LaPhonso Darnell Ellis (born May 5 1970 in East St. Louis, Illinois) is a retired American basketball player. He was an outstanding high school basketball player at East St. Louis Lincoln High School, where he led the Tigers to two straight Illinois Class AA boys' championships in 1987 and 1988. Ellis ended up attending the University of Notre Dame. Ellis' Notre Dame squad only qualified for the NCAA tournament his freshman year. He played professionally in the NBA from 1992 until 2003.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 5, 1970 East St. Louis, Illinois |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Listed weight | 240 lb (109 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Notre Dame |
| NBA draft | 1992: 5th overall |
| Selected by the Denver Nuggets | |
| Playing career | 1992–2003 |
| Position | Power forward |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Ellis was one of four captains of the 1991-92 Notre Dame team. Throughout his career, he scored 1,505 career points, and averaged 15.5 points per game to earn school rankings of 12th and 22nd, respectively. He recorded 200 career blocks, a school record. He ranks third on the school's career rebounding list with 1,075, and eighth on the career rebounding average list, with 11.1 rpg. He led the '91-92 team in scoring (17.7 ppg), rebounding (11.7 rpg), field goal percentage (.631) and blocked shots (2.6 bpg). He paced Notre Dame in blocked shots in each of his four seasons, the only player in school history to do so. Ellis graduated from Notre Dame on time with a degree in accounting from the undergraduate college of business. He was the fifth overall selection in the 1992 NBA Draft, picked by the Denver Nuggets, and was named to the 1992 All-Rookie first team. He subsequently played in Atlanta, Minnesota and Miami, where he retired after the 2003 season.
Trivia
LaPhonso Ellis was mentioned multiple times as a former student at Danielle Atron Junior High School on the Nickelodeon teen drama The Secret World of Alex Mack
External links
- Notre Dame All Century Team
- College & NBA stats @ basketballreference.com