Mehmet Okur

Mehmet Okur
Mehmet Okur
Türk Telekom B.K.
Center-Power forward
Personal information
Date of birth May 26, 1979 (1979-05-26) (age 32)
Place of birth Yalova, Turkey
Nationality Turkish
Listed height 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight 263 lb (119 kg)
Career information
NBA Draft 2001 / Round: 2 / Pick: 37th overall
Selected by the Detroit Pistons
Pro career 1997–present
Career history
Oyak Renault (1997–1998)
Tofaş S.K. (1998–2000)
Efes Pilsen (2000–2002)
Detroit Pistons (2002–2004)
Utah Jazz (2004-present)
Türk Telekom B.K. (2011-present)
Career highlights and awards
2007 NBA All-Star
NBA Champion (2004)
Stats at NBA.com
Medal record
Competitor for  Turkey
FIBA European Championship
Silver 2001 Turkey National team

Mehmet Murat Okur (born May 26, 1979 in Yalova, Turkey) is a Turkish professional basketball player who currently plays for Türk Telekom B.K.. He is also under contract with the Utah Jazz of the NBA, and can return to that team when the 2011 NBA lockout ends. He is a 211 cm (6' 11")[1] power forward/center.

Contents

Early career

Okur notes Toni Kukoč was his favorite player while he was growing up.[2] He helped the Turkish 22-and-under national team to 6th place at the 1997 world championship.[3] Mehmet was transferred to Efes Pilsen in 2000 and won a championship in the 2001–2002 Turkish Basketball League season.[4] He averaged 13.5 points per game during his last season in Turkey.[5]

NBA career

Detroit Pistons

Okur was selected 37th overall in the second round of the 2001 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons.[6] He played two seasons for the Pistons from 2002/03 to 2003/04, helping Detroit win the NBA championship in June 2004. He became the first Turkish player to win an NBA championship. Due to salary cap limitations, the Pistons were unable to pay a top-level salary for Okur, but he was able to parlay his success into a six-year, US$50 million contract with the Utah Jazz.

Utah Jazz

Standing 2.11 m (6'11") and 119.3 kg (263 lb),[1] Okur plays the center and power forward positions for the Utah Jazz. He has inside presence, but also has a reliable jump shot extending to the three-point range and is a solid free throw shooter with an 80.7 career percentage. On his first season (2004–2005) with Utah, he played in all 82 games, starting in 25 of them. Nicknamed "Memo", Okur had made his presence felt on his second (2005–2006) season with Utah from 12.9 points per game the previous season to 18.0 points per game, leading his team in scoring and rebounding, making him one of the league's most improved players. He started in all 82 games for the second straight season, as the only Utah Jazz player doing so. This season, he continued being a key player for Utah. He has also improved his 3 point shot,[7] and is known as a strong clutch player for the Jazz.[8]

On March 13, Okur became the franchise leader for making the most three-pointers in one month with 21 out of 31.[9] He has missed two games this season snapping his streak (233 consecutive games). On Monday, January 12, 2009, Okur established a new career high in points scored when he scored 43 points against the Indiana Pacers.

On July 10, 2009 Okur signed a two-year contract extension reportedly worth approximately $21 million.[10]

On April 17, 2010, Okur ruptured his Achilles' tendon during the first game of the post-season against the Denver Nuggets, eliminating him from the remainder of the NBA playoffs, as well as the World Basketball Championships in his native Turkey later this summer.

He returned on December 17, 2010 and scored 2 points against the New Orleans Hornets.

All-Star

He was named to the Western Conference All-Star team for 2007 NBA All-Star Game. He and Ray Allen were selected as replacements for injured original members Allen Iverson and Steve Nash.[11] He is the first Turkish player to participate in this event.

Turk Telecom Ankara

In September 2011, Okur signed a contract with Türk Telekom B.K. His contract has an out-clause, which will allow him to return to the NBA when the 2011 NBA lockout is resolved.[12]

Personal life

He is married to actress and former Miss Turkey finalist Yeliz Çalışkan. They have a daughter, Melisa, born on March 21, 2007, and a son, Yiğit Mehmet, born on February 19, 2010.

