Ruben Nathaniel Patterson (born July 31, 1975) 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. During his career, he played as a

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three, is one of the five Basketball position, positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than Power forward (basketball), power forwards and Cent ...

and

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...

. During his college career at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...

, Patterson earned third-team All-American honors and helped lead the Bearcats to

Conference USA Conference USA (CUSA) is a collegiate athletic conference of member institutions in the Southern and Western United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. CUSA's offices are located in Dallas, Texas. Mem ...

titles in both of his seasons there. Drafted by the

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

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 ...

, Patterson began his career with the Greek team AEK Athens BC before joining the Lakers in his rookie season. Later, he played for the NBA teams Seattle SuperSonics,

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 ...

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

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 ...

, and

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

before ending his career with the Lebanese team Champville SC.

Early life

Patterson had a troubled family life, both parents and one of his sisters battled

drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

, and his father spent time in

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...

. As a youth, he lived mostly with his mother, Charlene Patterson, who died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

when he was at the

. After hearing of her death while on a road trip at UAB, he rejected an offer to fly home and spend time with his family, instead staying with his team for the game and scoring 32 points. "My mother would have wanted me to play," Patterson later explained. Patterson started off his college basketball career in the small town of

Independence, Kansas Independence is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Kansas, Montgomery County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 8,548. It was named in commemoration of the ...

at the Independence Community College. He later transferred to the University of Cincinnati.

Professional career

Patterson was a second-round selection of the

1998 NBA draft The 1998 NBA draft took place on June 24, 1998, at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This draft helped turn around four struggling franchises: the Dallas Mavericks, the Sacramento Kings, the Boston Celtics, and the Tor ...

(31st pick overall), chosen by the

. Due to the lock-out season of 1998, he started the season in the Greek league playing with AEK Athens BC where he averaged 12.6 points and 3.6 rebounds in 19 games. He later played for the Lakers, the Seattle SuperSonics, the

, the

, and the

, averaging a career 10.7 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. He nicknamed himself the "Kobe Stopper" after claiming he could play strong defense against NBA superstar

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, spent his entire 20-year career with t ...

. Patterson left the Lakers for Seattle on August 10, 1999, as a free agent. He quickly became known as a solid defensive player and a good shooter, finishing fourth in the league in field goal percentage. He finished his second season in Seattle after starting 74 of 81 games, and third on the team in scoring with 13.6 points per game. After that season, he signed with the Portland Trail Blazers. In his second year in Portland, trouble began to brew for Patterson. He was punched in the face by teammate

Zach Randolph Zachary McKenley Randolph (born July 16, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Z-Bo", the 2-time NBA All-Star played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans men's basketball, Michigan State Spartans bef ...

during a practice. Randolph intervened in an argument between Patterson and rookie teammate

Qyntel Woods Qyntel Deon Woods (born February 16, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player. He played mainly at the small forward position, but he also played at the shooting guard position, on occasion. Early life and college career Woods ...

. The move cost Randolph $100,000. Often outspoken and erratic, Patterson was temporarily suspended from the Trail Blazers in the 2005–06 season for speaking harshly to coach Nate McMillan and refusing to return to a game, upset about his lack of playing time. Patterson later explained his outburst, saying he was frustrated and it was "like the devil hit me and told me to get it out". He also demanded that he get at least 25 minutes per game or be traded. In February 2006, Patterson was traded to the

. In the following off-season, he was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for Joe Smith. In Milwaukee, Patterson posted the best numbers of his career with 14.7 points, 2.9 assists and 31.0 minutes per game. He also tied a career-high in rebounds per game with 5.4 and posted a career-best 55% field goal average. On August 29, 2007, Patterson signed a contract with the

. Patterson was waived by the Clippers on December 13, 2007. He later joined the Lebanese club Champville.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , align="left" , 1998–99 , align="left" , LA Lakers , 24 , , 2 , , 6.0 , , .412 , , .167 , , .710 , , 1.3 , , 0.1 , , 0.2 , , 0.1 , , 2.7 , - , align="left" , 1999–00 , align="left" ,

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, 81 , , 74 , , 25.9 , , .536 , , .444 , , .692 , , 5.4 , , 1.6 , , 1.2 , , 0.5 , , 11.6 , - , align="left" , 2000–01 , align="left" ,

, 76 , , 22 , , 27.1 , , .494 , , .056 , , .681 , , 5.0 , , 2.1 , , 1.4 , , 0.6 , , 13.0 , - , align="left" , 2001–02 , align="left" , Portland , 75 , , 13 , , 23.5 , , .515 , , .250 , , .701 , , 4.0 , , 1.4 , , 1.1 , , 0.5 , , 11.2 , - , align="left" , 2002–03 , align="left" , Portland , 78 , , 17 , , 21.2 , , .492 , , .150 , , .627 , , 3.4 , , 1.3 , , 0.9 , , 0.4 , , 8.3 , - , align="left" , 2003–04 , align="left" , Portland , 73 , , 1 , , 22.6 , , .506 , , .167 , , .553 , , 3.7 , , 1.9 , , 1.2 , , 0.3 , , 6.9 , - , align="left" , 2004–05 , align="left" , Portland , 70 , , 36 , , 28.0 , , .531 , , .080 , , .599 , , 3.9 , , 2.0 , , 1.5 , , 0.3 , , 11.6 , - , align="left" , 2005–06 , align="left" , Portland , 45 , , 2 , , 23.5 , , .496 , , .000 , , .611 , , 3.4 , , 1.3 , , 0.9 , , 0.3 , , 11.4 , - , align="left" , 2005–06 , align="left" ,

