Ricky Wayne Blanton (born April 21, 1966) is a retired American 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 who was selected by 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 ...

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Pacific Division (NBA), P ...

in the 2nd round (46th overall) of the

1989 NBA Draft The 1989 NBA draft took place on June 27, 1989, in New York City. Despite eight of the top ten picks being considered busts, including the first two picks Pervis Ellison and Danny Ferry, the draft produced many talented players such as Shawn ...

. A 6'7" and 215 lb forward/ center from

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...

, Blanton signed a 10-day contract and played in only two career NBA games for

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 league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on Januar ...

during the 1992–93 season in 18 point wins against the Sacramento Kings on Feb 15, 1993 and Utah Jazz on Feb 17, 1993 at the Chicago Stadium. Blanton played in the 1986 Final Four as a member of the LSU Tigers.

Coaching career

After coaching stints at LSU and Utah State, Blanton served as head men's basketball coach at

Nicholls State University Nicholls State University is a public university in Thibodaux, Louisiana. Founded in 1948, Nicholls is part of the University of Louisiana System. Originally named Francis T. Nicholls Junior College, the university is named for Francis T. Nicho ...

Thibodaux, Louisiana Thibodaux ( ) is a city in, and the parish seat of, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, United States, along the banks of Bayou Lafourche in the northwestern part of the parish. The population was 15,948 at the 2020 census. Thibodaux is a principal c ...

from 2002 to 2004. He resigned shortly before the 2004–05 season.

Head coaching record

Broadcasting career

Blanton served as the color analyst for the LSU Tigers basketball team from the 2009–2010 season through the 2016–2017 season.

References

External links

* 1966 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Argentina American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Italy American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Florida Basketball players from Miami Chicago Bulls players College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Grand Rapids Hoops players LSU Tigers men's basketball announcers LSU Tigers men's basketball coaches LSU Tigers men's basketball players Nicholls Colonels men's basketball coaches Phoenix Suns draft picks Rapid City Thrillers players Sioux Falls Skyforce (CBA) players Small forwards Utah State Aggies men's basketball coaches Wichita Falls Texans players Sports coaches from Miami {{1960s-US-basketball-bio-stub