Mario Antoine Elie (born November 26, 1963) 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 ...

coach and player in the

National Basketball Association 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 ...

(NBA). Elie grew up in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and 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 American International Yellow Jackets men's basketball, before being selected in the seventh round of the 1985 NBA draft with the 160th overall pick by the

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

. Elie began his professional basketball career with Ireland's Killester in 1986. He went on to play in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

and

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, as well as in the USBL, CBA and WBL. Elie first played in the NBA in 1990 for the Philadelphia 76ers and went on to play for the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

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 of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

and Phoenix Suns. A role player known for his defense and toughness, Elie won three NBA championships: two with the Rockets in

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

and

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 one with the Spurs in

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

. Elie began his coaching career in 2003 as an assistant with the Spurs, and later held similar positions with 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 Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

, New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets, and Orlando Magic.

Early life

Elie, who is of

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

an heritage, was born and raised in the

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

borough of

. He was named "Mario" for opera singer Mario Lanza. Elie attended Power Memorial Academy. After being cut from the freshman basketball team, Elie made the junior varsity team the following season; one of his teammates was future NBA star

Chris Mullin Christopher Paul Mullin (born July 30, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player, executive and coach. He is a five time NBA All-Star and four time All-NBA Team member. He is also two-time Olympic Gold medalist and a two-time ...

Early career

After Division I schools failed to recruit him, Elie played college basketball at the Division II level for American International College in

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...

. He led AIC to the NCAA Division II Tournament Quarter-Final and became the school's all-time leading scorer. He was selected with the 160th pick (out of 162 total) in the 1985 NBA draft by the

, but was cut from the team during training camp. In 1986, Elie started his professional career in Ireland with Killester, where he won Player of the Year honors. Elie played for the USBL's Miami Tropics, Elie played eight games in Argentina with

Unión de Santa Fe Club Atlético Unión (; mostly known as Unión de Santa Fe ) is a sports club from Santa Fe, Argentina, Santa Fe, the capital city of the Santa Fe Province, in Argentina. The club was founded on 15 April 1907. Unión is mostly known for its asso ...

. He then spent two seasons in Portugal with Ovarense, helping them win their first national title. He spent two seasons with the Albany Patroons of the

Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA), originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association, was a men's professional basketball m ...

(CBA) from 1989 to 1991, earning All-CBA First Team honors in 1991.

NBA career

In December 1990, he made his NBA debut, joining the Philadelphia 76ers on a 10-day contract. He played three games for the 76ers between December 28 and January 2. In February 1991, he joined the

, where he remained for the rest of the 1990–91 season as well as the 1991–92 season. Elie spent the 1992–93 season with the

before being traded to the

prior to the 1993–94 season. Elie won two NBA championships with the Rockets, in

and

. During this period, Elie was dubbed the "Junkyard Dog" by his teammates. One highlight of Elie's career came when he hit a game-winning three-pointer in Game 7 of the 1995 Western Conference Semifinals against the Phoenix Suns to break a tie with 7.1 seconds. The shot is called the "Kiss of Death" by Rockets fans, as Elie made a taunting kissing gesture towards the Suns' bench after the shot. While Elie was a key role player for the Rockets off the bench throughout the regular season and the playoffs, he became a starter in the 1995 NBA Finals. This move paid off for the Rockets, as Elie averaged 16.3 points per game in the Finals while shooting 65% from the field. Elie played for the Rockets through the 1997–98 season and then signed with the

, where he played for two seasons. The Spurs reportedly signed Elie in an effort to add "nastiness" to their team. Elie started for the Spurs for much of the season. With Elie, the Spurs won their first-ever NBA championship in 1999. After playing the 2000–01 season for the Phoenix Suns, Elie retired. He finished his career with 6,265 points in 732 NBA games. In 2007, Elie was inducted into the New York Basketball Hall of Fame. He has been named one of the top ten players in Houston Rockets history. During his playing career, Elie was a role player who performed well in clutch situations. He had a reputation as a tough defender, a fierce competitor, and an accurate outside shooter.

Coaching career

On September 28, 2007, Elie was hired by the

as an assistant coach. He served with the Mavericks for one season. On June 22, 2009, Paul Westphal hired Elie as an assistant coach for the

. On December 8, 2011, Elie was added to former teammate Avery Johnson's coaching staff with the

New Jersey Nets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

. On June 26, 2015, he was hired by the Orlando Magic as an assistant coach.

