Eric Todd Piatkowski (; born September 30, 1970) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues i ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Nebraska Cornhuskers The Nebraska Cornhuskers (often abbreviated to Huskers) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference, and the Cornhuskers compete in NCAA Divisi ...

. He is the son of former

ABA ABA may refer to: Businesses and organizations Broadcasting * Alabama Broadcasters Association, United States * Asahi Broadcasting Aomori, Japanese television station * Australian Broadcasting Authority Education * Académie des Beaux- ...

player Walt Piatkowski.

High school career

Piatkowski attended Rapid City Stevens High School and was a student and a standout in basketball. In basketball, as a senior, he led his team to the 1989 South Dakota Class AA State Championship, was an All-State selection, and was named the Mr. Basketball for the State of South Dakota.

College career

Piatkowski played at the

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a public land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the Morrill Act of 1862, the school was known as the Univer ...

for coach

Danny Nee Daniel Hugh Nee (born June 18, 1945) is an American basketball coach. He served as the head men's basketball coach at Ohio University from 1980 to 1986, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln from 1986 to 2000, Robert Morris University in 2000–0 ...

from 1990 to 1994. He was a member of the All Big Eight Freshman team in 1991 and was honorable mention All Big Eight his freshman and sophomore seasons. Piatkowski was a first team All-Big Eight pick by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. n ...

his junior year and averaged a team high 16.7 points per game. He averaged 21.5 points per game his senior season and was named to the All Big Eight team again. He also led the

Cornhuskers The Nebraska Cornhuskers (often abbreviated to Huskers) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference, and the Cornhuskers compete in NCAA Divisi ...

to the Big Eight Conference Tournament Championship game while scoring a collegiate high and NU single game record 42 points against Oklahoma in the semi-finals. They went on to defeat Oklahoma State in the finals and he secured tournament MVP honors. That helped earn them the sixth seed in the NCAA Tournament. However Piatkowski's team lost to the eleventh seeded

Penn Quakers The Penn Quakers are the athletic teams of the University of Pennsylvania. The school sponsors 33 varsity sports. The school has won three NCAA national championships in men's fencing and one in women's fencing. School colors There are sev ...

in the opening round. He was recognized as an honorable mention All-American by the Associated Press and finished his collegiate career with 1,934 career points, behind only

Dave Hoppen David Dirk Hoppen (born March 13, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and other leagues. Hoppen played college basketball for the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and is the progr ...

for the most in school history. His jersey at Nebraska (No. 52) was retired in 2006.Piatkowski’s Jersey to be Retired Saturday - Huskers.com—Nebraska Athletics Official Web Site
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NBA career

After completing his eligibility at the

University of Nebraska-Lincoln A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' ...

, Piatkowski was drafted by the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first est ...

with the 15th pick of the

1994 NBA Draft The 1994 NBA draft took place on June 29, 1994, at Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis. Two NBA rookies of the year were picked in the first round, as Jason Kidd and Grant Hill were co-winners of the award for the 1994–95 NBA season. Kidd and Hill ...

. The Pacers immediately dealt his draft rights, along with

Jerome Richardson Jerome Richardson (November 15, 1920 – June 23, 2000) was an American jazz musician, tenor saxophonist, and flute player, who also played soprano sax, alto sax, baritone sax, clarinet, bass clarinet, alto flute and piccolo. He played with Ch ...

and

Malik Sealy Malik Sealy (February 1, 1970 – May 20, 2000) was an American professional basketball player, active from 1992 until his death in an automobile accident at the age of 30. Sealy played eight seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) ...

, to the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

for

Mark Jackson Mark A. Jackson (born April 1, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player. A point guard from St. John's Red Storm men's basketball, St. John's University, he played for the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Clippers, Indiana Pacers, ...

and the draft rights to Greg Minor. He ended his Clipper career as the franchise leader in games played (616), 3-point field goals made (738) and 3-point field goal attempts (1,835) and free throw percentage (.880%). After nine seasons with the Clippers he signed as an unrestricted free agent with the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Divisio ...

before the 2003-04 season. Piatkowski became a Bull on September 8, 2004, when Houston sent him,

Adrian Griffin Adrian Darnell Griffin Sr. (born July 4, 1974) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played in the NBA as a shooting guar ...

and Mike Wilks to Chicago in exchange for

Dikembe Mutombo Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo (born June 25, 1966) is a Congolese-American former professional basketball player. Mutombo played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Outside basketball, he has becom ...

. On July 13, 2006, Piatkowski officially signed with the Phoenix Suns, agreeing on a two-year, $2.4 million deal. In April 2014 Piatkowski's group was attempting to buy the L.A. Clippers from embattled owner Donald T Sterling, before Steve Ballmer bought the team outright.

