- Melvin Turpin
-
Melvin Turpin No. 54, 50 Center Personal information Date of birth December 28, 1960 Place of birth Lexington, Kentucky Nationality American Date of death July 8, 2010 (aged 49)Place of death Lexington, Kentucky High school Bryan Station (Lexington, Kentucky) Listed height 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) Listed weight 240 lb (109 kg) Career information College Kentucky (1980–1984) NBA Draft 1984 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall Selected by the Washington Bullets Pro career 1984–1990 Career history 1984–1987 Cleveland Cavaliers 1987–1988 Utah Jazz 1988–1989 Zaragoza (Spain) 1989–1990 Washington Bullets Career highlights and awards - Consensus NCAA All-American Second Team (1984)
Career NBA statistics Points 3,071 (8.5 ppg) Rebounds 1,655 (4.6 rpg) Blocks 348 (1.0 bpg) Stats at NBA.com Stats at Basketball-Reference.com Melvin Harrison "Mel" Turpin (December 28, 1960 – July 8, 2010) was an American professional basketball player.
Contents
Basketball career
A 6'11" center, Turpin was born in Lexington, Kentucky and attended Fork Union Military Academy in Fork Union, Virginia from 1979–80. He was FUMA's most valuable player for the postgraduate squad under coach Fletcher Arritt, also being voted the number one player in the state for varsity basketball; he averaged 19 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots, being inducted into the Fork Union Military Academy Hall of Fame in 2000.[1]
At the University of Kentucky, Turpin made the 1st Team All-SEC for 1982 and 1983, and was a starter for the NCAA Final Four Kentucky Wildcats team in 1983–84. In 1984, he was the Southeastern Conference scoring leader, holding the record for the most field goals made in SEC tournament play in addition to co-holding the honour of the most points scored in a single tournament game. Turpin scored 42 points in a game against University of Tennessee as a junior, making 18 of 22 shots from the field; he similarly dominated Louisiana State University as a senior, shooting 15 of 17 from the floor and five of six from the free throw line.[2]
In 1984, Turpin was chosen as the sixth overall pick in the first round by the Washington Bullets in the NBA Draft, being immediately traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers. As a professional, however, he struggled with his weight, and after six seasons with the Cavaliers, the Utah Jazz, CAI Zaragoza and the Bullets, he retired. Earning the derisive nicknames "Dinner Bell Mel" and "The Mealman", Turpin was considered one of the biggest busts in a draft class that included future greats such as Hakeem Olajuwon, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley and John Stockton.[3] In a 2004 Sports Illustrated article, Turpin quipped, "In my day, they thought the big man was supposed to be thin. They didn't know too much. It was medieval".[4]
During his National Basketball Association spell, 361 regular season games brought him averages of 8 points and nearly 5 rebounds. In 1988–89, prior to his last season altogether, he played in Spain with CAI Zaragoza, later being exchanged to the Jazz for José Ortiz.
Death
For a time during the 2000s, Turpin worked as a security guard.[4] On July 8, 2010, he committed suicide in his Lexington home from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The reason for his suicide was never determined. Also, it was never made public if he left a suicide note. He was 49 years old at the time of his death.[5]
References
- ^ FUMA Sports Hall of Fame; Fork Union
- ^ A sea of blue
- ^ Biggest draft busts
- ^ a b "Lost & Found; Sports Illustrated, 12 July 2004
- ^ Coroner: Turpin committed suicide; ESPN, 9 July 2010
External links
1984 NBA Draft First round Hakeem Olajuwon · Sam Bowie · Michael Jordan · Sam Perkins · Charles Barkley · Melvin Turpin · Alvin Robertson · Lancaster Gordon · Otis Thorpe · Leon Wood · Kevin Willis · Tim McCormick · Jay Humphries · Michael Cage · Terence Stansbury · John Stockton · Jeff Turner · Vern Fleming · Bernard Thompson · Tony Campbell · Kenny Fields · Tom Sewell · Earl Jones · Michael YoungSecond round Devin Durrant · Victor Fleming · Ron Anderson · Cory Blackwell · Stuart Gray · Steve Burtt · Jay Murphy · Eric Turner · Steve Colter · Tony Costner · Othell Wilson · Charles Jones · Ben Coleman · Charlie Sitton · Danny Young · Anthony Teachey · Tom Sluby · Willie White · Greg Wiltjer · Fred Reynolds · Gary Plummer · Jerome Kersey · Ronnie Williams1984 NCAA Men's Basketball Consensus All-Americans First Team
Patrick Ewing • Michael Jordan • Akeem Olajuwon • Sam Perkins • Wayman TisdaleSecond Team
Michael Cage • Devin Durrant • Keith Lee • Chris Mullin • Melvin Turpin • Leon WoodCategories:- 1960 births
- 2010 deaths
- African American basketball players
- American expatriate basketball people in Spain
- Basketball players from Kentucky
- Basketball players who committed suicide
- Centers (basketball)
- Cleveland Cavaliers players
- Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball players
- People from Lexington, Kentucky
- Suicides by firearm in Kentucky
- Utah Jazz players
- Washington Bullets draft picks
- Washington Bullets players
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.