Personal life

Elie is married to Gina Gaston, a journalist and anchorwoman for Houston's Channel ABC13. Elie and Gaston have triplets. Elie speaks four languages: English and French from growing up in a Haitian-Creole household, Portuguese from playing pro basketball in Portugal, and Spanish from playing in Argentina. In December 2010, Elie was arrested in Sacramento, California for allegedly driving while intoxicated.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, 3 , , 0 , , 6.7 , , .286 , , .500 , , .500 , , 0.3 , , 0.3 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 2.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 30 , , 0 , , 20.8 , , .507 , , .375 , , .500 , , 3.6 , , 1.5 , , 0.6 , , 0.3 , , 7.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 79 , , 32 , , 21.2 , , .521 , , .329 , , .852 , , 2.9 , , 2.2 , , 0.9 , , 0.2 , , 7.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Portland , 82 , , 7 , , 21.4 , , .458 , , .349 , , .855 , , 2.6 , , 2.2 , , 0.9 , , 0.2 , , 8.6 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, 67 , , 8 , , 24.0 , , .446 , , .355 , , .860 , , 2.7 , , 3.1 , , 0.7 , , 0.1 , , 9.3 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 13 , , 23.4 , , .499 , , .398 , , .842 , , 2.4 , , 2.3 , , 0.8 , , 0.1 , , 8.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 45 , , 16 , , 30.8 , , .504 , , .323 , , .852 , , 3.4 , , 3.1 , , 1.0 , , 0.2 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 78 , , 77 , , 34.4 , , .497 , , .420 , , .896 , , 3.0 , , 4.0 , , 1.2 , , 0.2 , , 11.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 73 , , 59 , , 27.2 , , .452 , , .291 , , .833 , , 2.1 , , 3.0 , , 1.1 , , 0.1 , , 8.4 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, 47 , , 37 , , 27.5 , , .471 , , .374 , , .866 , , 2.9 , , 1.9 , , 1.0 , , 0.3 , , 9.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 79 , , 79 , , 28.1 , , .427 , , .398 , , .846 , , 3.2 , , 2.4 , , 0.9 , , 0.1 , , 7.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Phoenix , 68 , , 67 , , 22.1 , , .423 , , .360 , , .797 , , 2.3 , , 1.9 , , 0.9 , , 0.2 , , 4.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 732 , , 395 , , 25.5 , , .473 , , .365 , , .854 , , 2.8 , , 2.6 , , 0.9 , , 0.2 , , 8.6

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 9, , 7, , 21.9, , .500, , 1.000, , .844, , 3.6, , 1.4, , 0.6, , 0.1, , 9.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

, style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 4, , 2, , 20.0, , .639, , 1.000, , .667, , 5.5, , 2.5, , 1.3, , 0.0, , 12.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

, style="text-align:left;", Portland , 4, , 0, , 13.0, , .500, , 1.000, , .889, , 1.5, , 1.0, , 0.5, , 0.3, , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

† , style="text-align:left;",

, 23, , 0, , 16.6, , .396, , .313, , .851, , 1.7, , 1.7, , 0.3, , 0.1, , 5.8 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

† , style="text-align:left;",

, 22, , 6, , 28.9, , .504, , .431, , .795, , 2.8, , 2.5, , 1.0, , 0.0, , 9.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 8, , 0, , 29.1, , .439, , .375, , .917, , 2.8, , 1.8, , 0.9, , 0.4, , 9.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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 ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 16, , 16, , 37.4, , .466, , .400, , .839, , 3.5, , 3.8, , 0.9, , 0.3, , 11.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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 ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 5, , 1, , 26.6, , .444, , .333, , .667, , 2.6, , 1.2, , 0.4, , 0.0, , 6.6 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

† , style="text-align:left;",

, 17, , 17, , 30.9, , .384, , .267, , .837, , 3.5, , 2.9, , 1.3, , 0.1, , 7.9 , - , style="text-align:left;'',

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 4, , 4, , 28.8, , .273, , .143, , .944, , 4.3, , 1.8, , 1.3, , 0.0, , 7.5 , - , style="text-align:left;'',

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

, style="text-align:left;", Phoenix , 4, , 4, , 25.8, , .452, , .154, , .750, , 3.3, , 1.8, , 0.8, , 0.3, , 9.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 116 , , 57 , , 26.3 , , .452 , , .367 , , .836 , , 2.9 , , 2.3 , , 0.8 , , 0.1 , , 8.5

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elie, Mario 1963 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen Albany Patroons players American expatriate basketball people in Argentina American expatriate basketball people in Ireland American expatriate basketball people in Portugal American International Yellow Jackets men's basketball players American men's basketball players American sportspeople of Haitian descent Basketball coaches from New York (state) Brooklyn Nets assistant coaches Dallas Mavericks assistant coaches Golden State Warriors assistant coaches Ovarense Basquetebol players Golden State Warriors players Houston Rockets players Milwaukee Bucks draft picks New Jersey Nets assistant coaches Orlando Magic assistant coaches Philadelphia 76ers players Phoenix Suns players Portland Trail Blazers players Sacramento Kings assistant coaches San Antonio Spurs players Shooting guards Small forwards Basketball players from Manhattan Unión de Santa Fe basketball players United States Basketball League players