Maceo Demond Baston (born May 29, 1976) 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 Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Michigan Wolverines The Michigan Wolverines comprise 29 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except wo ...

. At a playing height of , and a playing weight of , he played at the

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers and are typi ...

position.

High school

Baston attended H. Grady Spruce High School, in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, where he played basketball.

College career

After graduating from high school, Baston played

at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

. He was part of an all-star recruiting class by the

Wolverines The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The wolverine ...

that included

Maurice Taylor Maurice De Shawn Taylor (born October 30, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. He played power forward and center positions. Originally from Detroit, Taylor played college basketball for the Michigan Wolverines and was ...

, Travis Conlon,

Jerod Ward Jerod Davanta Ward (born May 5, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player, who played shooting guard, small forward, power forward and center positions. Currently, Ward is a TEDx & Motivational Keynote Speaker, Consultant, Coach ...

, and Willie Mitchell. He was known for his above-average dunking ability, and tenacious defense. Baston averaged 10.7 points and 6.6 rebounds a game for his Michigan career, which included NCAA Tournament appearances in

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

and

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, and the

National Invitation Tournament The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) is an annual men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Since 2023, all rounds of the tournament are played at various sites across the country whi ...

Championship in

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

. Michigan later forfeited its entire 1996–97 season schedule, after

Robert Traylor Robert DeShaun "Tractor" Traylor (February 1, 1977 – May 11, 2011) was an American professional basketball player. He got his nickname because of his hulking frame. Traylor was the sixth pick in the 1998 NBA draft and played seven seasons in th ...

, and

Louis Bullock Louis "Lou" Bullock Jr. (born May 20, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. Although his records have officially been vacated, due to the University of Michigan basketball scandal, his vacated records are unsurpassed for mos ...

were found to have taken money from a Michigan booster.

Professional career

Early career

Baston was drafted in the second round (58th overall), by the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

, in

, but he did not appear in any games for them. He then played for the

Quad City Thunder The Quad City Thunder was a Continental Basketball Association (CBA) franchise that was based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. They played in the CBA from the 1987–88 season until the CBA folded in 2001. The Thunder were successful on ...

in the CBA from 1998 to 2000, where he was a CBA All-Star in 2000. He was honored as the CBA Defensive Player of the Year, and selected to the All-CBA First Team and All-Defensive Team in 2000. After that, he played in Europe. He played in Italy ( SC Montecatini), and in Spain (

Joventut Badalona Club Joventut Badalona, S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional basketball club based in Badalona, Catalonia, Spain, playing in the Liga ACB and the EuroCup. Known to their fans as ''La Penya'' (in English, ''The Club''), it is one of only two team ...

Toronto Raptors

After playing in Europe, Baston played with the

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

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

(February–April 2003).

Maccabi Tel Aviv

After playing with the

, Baston moved to the Israeli League club

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv () is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such as football, basketball, j ...

. While with Maccabi, Baston set the

EuroLeague Final Four The EuroLeague Final Four is the final four format championship of the European-wide top-tier level EuroLeague professional club basketball competition. The Euroleague Basketball Company used the final four format for the first time in 2002, fo ...

record for blocks in a game, with 6 versus Tau Ceramica, in the 2006 EuroLeague Semifinals.

Indiana Pacers

On July 28, 2006, 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 Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

signed Baston to a two-year deal, worth $1.8 million, with the second year being a player option. He appeared in 47 games with the team, and averaged 3 points per game.

Return to Raptors

On July 11, 2007, Baston signed an offer sheet to return to the Raptors, worth roughly US$3.8 million, over two years. The Pacers declined to match the offer.

Return to Pacers

The Pacers reacquired Baston on July 9, 2008, in a trade with the Raptors, which also included

Jermaine O'Neal Jermaine Lee O'Neal Sr. (born October 13, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. A center/power forward, he had a successful high school career and declared his eligibility for the 1996 NBA draft straight out of high school ...

and T. J. Ford.

Detroit Pistons

Baston, along with

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

Chucky Atkins, signed non-guaranteed contracts with the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, on September 28, 2009. The Pistons waived Baston on October 21, 2009.

Budivelnyk Kyiv

Despite having contract conversations with the Serbian club

Partizan Belgrade Jugoslovensko sportsko društvo Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, Југословенско спортско друштво Партизан, lit=Yugoslav Sports Society Partizan), commonly abbreviated as JSD Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, ЈСД Партизан, lin ...

, Baston instead signed with the Ukrainian club

Budivelnyk Kyiv BC Budivelnyk Kyiv (in Ukrainian: Будівельник Київ) is a Ukrainian professional basketball club based in Kyiv. The club plays in the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague. In June 2018, it was forced to withdraw from the Superleague du ...

, on March 1, 2010. However, he only played in one game with the club, due to physical problems he was having at the time.

Bnei HaSharon

In November 2010, Baston returned to Israel, signing with

Bnei HaSharon Bnei Herzliya Basket (, lit. ''Sons of Herzliya''), is a professional basketball club that is based in Herzliya, in central Israel. The club plays in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, the top division of Israeli basketball. History The club w ...

. However, after playing in seven games with the club, he left the team in January 2011.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , align="left" , 2002–03 , align="left" ,

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, 16 , , 0 , , 6.6 , , .600 , , .000 , , .833 , , 1.4 , , .0 , , .3 , , .7 , , 2.5 , - , align="left" , 2006–07 , align="left" ,

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, 47 , , 2 , , 8.6 , , .645 , , .429 , , .787 , , 1.4 , , .3 , , .3 , , .4 , , 2.9 , - , align="left" , 2007–08 , align="left" ,

, 15 , , 2 , , 6.9 , , .680 , , .000 , , .700 , , 1.7 , , .2 , , .1 , , .3 , , 2.7 , - , align="left" , 2008–09 , align="left" ,

, 27 , , 0 , , 8.0 , , .543 , , .000 , , .630 , , 1.9 , , .3 , , .2 , , .4 , , 2.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 105 , , 4 , , 7.9 , , .616 , , .375 , , .740 , , 1.7 , , .2 , , .2 , , .4 , , 2.7

Playoffs

, - , align="left" ,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, align="left" ,

, 1 , , 0 , , 1.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 1 , , 0 , , 1.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0

References

External links

* *
Euroleague.net ProfileItalian League Profile

Spanish League Profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baston, Maceo 1976 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Spain American expatriate basketball people in Ukraine American men's basketball players Basketball players from Dallas BC Budivelnyk players Bnei HaSharon players Chicago Bulls draft picks Indiana Pacers players Israeli Basketball Premier League players Joventut Badalona players Lega Basket Serie A players Liga ACB players Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. players Michigan Wolverines men's basketball players Montecatiniterme Basketball players Obradoiro CAB players Sportspeople from Corsicana, Texas Power forwards Quad City Thunder players Toronto Raptors players