Earl Tatum
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 26, 1953 Mount Vernon, New York, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Mount Vernon (Mount Vernon, New York) |
| College | Marquette (1972–1976) |
| NBA draft | 1976: 2nd round, 21st overall pick |
| Drafted by | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Playing career | 1976–1980 |
| Position | Shooting guard / small forward |
| Number | 43, 35 |
| Career history | |
| 1976–1977 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 1977–1978 | Indiana Pacers |
| 1978 | Boston Celtics |
| 1978–1979 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1979–1980 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 2,508 (9.6 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 682 (2.6 rpg) |
| Assists | 507 (1.9 apg) |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
William Earl Tatum (born July 26, 1953) is an American former professional basketball player from Mount Vernon, New York. He was a 6 ft 4+1⁄2 in (194 cm) 185 pounds (84 kg) guard who played high school basketball at Mount Vernon, where he was selected large-school player of the year by the New York State Sportswriters Association in 1972, and collegiately at Marquette University.
Tatum was selected with the 4th pick of the second round in the 1976 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. During the 1977 NBA playoffs, Tatum's only postseason appearance, he averaged 13.6 points and 4.8 rebounds in 11 games,[1] as the Lakers advanced past the Golden State Warriors before losing to the Portland Trail Blazers.[2] He played for five teams in 4 years, his final season spent with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1979–80.
Career statistics
| 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 |
NBA
Source[3]
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976–77 | L.A. Lakers | 68 | 18.4 | .466 | .720 | 3.5 | 1.7 | 1.3 | .3 | 9.4 | ||
| 1977–78 | L.A. Lakers | 25 | 26.5 | .487 | .763 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 1.5 | .4 | 14.0 | ||
| Indiana | 57 | 40 | 32.6 | .462 | .788 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 1.8 | .5 | 14.4 | ||
| 1978–79 | Boston | 3 | 12.7 | .400 | .800 | 1.3 | .3 | .0 | .3 | 6.7 | ||
| Detroit | 76 | 15.7 | .448 | .727 | 1.6 | .9 | 1.0 | .4 | 7.8 | |||
| 1979–80 | Cleveland | 33 | 6.8 | .383 | .333 | .579 | .8 | .6 | .5 | .2 | 2.6 | |
| Career | 262 | 40 | 20.0 | .459 | .333 | .746 | 2.6 | 1.9 | 1.2 | .4 | 9.6 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | L.A. Lakers | 11 | 32.4 | .500 | .667 | 4.9 | 2.5 | 1.4 | .8 | 13.6 |
See also
References
- ↑ Earl Tatum Per Game Playoffs
- ↑ 1976-77 Los Angeles Lakers Roster and Stats
- ↑ "Earl Tatum NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
External links
- NBA stats @ basketballreference.com
- Recent photo of Earl Tatum @ legendsofbasketball.com
- 1953 births
- Living people
- 20th-century African-American sportsmen
- All-American college men's basketball players
- American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines
- American men's basketball players
- Basketball players from Mount Vernon, New York
- Boston Celtics players
- Cleveland Cavaliers players
- Detroit Pistons players
- Great Taste Coffee Makers players
- Indiana Pacers players
- Los Angeles Lakers draft picks
- Los Angeles Lakers players
- Marquette Golden Eagles men's basketball players
- Mount Vernon High School (New York) alumni
- Philippine Basketball Association imports
- Shooting guards
- 20th-century American sportsmen
- American basketball biography, 1950s birth stubs