Awards and honors

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Last updated: May 19, 2009.[7]

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2002–03 Detroit 72 9 19.0 .426 .339 .733 4.7 1.0 .3 .5 6.9
2003–04 Detroit 71 33 22.3 .463 .375 .775 5.9 1.0 .5 .9 9.6
2004–05 Utah 82 25 28.1 .468 .270 .850 7.5 2.0 .4 .8 12.9
2005–06 Utah 82 82 35.9 .460 .342 .780 9.1 2.4 .5 .9 18.0
2006–07 Utah 80 80 33.3 .462 .384 .765 7.2 2.0 .4 .5 17.6
2007–08 Utah 72 72 33.2 .445 .388 .804 7.7 2.0 .8 .4 14.5
2008–09 Utah 72 72 33.5 .485 .446 .817 7.7 1.7 .8 .7 17.0
2009–10 Utah 73 73 29.4 .458 .385 .820 7.1 1.6 .5 1.1 13.5
2010–11 Utah 13 0 12.9 .355 .313 .750 2.3 1.5 .3 .3 4.9
Career 617 446 29.1 .460 .377 .797 7.1 1.7 .5 .7 13.7
All-Star 1 0 15.0 1.000 .000 .000 2.0 1.0 .0 .0 4.0

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2002–03 Detroit 17 0 19.0 .438 .538 .531 4.1 .8 .7 .7 5.5
2003–04 Detroit 22 0 11.5 .470 .400 .692 2.8 .4 .2 .4 3.7
2006–07 Utah 17 17 34.4 .388 .316 .786 7.8 1.8 1.4 .9 11.8
2007–08 Utah 12 12 38.5 .423 .373 .773 11.8 1.9 .7 .7 15.4
2008–09 Utah 2 2 21.5 .167 .333 .750 5.0 2.0 .0 .5 4.0
2009–10 Utah 1 1 11.0 1.000 1.000 1.000 2.0 .0 .0 .0 7.0
Career 71 32 23.6 .415 .362 .713 5.9 1.1 .7 .6 8.1

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Mehmet Okur — Fiche d’identité …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Mehmet Okur — Datos personales Nombre completo Mehmet Okur Apodo Memo …   Wikipedia Español

  • Mehmet OKUR — Mehmet Okur, né le 26 mai 1979 à Yalova, est un joueur de basket ball turc, évoluant au poste d ailier fort. Sous le maillot des Pistons Surnommé Memo, cet ailier fort de 2,12m combine, à une solide présence dans la raquette, un jeu extérieur… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Mehmet Okur — Spielerinformationen Spitzname Memo Geburtstag …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Mehmet — ist ein männlicher Vorname, der insbesondere bei türkischsprachigen Muslimen verbreitet ist und eine Variation des arabischen Namens Muhammad ist. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Bedeutung 1.1 Varianten 2 Bekannte Namensträger …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Okur — ist ein türkischer männlicher Vorname,[1] der auch als Familienname auftritt. Namensträger Familienname Mehmet Okur (* 1979), türkischer Basketballspieler Şaziye Okur (* 1992), türkische Gewichtheberin Einzelnachweise ↑ Okur im Namenswörterbuch… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Okur — is a Turkish given name for males and a surname and may refer to: Surname Mehmet Okur (born 1979), Turkish basketball player who currently plays for the Utah Jazz of the NBA Şaziye Okur (born 1992), Turkish female weightlifter competing in the… …   Wikipedia

  • Mehmet — (also spelled as Memet, Mehmed, or Memed) is the most common Turkish male name. The word is also commonly used for unranked soldiers in Turkish culture. Mehmet may refer to:*Mehmet I *Mehmet II Fatih, the conqueror of Constantinople *Istanbul… …   Wikipedia

  • Mehmed — Mehmet ist ein männlicher Vorname, der insbesondere bei türkischsprachigen Muslimen verbreitet ist und eine Variation des arabischen Namens Muhammad ist. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Bedeutung 1.1 Varianten 2 Bekannte Namensträger 2.1 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Turkey national basketball team — Infobox national basketball team color1=E30A17 color2=FFFFFF country=Turkey country alt=Türkiye logo=Turkish Basketball Federation logo.png national fed=Turkish Basketball Federation (TBF) coach=flagicon|Montenegro Bogdan Tanjević nickname=12 Dev …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”