Aaron Gray
Encyclopedia
Aaron Michael Gray is an American
professional basketball
player who last played for the New Orleans Hornets of the NBA
.
in Pennsylvania
's highly competitive Lehigh Valley Conference
, where he was a standout center
. Gray did not start playing for the varsity team until the middle of his sophomore season.
While at Emmaus, Gray was recruited by, and committed to attend, the University of Pittsburgh
. He chose Pitt over Penn State and Rutgers
, which also aggressively recruited him.
Third Team All-American, after helping lead the University of Pittsburgh
to the Sweet 16 in the 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
in March 2007.
. At the NBA's 2007 pre-draft camp, Gray was the only player whose height measured at least seven feet without shoes. He is 7'0" and weighs 270 pounds.
He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh and was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the 49th overall selection. Gray's nickname among many Bulls fans is "The White Panther," which was coined by Boers and Bernstein
.
. His most outstanding game so far came on April 16, 2008 against the Toronto Raptors
, when he recorded 19 points, 22 rebounds and 2 assists in 35 minutes of play, all career highs. In the 2007-08 season, Gray scored 262 points and recorded 168 rebounds for the Bulls.
.
| align="left" | 2007–08
| align="left" | Chicago
| 61 || 1 || 10.0 || .505 || .000 || .566 || 2.8 || .7 || .3 || .3 || 4.3
|-
| align="left" | 2008–09
| align="left" | Chicago
| 56 || 18 || 12.8 || .485 || .000 || .576 || 3.9 || .8 || .2 || .3 || 3.5
|-
| align="left" | 2009–10
| align="left" | Chicago
| 8 || 0 || 6.3 || .381 || .000 || .286 || 2.0 || .3 || .0 || .0 || 2.3
|-
| align="left" | 2009–10
| align="left" | New Orleans
| 24 || 0 || 10.9 || .557 || .000 || .857 || 3.8 || .8 || .4 || .5 || 3.6
|-
| align="left" | 2010-11
| align="left" | New Orleans
| 41 || 6 || 13.0 || .566 || .000 || .500 || 4.2 || .4 || .3 || .3 || 3.1
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 190 || 25 || 11.4 || .511 || .000 || .577 || 3.5 || .7 || .3 || .3 || 3.6
| align="left" | 2008–09
| align="left" | Chicago
| 2 || 0 || 4.5 || .000 || .000 || .000 || .5 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
| align="left" | New Orleans
| 6 || 0 || 14.5 || .692 || .000 || .375 || 3.5 || .3 || .3 || .3 || 3.5
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 8 || 0 || 12.0 || .600 || .000 || .375 || 2.8 || .3 || .3 || .3 || 2.6
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player who last played for the New Orleans Hornets of the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
.
High school career
Gray played high school basketball at Emmaus High SchoolEmmaus High School
Emmaus High School is a public high school located in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The school serves grades 9 through 12 in Pennsylvania's East Penn School District in the Lehigh Valley region of the state....
in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
's highly competitive Lehigh Valley Conference
Lehigh Valley Conference
The Lehigh Valley Interscholastic Athletic Conference is an athletic conference consisting of 12 large high schools from Lehigh and Northampton counties in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States...
, where he was a standout center
Center (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...
. Gray did not start playing for the varsity team until the middle of his sophomore season.
While at Emmaus, Gray was recruited by, and committed to attend, the University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball
Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball is the NCAA Division I intercollegiate men's basketball program of the University of Pittsburgh, often referred to as "Pitt", located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Pitt men's basketball team competes in the Big East Conference and plays their home games in...
. He chose Pitt over Penn State and Rutgers
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
, which also aggressively recruited him.
College career
While at Pitt, Gray was named an Associated PressAssociated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
Third Team All-American, after helping lead the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
to the Sweet 16 in the 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 65 NCAA schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball as a culmination of the 2006–07 basketball season...
in March 2007.
Professional career
In 2007, Gray announced his intention to enter the 2007 NBA Draft2007 NBA Draft
The 2007 NBA Draft was held on June 28, 2007 at the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. It was broadcast on television in 115 countries. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S...
. At the NBA's 2007 pre-draft camp, Gray was the only player whose height measured at least seven feet without shoes. He is 7'0" and weighs 270 pounds.
He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh and was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the 49th overall selection. Gray's nickname among many Bulls fans is "The White Panther," which was coined by Boers and Bernstein
Boers and Bernstein
Boers and Bernstein is an afternoon drive-time sports talk show on Chicago's WSCR hosted by former columnist Terry Boers and Dan Bernstein. The program airs weekday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. On days when the Chicago White Sox have a 7:10 start time, the program will often be extended half...
.
2007-08 season
Gray made his NBA debut with the Bulls on November 2, 2007 against the Philadelphia 76ersPhiladelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...
. His most outstanding game so far came on April 16, 2008 against the Toronto Raptors
Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are a professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1995, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies, as part of the NBA's re-expansion...
, when he recorded 19 points, 22 rebounds and 2 assists in 35 minutes of play, all career highs. In the 2007-08 season, Gray scored 262 points and recorded 168 rebounds for the Bulls.
2009-2010 season
On January 25, 2010, the Bulls traded Gray to the New Orleans Hornets for G/F Devin BrownDevin Brown
Devin Brown is an American professional basketball player.Brown was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, and raised in San Antonio, Texas...
.
Regular season
|-| align="left" | 2007–08
| align="left" | Chicago
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
| 61 || 1 || 10.0 || .505 || .000 || .566 || 2.8 || .7 || .3 || .3 || 4.3
|-
| align="left" | 2008–09
2008–09 NBA season
The 2008–09 NBA season was the 63rd season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 28, 2008, and ended on Wednesday, April 15, 2009...
| align="left" | Chicago
| 56 || 18 || 12.8 || .485 || .000 || .576 || 3.9 || .8 || .2 || .3 || 3.5
|-
| align="left" | 2009–10
2009–10 NBA season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, and ended on Wednesday, April 14, 2010....
| align="left" | Chicago
| 8 || 0 || 6.3 || .381 || .000 || .286 || 2.0 || .3 || .0 || .0 || 2.3
|-
| align="left" | 2009–10
2009–10 NBA season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, and ended on Wednesday, April 14, 2010....
| align="left" | New Orleans
| 24 || 0 || 10.9 || .557 || .000 || .857 || 3.8 || .8 || .4 || .5 || 3.6
|-
| align="left" | 2010-11
| align="left" | New Orleans
| 41 || 6 || 13.0 || .566 || .000 || .500 || 4.2 || .4 || .3 || .3 || 3.1
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 190 || 25 || 11.4 || .511 || .000 || .577 || 3.5 || .7 || .3 || .3 || 3.6
Playoffs
|-| align="left" | 2008–09
2009 NBA Playoffs
The 2009 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2008–09 season. The playoffs started on April 18, 2009 with ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
| align="left" | Chicago
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
| 2 || 0 || 4.5 || .000 || .000 || .000 || .5 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
2011 NBA Playoffs
The 2011 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2010–11 season. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs, all seeded 1 to 8 in a tournament bracket, with all rounds in a best-of-seven format. The 2011 NBA Playoffs began on...
| align="left" | New Orleans
| 6 || 0 || 14.5 || .692 || .000 || .375 || 3.5 || .3 || .3 || .3 || 3.5
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 8 || 0 || 12.0 || .600 || .000 || .375 || 2.8 || .3 || .3 || .3 || 2.6