Haitian basketball player (born 1964)
Olden Polynice
(born November 21, 1964) is a Haitian former professional
basketball
player. He played
center
for the
Seattle SuperSonics
,
Los Angeles Clippers
,
Detroit Pistons
,
Sacramento Kings
, and
Utah Jazz
of the
National Basketball Association
(NBA).
Career
[
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]
After graduating from
All Hallows High School
in
the Bronx
, Polynice played
college basketball
at the
University of Virginia
.
As a Freshman during the 1983?84 season, Polynice helped lead the UVA Cavaliers to the
1984 Final Four
when they won the NCAA Eastern Region as the # 7 seed. UVA defeating the #10 seed Iona (58?57), the #2 seed Arkansas (53?51 in OT), the #3 seed Syracuse (63?55) and the #4 seed Indiana (50?48) en route to the Final Four. In the Final Four, UVA lost in overtime 49?47 to the Midwest Region Champion University of Houston denying UVA a chance at the National Championship game.
As a Junior during the 1985?86 season, Polynice was honored for his play by being named first team All-ACC.
After three years in college and playing with
Serie A
's
Hamby Rimini
in 1986?87, he was selected 8th overall by the
Chicago Bulls
in the
1987 NBA draft
, but was immediately traded to the
Seattle SuperSonics
for
Scottie Pippen
. Polynice then arrived in Detroit in 1992 after being traded by the Los Angeles Clippers and departed two years later when he was traded to the Sacramento Kings for
Pete Chilcutt
and two draft picks.
In 15 NBA seasons, Polynice averaged 23.5 minutes, 7.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, with a career
PER
of 13.2. At 6'11", he was often signed by teams in need of a
rebounder
and interior player, and consistently ranked among the league leaders in offensive rebounds. Polynice retired from the NBA in
2004
after a brief return to the Clippers. He later played for the
Los Angeles Aftershock
of the
ABA
.
Upon retiring, Polynice served as coach for the
ABA
's
Long Beach Breakers
. In 1997, still active, he worked as a
color commentator
for the
WNBA
's
Sacramento Monarchs
.
He now runs the Polynice Basketball Organization founded with the help of his nephews Brian and Jordan Polynice.
[1]
Personal life
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Olden went on a hunger strike in 1993 for the sufferings the Haitian people were facing
[2]
Career statistics
[
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]
Source
[3]
Regular season
[
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]
Playoffs
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College
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References
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External links
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]