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| '''Lance Blanks''' (September 9, 1966 – May 3, 2023) was an American professional basketball player and executive who worked as an analyst for ]. He played in the ] (NBA) for the ] and ]. Blanks also spent several seasons playing in Europe. Blanks worked as the general manager of the ] from 2010 to 2013. | '''Lance Blanks''' (September 9, 1966 – May 3, 2023) was an American professional basketball player and executive who worked as an analyst for ]. He played in the ] (NBA) for the ] and ]. Blanks also spent several seasons playing in Europe. Blanks worked as the general manager of the ] from 2010 to 2013. | ||
| ==Early life== | |||
| Blanks was born to ], a ] player who played in the ] and ]. Lance Blanks attended ] in ], and was named ] in 1985.<ref name=cavsfrontoffice/> | |||
| ==College career== | ==College career== | ||
| ⚫ | Blanks played collegiately at the ] and the ]. Blanks and teammates ] and ] were known as the "BMW Scoring Machine" during the 1989–90 basketball season. That Longhorn team finished second in the ] and advanced to the ] in the ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://texassports_com.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/2014/11/12/2014_15_Texas_Basketball_Fact_Book.pdf | title=2014–15 Texas Basketball Fact Book | work=texassports.com |access-date=May 2, 2015}}</ref> Blanks drew strong criticism and gained many detractors for his on-court antics and unsportsmanlike, excessive celebration, such as at the Elite Eight of the 1990 tournament.<ref>{{cite news |last=Nuhn |first=Gary |date=March 24, 1990 |title=Blanks shoots, hoots & hollers for Longhorns |work=] }}</ref> | ||
| ⚫ | Blanks was inducted into Texas Athletics' Longhorn Hall of Honor in 2007.<ref name="texassports.com">{{cite web|title=Longhorn legends: Basketball Hall of Honor inductee Lance Blanks|url=https://texassports.com/news/2007/10/9/100907aaa_205.aspx|publisher=texassports.com|access-date=November 18, 2019}}</ref> | ||
| ⚫ | |||
| With 1,322 points, Blanks holds the record for the highest number of points by a two-year player and is the eighth-leading scorer in University of Texas history. Blanks ended his career at Texas as the all-time leader in steals and stands fourth place in career scoring average with 20.0 points per game.<ref name="texassports.com"/> | With 1,322 points, Blanks holds the record for the highest number of points by a two-year player and is the eighth-leading scorer in University of Texas history. Blanks ended his career at Texas as the all-time leader in steals and stands fourth place in career scoring average with 20.0 points per game.<ref name="texassports.com"/> | ||
| ⚫ | Blanks was inducted into Texas Athletics' Longhorn Hall of Honor in 2007.<ref name="texassports.com">{{cite web|title=Longhorn legends: Basketball Hall of Honor inductee Lance Blanks|url=https://texassports.com/news/2007/10/9/100907aaa_205.aspx|publisher=texassports.com|access-date=November 18, 2019}}</ref> | ||
| ==Pro playing career== | ==Pro playing career== | ||
| Line 71: | Line 74: | ||
| ==Personal life== | ==Personal life== | ||
| ⚫ | Blanks daughter, Riley, was a four-star recruit for the ] tennis team and is the founder of Woke Beauty.<ref>{{cite web|title=Raised to Shine|url=https://uvamagazine.org/articles/raised_to_shine|publisher=uvamagazine.org|access-date=February 15, 2020}}</ref> His cousin ] was an ] in ].<ref name=cavsfrontoffice/> | ||
| Lance Blanks was the son of ], a former ]/] player and the first-ever Black football player to play in the Lone Star Conference.<ref name=cavsfrontoffice/> | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| Blanks' cousin is ], a former ] ].<ref name=cavsfrontoffice/> | |||
| Blanks died on May 3, 2023, at the age of 56.<ref name=detroitnews_05042023>{{cite web | title=Former Pistons guard Lance Blanks passes away at age 56 | website=detroitnews.com | date=May 4, 2023 | url=https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2023/05/04/former-pistons-guard-lance-blanks-passes-away-at-age-56/70185686007/ | access-date=May 4, 2023}}</ref> | Blanks died on May 3, 2023, at the age of 56.<ref name=detroitnews_05042023>{{cite web | title=Former Pistons guard Lance Blanks passes away at age 56 | website=detroitnews.com | date=May 4, 2023 | url=https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2023/05/04/former-pistons-guard-lance-blanks-passes-away-at-age-56/70185686007/ | access-date=May 4, 2023}}</ref> | ||
Revision as of 11:09, 8 May 2023
American basketball player (1966–2023)
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1966-09-09)September 9, 1966 Del Rio, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | May 3, 2023(2023-05-03) (aged 56) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | McCullough (The Woodlands, Texas) |
| College | |
| NBA draft | 1990: 1st round, 26th overall pick |
| Selected by the Detroit Pistons | |
| Playing career | 1990–1999 |
| Position | Point guard, shooting guard |
| Number | 32, 21 |
| Career history | |
| 1990–1992 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1992–1993 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 1993 | Quad City Thunder |
| 1993–1994 | Oklahoma City Cavalry |
| 1994–1995 | Gießen 46ers |
| 1997–1998 | Albacomp Fehérvár |
| 1998–1999 | Keravnos |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 289 (2.0 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 110 (0.8 rpg) |
| Assists | 117 (0.8 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Lance Blanks (September 9, 1966 – May 3, 2023) was an American professional basketball player and executive who worked as an analyst for ESPN. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves. Blanks also spent several seasons playing in Europe. Blanks worked as the general manager of the Phoenix Suns from 2010 to 2013.
