in the 1993-94 season. He has been voted into the NBA All-Defensive Second Team three times, in 1997, 1999 and 2001,[1] and won the NBA Sportsmanship Award in 2004.[2] He attended Winnfield Senior High School in Winnfield, Louisiana, where he played for the Winnfield Tigers, and has played professionally for the New Jersey Nets, Miami Heat, Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets and Chicago Bulls.
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[edit] College
Brown played four years at Louisiana Tech and averaged 10.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per game in 121 contests. He left Louisiana Tech as the Bulldogs' 2nd all-time leader in blocks with 241, and 5th in rebounds with 1,017.
[edit] NBA
[edit] First years
Brown was selected out of Louisiana Tech University with the 29th overall pick in the second round of the 1992 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets. However, he elected to play in Greece his first year out of college and averaged 17.0 points, 13.3 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game for Panionios.
In his first three seasons in the NBA, from 1993 to 1996, he played in 240 regular season games for the New Jersey Nets, of which he started 198 games, averaging 8.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.37 blocks in 30.7 minutes per game. He appeared in 4 playoff games for the Nets in the 1994 NBA Playoffs. He also participated in the 1994 Rookie Challenge during NBA All-Star Weekend.
[edit] Miami Heat
Brown signed with the Miami Heat prior to the 1996-97 season.[3] He had an arguably better stint with the Heat than with the New Jersey Nets, as he received the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 1997. He helped the Heat advance to the Eastern Conference Finals during the 1997 NBA Playoffs, where the Heat lost to the Chicago Bulls in 5 games, with averages of 8.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.33 blocks and 30.1 minutes per game in 15 games.
In the 1998-99 season, he was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team for the 2nd time in his career. During his four seasons in Miami, from 1996 to 2000, Brown appeared in 284 regular season games for the Heat, starting all but 9 games and averaging 9.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.07 blocks in 31.2 minutes per game. The Heat didn't miss the playoffs in the four seasons Brown was with the team, and he started all of his 35 playoff games.
[edit] Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets
On August 1, 2000, Brown, alongside Jamal Mashburn, Otis Thorpe, Tim James and Rodney Buford, was traded to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Eddie Jones, Anthony Mason, Dale Ellis and Ricky Davis.[4] In 2000-01, his first season with the Hornets, Brown was selected to his 3rd NBA All-Defensive Second Team. In 2001-02, he was chosen as the Central Division recipient of the NBA Sportsmanship Award. The Hornets moved to New Orleans prior to the 2002-03 season, where Brown had his best scoring seasons, averaging 10.6 points per game in 240 regular season games from 2002 to 2005.
During the 2002-03 season, he received the NBA Community Assist Award for the month of September and was again chosen as the Central Division recipient of the NBA Sportsmanship Award, for the 2nd consecutive time. In 2003-04, he was yet again chosen as the Central Division NBA Sportsmanship Award recipient, for the 3rd consecutive season, this time capturing the 2004 NBA Sportsmanship Award.
Prior to the 2006-07 season, Brown had played in 999 regular season games, including 941 starts. By that time, he was one of 26 players in NBA history to have 8,000 points, 7,000 rebounds, 1,000 assists and 1,000 blocks.
[edit] Chicago Bulls
On July 13, 2006, Brown was traded by the New Orleans Hornets along with guard J.R. Smith to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for center Tyson Chandler.[5] He played well as a veteran with the young team, starting the majority of his games, though he scored in meager proportions, and only averaged a career-low of 20.2 minutes per game.
[edit] Retirement thoughts
After the 2006-07 season, Brown did not re-sign with the Bulls and rejected offers from several teams interested in his services, citing he might have been done with his career.[6] He went into semi-retirement while contemplating a possible return, lasting considerably into the 2007-08 season.[7][8]
[edit] Boston Celtics
On February 27, 2008, after resting for most of the 2007-08 season and weighing his options, Brown signed with the Boston Celtics for the remainder of the season, in order to bolster their front court.[8][9] His decision to come to Boston was strongly aided by a conversation with future teammates Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, who convinced him to sign with the Celtics during the 2008 NBA All-Star Weekend.[10] The San Antonio Spurs and New Orleans Hornets were interested in his services, but he wasn't particularly intrigued by the offers, instead choosing the Celtics who tried to convince him to sign throughout most of the season.[11] He made his debut against the Chicago Bulls, his former team, on March 7, 2008.
Brown had an unexpected breakout performance which took place in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Cleveland Cavaliers on May 18, 2008, when he scored 10 points and pulled down 6 rebounds, hitting all of his four shots and making key contributions in the 4th quarter. He hit a key shot with less than two minutes left in the game as the Celtics went on to win the game 97-92.[12] After the game, he told reporters: "That shot, hey, probably I would say the biggest shot of my career".[13] He also had a strong performance in Game 1 of the 2008 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers on June 5, 2008, playing increased minutes in the first Finals game of his 15-year career en route to a Celtics victory.[14]
[edit] Trivia
- Married to Dee and has three daughters, Whitney, Briana, Kalani, and one son, Javani.[15]
- Received the 2005 NBA National Citizenship Award.[15]
- Inducted into the Louisiana Tech University Hall of Fame in 1998, and the Louisiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001.[15]
- His favorite actor is Denzel Washington.[15]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ NBA Postseason Awards - All-Defensive Teams, NBA.com.
- ^ Hornets' Brown wins NBA Sportsmanship Award, Associated Press, April 24, 2004.
- ^ HoopsHype - NBA Players - P.J. Brown
- ^ PRO BASKETBALL: NOTEBOOK; N.B.A. Grants Approval For Heat-Hornets Trade, The New York Times, August 2, 2000.
- ^ Bulls acquire F-C Brown, G Smith from Hornets for C Chandler, ESPN.com, July 14, 2006.
- ^ Matt Watson, P.J. Brown Is Taking His Time, AOL Sports Blog, September 21, 2007.
- ^ Mike McGraw, Some rest for the weary, Daily Herald, October 19, 2007.
- ^ a b Mark Murphy, Celtics ink Brown, Boston Herald, February 27, 2008.
- ^ Celtics Sign P.J. Brown, Celtics.com.
- ^ Marc J. Spears, Brown in town to lend depth, The Boston Globe, February 28, 2008.
- ^ Marc J. Spears, Full-court press by Celtics convinced Brown, The Boston Globe, March 22, 2008.
- ^ Christopher L. Gasper, Brown big down the stretch - Teammates know what veteran can do for them, The Boston Globe, May 19, 2008.
- ^ Steve Bulpett, P.J. Brown provides blast from past in 4th, Boston Herald, May 19, 2008.
- ^ Steve Conroy, Backup P.J. Brown comes up big, Boston Herald, June 6, 2008.
- ^ a b c d NBA.com: P.J. Brown Bio Page, NBA.com
[edit] External links
- P.J. Brown Player Info at NBA.com
- P.J. Brown Statistics at Basketball-Reference.com
- P.J. Brown at ESPN.com
- P.J. Brown at SI.com
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