Player Info

Alonzo Mourning

Former NBA All-Star

Career Highlights: A 16-year NBA veteran, Alonzo Mourning has one of the greatest comeback stories ever as he returned to the NBA after undergoing a kidney transplant and later won his first NBA Championship with the Miami Heat in 2006…Nicknamed “Zo,” Mourning’s tenacious defense, steady offense and all-around hustle, helped him earn the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award twice and perennially placed him on the NBA All-Defensive Team…Selected second overall by the Charlotte Hornets in the 1992 NBA Draft, Mourning was named to the All-Rookie Team in 1993 after averaging 21.0 points, 10.3 rebounds and 3.47 blocks per game…He finished second to Shaquille O’Neill in Rookie of the Year voting…A great moment of his rookie season came on May 5, 1993 in Game 4 of the NBA Playoffs versus the Boston Celtics when his 20-footer at the buzzer gave the Hornets a 104-103 victory to win the series…Mourning spent three years in Charlotte before being traded to the Miami Heat where he played for the next seven seasons…He was the centerpiece of the Pat Riley coached Heat and averaged close to 20 points and 10 rebounds per game each year, and dominated the paint with his intimidating shot blocking…In addition to NBA Defensive Team honors, he was named to the All-NBA First Team during the 1999-2000 season…A seven-time NBA All-Star, Mourning was also recognized for his efforts off the court as he won the 2002 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award…Just prior to the start of the 2000-01 season, Mourning was diagnosed with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, a kidney disease, yet he still returned to play in the 2002 NBA All-Star game…Due to his condition, he sat out the entire 2002-03 season…As a free agent, he signed a four-year deal with the New Jersey Nets in 2003, but soon retired and underwent a successful kidney transplant…He returned to the Nets in 2004, but didn’t have a role so was traded to Toronto (although did not report there) and finally ended up back with the Miami Heat on May 1, 2005…Because of his physical limitations, his minutes were reduced, but he was a steady contributor as the Heat maintained the second best record in the NBA Eastern Conference that season…In 2006, the Miami Heat finally won the NBA Championship beating the Dallas Mavericks…He returned in 2007, but tore his patellar tendon in his right knee in December although still became the Heat’s all-time leader in points scored…Mourning finished his career averaging 17.1 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game with a .527 field goal percentage…On March 30, 2009, Mourning became the first player in Miami Heat history to have his number retired…Mourning also has a new book out titled “Resilience: Faith, Focus, Triumph.

Updated: May 2009
Courtesy NBC

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