Early life
Blanks was born to Sid Blanks, a football player who played in the American Football League and National Football League. Lance Blanks attended McCullough High School in The Woodlands, Texas, and was named Texas Mr. Basketball in 1985.
College career
Blanks played collegiately at the University of Virginia and the University of Texas at Austin. Blanks and teammates Travis Mays and Joey Wright were known as the "BMW Scoring Machine" during the 1989–90 basketball season. That Longhorn team finished second in the Southwest Conference and advanced to the Elite Eight in the 1990 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. Blanks drew strong criticism and gained many detractors for his on-court antics and unsportsmanlike, excessive celebration, such as at the Elite Eight of the 1990 tournament.
With 1,322 points, Blanks holds the record for the highest number of points by a two-year player and is the eighth-leading scorer in University of Texas history. Blanks ended his career at Texas as the all-time leader in steals and stands fourth place in career scoring average with 20.0 points per game.
Blanks was inducted into Texas Athletics' Longhorn Hall of Honor in 2007.
Pro playing career
A guard, Blanks was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the 1990 NBA draft with the 26th overall pick. He had an undistinguished career as a player, playing 142 games in three NBA seasons with the Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves. Afterwards, he played one season in the Continental Basketball Association and another three seasons in Europe, leading teams in Hungary and Cyprus to league titles.
Post-playing career
From 2010 to 2013, Blanks served as the general manager of the Phoenix Suns, a job he earned after five seasons as assistant general manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Prior to joining the Cavaliers, he served as the director of scouting for the San Antonio Spurs. He joined the Spurs in 2000 as a scout and was promoted to director of scouting in September 2002. Also while in San Antonio, Blanks served as the Spurs' television analyst during the 2004–05 season.
From 2020 until his death in 2023, Blanks served as a television analyst for the Texas Longhorns on Longhorn Network.
Personal life
Blanks daughter, Riley, was a four-star recruit for the University of Virginia tennis team and is the founder of Woke Beauty. His cousin Larvell Blanks was an infielder in Major League Baseball.
Blanks died on May 3, 2023, at the age of 56.
Off the court
In 2019, Blanks hosted a symposium on concussive injuries – chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) – at the University of Texas's Center for Sports Communication & Media. His father suffered from Parkinson's Disease after playing professional football for years. Participants at the symposium discussed the effect of football on the human brain and the symbolic importance of the sport in American life.
Blanks frequently worked with Basketball Without Borders.
Notes
- ^ Cavaliers: Front Office Archived July 14, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- "2014–15 Texas Basketball Fact Book" (PDF). texassports.com. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
- Nuhn, Gary (March 24, 1990). "Blanks shoots, hoots & hollers for Longhorns". Dayton Daily News.
- ^ "Longhorn legends: Basketball Hall of Honor inductee Lance Blanks". texassports.com. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
- ^ "Former Pistons guard Lance Blanks passes away at age 56". detroitnews.com. May 4, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
- ^ Broussard, Chris (August 5, 2010). "Suns hire Lance Blanks as GM". ESPN. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
- Suns and Blanks Part Ways
- Cavaliers: Lance Blanks Chat Transcript
- Ufnowski, Amy (November 24, 2020). "Longhorn Network Set to Televise 20 Texas Basketball Games During the 2020-21 Season". ESPN Press Room U.S. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
- "Raised to Shine". uvamagazine.org. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
- "Head Trauma and the Future of Football". https://Moody College of Communication. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
{{cite web}}: External link in|publisher=
External links
- Career statistics from NBA.com and Basketball Reference
| Phoenix Suns general managers | |
|---|---|
# denotes interim general manager |
- 1966 births
- 2023 deaths
- 20th-century African-American sportspeople
- 21st-century African-American sportspeople
- African-American basketball players
- Alba Fehérvár players
- American expatriate basketball people in Cyprus
- American expatriate basketball people in Germany
- American expatriate basketball people in Hungary
- American men's basketball players
- Basketball players from Texas
- Cleveland Cavaliers executives
- Detroit Pistons draft picks
- Detroit Pistons players
- Giessen 46ers players
- Keravnos B.C. players
- Minnesota Timberwolves players
- National Basketball Association general managers
- Oklahoma City Cavalry players
- Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball)
- People from The Woodlands, Texas
- People from Del Rio, Texas
- Phoenix Suns executives
- Quad City Thunder players
- Shooting guards
- Sportspeople from Harris County, Texas
- Texas Longhorns men's basketball players
- Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball players