Keith Closs

Keith Closs
Personal information
Born (1976-04-03) April 3, 1976
Hartford, Connecticut
Listed height 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m)
Listed weight 212 lb (96 kg)
Career information
High school Sierra Vista
(Baldwin Park, California)
College Central Connecticut (1994–1996)
NBA draft 1996 / Undrafted
Position Center
Number 33
Career history
1997–2000 Los Angeles Clippers

Keith Mitchell Closs, Jr. (born April 3, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player, at the center position.

Basketball career

7-feet, 3-inches (2.20 m) and 212 lbs. (95 kg) Closs played collegiately at Central Connecticut State University, leading the nation in blocks his only two years in college, and still holding the NCAA Division I career record for blocks with 5.87 blocked shots per game.[1] He had three seasons as a backup center for the National Basketball Association's Los Angeles Clippers from 1997 to 2000, averaging 3.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game during his spell.

After starting playing professionally in the Atlantic Basketball Association with the Norwich Neptunes, Closs moved to the Clippers in 1997. Having logged career highs in points, rebounds, assists and steals during 1999–2000, his NBA career abruptly ended, with a club record for most blocked shots per 48 minutes (4.7).

Closs later played for the Pennsylvania Valley Dawgs of the USBL in 2003, subsequently moving to the CBA. In January 2007, as he led the latter league in blocks per game at 2.9, he left and signed with the Buffalo Silverbacks of the ABA; he was selected with the 11th pick in the 5th round of the 2007 NBA Development League draft by the Tulsa 66ers.[2]

In December 2008, Closs signed with the Chinese league's Yunnan Bulls, and averaged 16.1 points, 11.9 rebounds and 5.9 blocked shots per game.[3]

Personal

Closs is the oldest of six children. His favorite book is Giant Steps by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.[1]

Basketball website SLAMonline reported in October 2008 that a reader based in China by the name of Jon had e-mailed them, claiming that in a nightclub in Nanjing he encountered a 7-foot man wearing a current, customized #33 Dallas Mavericks jersey with the name "Closs" on the back. Jon asked him if he was Closs, and the man affirmed he was.[4]

Closs admitted to being an alcoholic, even before joining the Clippers. The pressure of the NBA only led to more drinking and after three DUI offenses, he finally sought help in 2007. During a 2008 interview, he said he had turned his life around, having given up the addiction for good.[5]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 NBA Development League profile
  2. ↑ 2007 D-League draft
  3. ↑ Yunnan Honghe Running Bulls roster; Asia Basket
  4. ↑ Links: They call him Closs; SLAM Online, 15 October 2008
  5. ↑ The long road back; Tulsa World, 12 February 2008
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