Nazr Mohammed

Nazr Mohammed

No. 8   Oklahoma City Thunder
Center
Personal information
Date of birth	September 5, 1977 (1977-09-05) (age 34)
Place of birth	Chicago, Illinois
Nationality	United States
Listed height	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight	250 lb (113 kg)
Career information
College	Kentucky
NBA Draft	1998 / Round: 1 / Pick: 29th overall
Selected by the Utah Jazz
Pro career	1998–present
League	NBA
Career history
Philadelphia 76ers (1998–2001) Atlanta Hawks (2001–2004) New York Knicks (2004–2005) San Antonio Spurs (2005–2006) Detroit Pistons (2006–2007) Charlotte Bobcats (2007–2011) Oklahoma City Thunder (2011–present)
Stats at NBA.com

Nazr Tahiru Mohammed [NAW-zee] (born September 5, 1977) is an American professional basketball player with the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder. He plays the center position. He is 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) and 250 lb (113.4 kg). He is aggressive in offensive rebounding and putbacks.

Early life

The son of an immigrant from Ghana, Mohammed was raised in Chicago and attended high school at Kenwood Academy. Mohammed entered the University of Kentucky in the fall of 1995 at a hefty 315 pounds, and saw little playing time during their NCAA Championship season. After slimming down for his sophomore year, Mohammed shared the starting center spot with Jamaal Magloire and was a key contributor in 1997, when the Cats were runners-up to Arizona. Mohammed would once again share the starting post position with Magloire in 1998, and once again they would bring the NCAA Championship home to Kentucky for the second time in three years.

NBA career

After his junior year, Mohammed was faced with a decision on whether to come back to school or enter the draft, and ultimately decided to enter the 1998 NBA Draft. He was selected by the Utah Jazz in the first round, as the 29th pick overall. Utah traded his rights to the Philadelphia 76ers for a future first round pick, which would turn out to be Quincy Lewis in the 1999 NBA Draft. He would spend two and a half seasons in Philadelphia. He then played for the Atlanta Hawks through the middle of the 2004 season, at which point he went to the New York Knicks. Mohammed split the 2004–05 season between the Knicks and the Spurs (who acquired him in a trade for Malik Rose). In a combined 77 games for both teams, he averaged 9.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game. He won the 2005 NBA title with the San Antonio Spurs as a member of their starting lineup.

During Mohammed's second season in San Antonio he shared the starting center position with Rasho Nesterovič, averaging 6.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game during the regular season. He was a key contributor to the team's first round series victory over Sacramento, averaging 7.0 points per game and nailing his second career three-point basket late in Game 1.^[1] Mohammed, however, played sparingly in the team's second round series loss to the Dallas Mavericks. After the season, he turned down a four-year contract extension and did not return to the Spurs. On July 4th, 2006, it was announced that he had come to terms on an agreement with the Detroit Pistons to become their starting center. After beginning the season in the starting five, the arrival of Chris Webber on January 16, 2007 made him gradually fall out of the team's rotation, the culmination being his 5 minutes in two postseason contests. He averaged 5.6 points and 4.5 rebounds in 51 games (33 starts), with about 15 minutes of action per game.

Mohammed was traded from the Detroit Pistons to the Charlotte Bobcats on December 14th, 2007, in exchange for Primož Brezec and Wálter Herrmann. He had a season-high 20 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists, and a season-high 4 blocks against the Knicks on December 21st.^[2]

On February 11, 2008, Nazr scored a season high 22 points, and pulled down 11 rebounds against the Los Angeles Lakers.

On February 11, 2010, Nazr scored 21 points, and vacuumed a season high 20 rebounds against the Minnesota Timberwolves. He continues to be an extremely effective player when getting significant playing time, and has proven that throughout his career.

On February 24, 2011, Nazr Mohammed was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder, while forward D.J. White and guard Morris Peterson were sent to the Charlotte Bobcats.

NBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1998–99	Philadelphia	26	0	4.7	.357	.000	.571	1.4	.1	.2	.2	1.6
1999–00	Philadelphia	28	3	6.8	.389	.000	.545	1.8	.1	.1	.4	1.9
2000–01	Philadelphia	30	3	6.5	.466	.000	.500	1.8	.1	.2	.2	3.2
2000–01	Atlanta	28	19	25.6	.480	.000	.765	9.0	.6	.8	1.0	12.3
2001–02	Atlanta	82	73	26.4	.461	.000	.617	7.9	.4	.8	.7	9.7
2002–03	Atlanta	35	0	12.7	.421	.000	.634	3.7	.2	.5	.6	4.6
2003–04	Atlanta	53	1	17.7	.493	.000	.627	5.0	.4	.4	.5	6.5
2003–04	New York	27	23	24.9	.563	.000	.525	7.7	.6	1.2	.9	9.1
2004–05	New York	54	54	28.1	.509	.000	.708	8.1	.5	1.0	1.0	10.9
2004–05	San Antonio	23	5	18.0	.387	.000	.571	6.4	.3	.2	1.4	6.2
2005–06	San Antonio	80	30	17.4	.504	.000	.785	5.2	.5	.3	.6	6.2
2006–07	Detroit	51	33	15.2	.532	.000	.610	4.5	.2	.5	.8	5.6
2007–08	Detroit	21	0	10.9	.475	.000	.433	3.5	.3	.3	.4	3.3
2007–08	Charlotte	61	29	23.3	.520	.000	.617	6.9	1.1	.6	.9	9.3
2008–09	Charlotte	39	1	8.7	.406	.000	.550	2.0	.2	.1	.4	2.7
2009–10	Charlotte	58	29	17.0	.553	.000	.648	5.2	.5	.3	.7	7.9
2010–11	Charlotte	51	30	16.7	.502	.000	.591	4.9	.3	.3	.9	7.3
2010–11	Oklahoma City	24	7	17.9	.573	.000	.625	4.8	.3	.7	.4	6.9
Career		771	340	17.9	.494	.000	.641	5.4	.4	.5	.7	6.9

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1998–99	Philadelphia	3	0	1.0	.000	.000	.000	.0	.0	.0	.0	.0
2003–04	New York	4	4	24.3	.500	.000	.688	5.8	.3	1.5	.8	10.3
2004–05	San Antonio	23	23	23.0	.528	1.000	.638	6.7	.3	.6	1.0	7.1
2005–06	San Antonio	8	3	11.8	.733	1.000	.722	3.9	.1	.4	.8	4.5
2006–07	Detroit	2	0	3.0	.500	.000	1.000	1.5	.0	.0	.0	2.5
2009–10	Charlotte	4	0	12.0	.579	.000	.667	2.0	.5	.2	.5	6.0
2010–11	Oklahoma City	14	0	10.6	.412	.000	.400	2.3	.0	.3	.4	2.3
Career		58	30	15.9	.524	1.000	.649	4.3	.2	.5	.7	5.2

Career highs

• Points: 30 2 times
• Rebounds: 20 3 times
• Assists: 4 4 times
• Steals: 5 @ L.A. Lakers 11/10/06
• Blocks: 8 @ New Jersey 12/14/04

Personal life

Mohammed is a faithful Muslim who fasts for Ramadan. He had lost nearly ten pounds during 2004-05 season because of his fasting. ^[3]

Notes

1. ^ ESPN - Sacramento vs. San Antonio Recap, April 22, 2006
2. ^ Bobcats acquire Mohammed from Pistons for Brezec, Herrmann. Updated December 14, 2007
3. ^ Beck, Howard. "Mohammed Is Having an All-Star Season." NYTimes.com Sports Pro Basketball Mohammed Is Having an All-Star Season. New York TImes, 31 Dec. 2004. Web. 25 Feb. 2011. [1].

External links

• NBA.com Official Profile
• Profile of Mohammed prior to his entering the NBA
• Kentucky Wildcats bio

Persondata
Name	Mohammed, Nazr
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	September 5, 1977
Place of birth	Chicago, Illinois
Date of death
Place of death