Career highlights and trivia

*He played for the US in the World Basketball games in 1993. *On February 16, 2002, he set a career high of 36 points against the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Southwest Division. The ...

. *He set the Clippers individual season record for three-point percentage at .466 which ranked him third in the NBA that season. ( 2001-02) *Nicknamed "Pike" and "The Polish Rifle" for his surname and three-point shooting accuracy. *The first third generation pro basketball player, his dad Walt played four seasons, and grandad Joe played in the 1950s. *Holds three L.A. Clippers all time records, free throw percentage, three point shooting percentage and most games played for the franchise in L.A. *Had his number 52 retired by the University of Nebraska. *Beginning in the 2008-2009 season, Piatkowski became the color analyst on

Fox Sports Midwest Bally Sports Midwest is an American regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports Group, a joint venture between Sinclair Broadcast Group and Entertainment Studios, and operates as an affiliate of Bally Sports. The channel broadcasts regional e ...

for the Nebraska men's basketball team.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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L.A. Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division in the league's Western C ...

, 81 , , 11 , , 14.9 , , .441 , , .374 , , .783 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .2 , , 7.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 65 , , 1 , , 12.1 , , .405 , , .333 , , .817 , , 1.6 , , .7 , , .4 , , .2 , , 4.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 65 , , 0 , , 11.5 , , .450 , , .425 , , .821 , , 1.6 , , .8 , , .5 , , .2 , , 6.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 67 , , 35 , , 26.0 , , .452 , , .409 , , .824 , , 3.5 , , 1.3 , , .8 , , .2 , , 11.3 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 49 , , 38 , , 25.3 , , .432 , , .394 , , .863 , , 2.9 , , 1.1 , , .9 , , .1 , , 10.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 75 , , 23 , , 22.8 , , .415 , , .383 , , .850 , , 3.0 , , 1.1 , , .6 , , .2 , , 8.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 81 , , 40 , , 26.5 , , .433 , , .404 , , .873 , , 3.0 , , 1.2 , , .6 , , .2 , , 10.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 71 , , 64 , , 24.2 , , .439 , , .466 , , .894 , , 2.6 , , 1.6 , , .6 , , .2 , , 8.8 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 62 , , 26 , , 21.9 , , .471 , , .398 , , .828 , , 2.5 , , 1.1 , , .5 , , .1 , , 9.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...

, 49 , , 0 , , 14.3 , , .377 , , .352 , , .875 , , 1.5 , , .5 , , .3 , , .1 , , 4.1 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, 68 , , 11 , , 12.4 , , .430 , , .425 , , .804 , , 1.2 , , .8 , , .4 , , .0 , , 4.8 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

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, 29 , , 1 , , 7.9 , , .393 , , .273 , , .400 , , .8 , , .4 , , .2 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" , Phoenix , 11 , , 0 , , 6.6 , , .360 , , .389 , , 1.000 , , .8 , , .4 , , .0 , , .1 , , 2.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" , Phoenix , 16 , , 0 , , 7.1 , , .364 , , .423 , , 1.000 , , .8 , , .6 , , .0 , , .1 , , 2.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 789 , , 250 , , 18.5 , , .434 , , .399 , , .839 , , 2.2 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .1 , , 7.5

Playoffs

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1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

, align="left" ,

, 3 , , 0 , , 12.7 , , .364 , , .400 , , .857 , , .7 , , .0 , , .3 , , .0 , , 5.3 , - , align="left" ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

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, 1 , , 0 , , 4.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , - , align="left" ,

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris (dwarf planet), Er ...

, align="left" ,

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, 5 , , 0 , , 13.2 , , .316 , , .385 , , .857 , , 1.8 , , .6 , , .8 , , .2 , , 4.6 , - , align="left" , 2006 , align="left" ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, 6 , , 0 , , 4.7 , , .500 , , .400 , , 1.000 , , .8 , , .2 , , .0 , , .2 , , 1.7 , - , align="left" ,

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...

, align="left" , Phoenix , 1 , , 0 , , 3.0 , , 1.000 , , .000 , , .000 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , align="left" ,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

, align="left" , Phoenix , 1 , , 0 , , 2.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 17 , , 0 , , 8.3 , , .368 , , .391 , , .875 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , .3 , , .1 , , 3.0

Notes

External links

*
ESPN.com Profile - Eric Piatkowski
{{DEFAULTSORT:Piatkowski, Eric 1970 births Living people American men's basketball players American people of Polish descent Basketball players from Ohio Basketball players from South Dakota Chicago Bulls players Houston Rockets players Indiana Pacers draft picks Los Angeles Clippers players Medalists at the 1993 Summer Universiade Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball players Phoenix Suns players Shooting guards Small forwards Sportspeople from Rapid City, South Dakota Sportspeople from Steubenville, Ohio Universiade gold medalists for the United States Universiade medalists in basketball