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, 26 , , 20 , , 28.3 , , .543 , , .167 , , .580 , , 3.5 , , 2.6 , , 1.3 , , 0.3 , , 13.2 , - , align="left" , 2006–07 , align="left" ,

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, 81 , , 53 , , 31.0 , , .548 , , .158 , , .641 , , 5.4 , , 2.9 , , 1.4 , , 0.3 , , 14.7 , - , align="left" , 2007–08 , align="left" , LA Clippers , 20 , , 5 , , 16.4 , , .453 , , .000 , , .558 , , 3.2 , , 0.9 , , 1.1 , , 0.4 , , 5.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 649 , , 245 , , 24.6 , , .517 , , .179 , , .641 , , 4.2 , , 1.8 , , 1.2 , , 0.4 , , 10.7

Playoffs

, - , align="left" , 1998–99 , align="left" , LA Lakers , 3 , , 0 , , 1.7 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , - , align="left" , 1999–00 , align="left" ,

, 5 , , 0 , , 16.8 , , .538 , , .000 , , .867 , , 3.0 , , 0.4 , , 0.6 , , 0.4 , , 8.2 , - , align="left" , 2001–02 , align="left" , Portland , 3 , , 0 , , 21.7 , , .333 , , .000 , , .750 , , 2.3 , , 0.3 , , 1.0 , , 0.3 , , 5.3 , - , align="left" , 2002–03 , align="left" , Portland , 7 , , 0 , , 22.1 , , .481 , , .000 , , .690 , , 3.7 , , 1.6 , , 0.6 , , 0.1 , , 10.0 , - , align="left" , 2005–06 , align="left" ,

, 4 , , 1 , , 14.5 , , .529 , , .000 , , .400 , , 1.5 , , 0.8 , , 0.3 , , 0.0 , , 5.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 22 , , 1 , , 16.7 , , .477 , , .000 , , .719 , , 2.5 , , 0.8 , , 0.5 , , 0.2 , , 6.7

College

, - , align="left" , 1996–97 , align="left" ,

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, 31 , , 26 , , 23.3 , , .548 , , .282 , , .604 , , 5.6 , , 1.4 , , 1.1 , , 0.3 , , 13.7 , - , align="left" , 1997–98 , align="left" ,

, 19 , , 14 , , 27.9 , , .472 , , .269 , , .602 , , 6.3 , , 2.2 , , 1.2 , , 0.6 , , 16.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 50 , , 40 , , 25.1 , , .515 , , .274 , , .603 , , 5.9 , , 1.7 , , 1.1 , , 0.4 , , 14.8

Legal issues

Patterson was involved in a number of off-the-court issues during his basketball career. He would have to register himself as a

sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a Sex and the law, sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convi ...

to establish legal residency in many U.S. states, due to pleading guilty in 2001 to attempted

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault involving sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, carried out against a person without consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or against a person ...

of his child's

nanny A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...

in September 2000. It was reported that he forced the nanny to perform a sex act on him.Neighbor complained that Patterson had not registered
updated June 9, 2007 In February 2001, Patterson was convicted of

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

assault In the terminology of law, an assault is the act of causing physical harm or consent, unwanted physical contact to another person, or, in some legal definitions, the threat or attempt to do so. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may ...

for attacking a man who scratched his car outside a

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

night club. Patterson was arrested in 2002 for felony

domestic abuse Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. In a broader sense, abuse including nonphysical abuse in such settings is called domestic abuse. The term "domestic violence" is often use ...

charges on his wife. His wife later dropped the charges and they divorced. He was accused of failing to register as a sex offender on May 15, 2007, after moving into a new house in Cincinnati and a bench warrant was issued. His agent, former NFL player Tim McGee, said Patterson's failure to register was "an oversight" after Patterson was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine on June 8. In March 2010, Patterson was arrested in

Hamilton County, Ohio Hamilton County is located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 830,639, making it the List of counties in Ohio, third-most populous county in Ohio. The coun ...

on DUI charges after it was found that his blood alcohol level was .117. He was sentenced to a $500 fine and a three-day driving program, and was ordered not to consume alcohol for 18 months. In 2019, Patterson plead guilty to charges of unpaid child support. While at one point he owed more than $100,000, he told

The Cincinnati Enquirer ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'' is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the ''Enquirer'' is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, altho ...

that he is currently paying down this debt.

References

External links

Ruben Patterson biography
at NBA.com *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Ruben 1975 births Living people 21st-century American criminals AEK B.C. players American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Lebanon American male criminals American men's basketball players American people convicted of assault American sportspeople convicted of crimes Basketball players from Cleveland Big3 players Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball players Denver Nuggets players Greek Basket League players Independence Pirates men's basketball players Los Angeles Clippers players Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Los Angeles Lakers players Milwaukee Bucks players People who entered an Alford plea Portland Trail Blazers players Seattle SuperSonics players Small forwards 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen American men's 3x3 basketball players CS Maristes players