Mario Elie
Encyclopedia
Mario Antoine Elie is an American
former professional
basketball
player and coach. Currently, he works as an assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings
.
an heritage, grew up in New York City. He was named "Mario" for opera singer Mario Lanza
. His father died after Elie graduated from college. He had a brother named Clark, an amateur basketball player and much loved street ball legend in his own right, who died in a car accident in October 2009. He also has a sister named Nancy.
Elie attended Power Memorial Academy
(same high school as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
), where he was a teammate of Chris Mullin
under coach Steve Donohue. Elie played street ball in Central Park
and other locations in New York City during the 1980s, trying and failing several times to get into the NBA. His nickname on the New York playgrounds was "The Jedi
".
He played college basketball at American International College
in Springfield, MA. Though Elie led AIC to their conference's first NCAA Division II Tournament
Quarter-Final, he was at first overlooked by NBA teams. Elie was selected with the 160th pick (out of 162 total) in the 1985 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks. However, he was waived by the Bucks less than two months later. He was also on the pre-season roster for the 1990-91 Los Angeles Lakers, but was waived before the season started.
Eventually he played in Europe, most notably in the Portuguese League
with the Ovarense Aerosoles
, then in the World Basketball League
, and also spent two years in the Continental Basketball Association
with the Albany Patroons
. In 1987 he played for Dart Killester
in Ireland
. He also played in the Argentine League
, for Unión de Santa Fe
.
, while on a 10-day contract. He then spent the rest of the season with the Golden State Warriors
, and also remained a Warrior in 1991-92. Elie spent the 1992-93 season with the Portland Trail Blazers
, before being traded to the Houston Rockets
prior to the 1993-94 season.
Elie won 2 NBA championships
with the Rockets, first in 1994
and again in 1995, making some incredible three-point field goal
s and getting the nicknames Super Mario and Junkyard Dog.
The highlight of Elie's career came when he hit a clutch 3 in Game 7 of the 1995 Western Conference Semifinals
against the Phoenix Suns
to put the Rockets up 113-110 with 7.1 seconds to play. The shot is called the Kiss of Death by Houston fans, as Elie made a taunting kissing gesture towards the Suns' bench shortly after the shot was made.
While Elie was a key role player for the Rockets off the bench throughout the regular season and the playoffs, he became a starter in the 1995 NBA Finals
. This paid off for the Rockets, as he averaged 16.3 points per game, almost double his regular season average, while shooting a stellar 24 for 37 from the field (.649). He was also 8 for 14 (.571) from the three-point line, hitting 7 of 10 three-pointers in Games 3 and 4.
Elie played for the Rockets through the 1997-98 season
, when he was signed as a free agent with the San Antonio Spurs
. He won a third NBA championship when he was part of the Spurs' championship team in 1999.
After playing two seasons for San Antonio, then the 2000-01 season for the Phoenix Suns, he retired. Elie finished with 6,265 points in 732 career NBA games. The 72 players selected before him in the 1985 NBA Draft played a combined 421 games.
In 2007, Elie was inducted into the New York Basketball Hall of Fame.
as an assistant coach
. He served with the Mavericks for one season. On June 22, 2009, Paul Westphal
hired Elie as an assistant coach
for the Sacramento Kings
.
, a journalist and anchorwoman for Houston's KTRK-TV
, while playing for the Suns. He and his wife have triplets; two boys and one girl.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
former professional
Professional sports
Professional sports, as opposed to amateur sports, are sports in which athletes receive payment for their performance. Professional athleticism has come to the fore through a combination of developments. Mass media and increased leisure have brought larger audiences, so that sports organizations...
basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player and coach. Currently, he works as an assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
.
Early life and career
Elie, who is of HaitiHaiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an heritage, grew up in New York City. He was named "Mario" for opera singer Mario Lanza
Mario Lanza
right|thumb|[[MGM]] still, circa 1949Mario Lanza was an American tenor and Hollywood movie star of the late 1940s and the 1950s. The son of Italian emigrants, he began studying to be a professional singer at the age of 16....
. His father died after Elie graduated from college. He had a brother named Clark, an amateur basketball player and much loved street ball legend in his own right, who died in a car accident in October 2009. He also has a sister named Nancy.
Elie attended Power Memorial Academy
Power Memorial Academy
Power Memorial Academy was an all-boys Catholic high school in New York, New York, USA that existed from 1931 through 1984. It was a basketball powerhouse, producing several NBA players including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Len Elmore, Mario Elie, Chris Mullin, NBA referee Dick Bavetta and a record...
(same high school as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a retired American professional basketball player. He is the NBA's all-time leading scorer, with 38,387 points. During his career with the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers from 1969 to 1989, Abdul-Jabbar won six NBA championships and a record six regular season...
), where he was a teammate of Chris Mullin
Chris Mullin (basketball)
Christopher Paul Mullin is a retired American basketball player and former general manager of the NBA's Golden State Warriors. He has also been elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame....
under coach Steve Donohue. Elie played street ball in Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
and other locations in New York City during the 1980s, trying and failing several times to get into the NBA. His nickname on the New York playgrounds was "The Jedi
Jedi
The Jedi are characters in the Star Wars universe and the series's main protagonists. The Jedi use a power called the Force and weapons called lightsabers, which emit a controlled energy flow in the shape of a sword, in order to serve and protect the Republic and the galaxy at large from conflict...
".
He played college basketball at American International College
American International College
American International College is a private, co-educational liberal-arts college located in the Mason Square neighborhood of Springfield, Massachusetts.-History:...
in Springfield, MA. Though Elie led AIC to their conference's first NCAA Division II Tournament
1985 NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Tournament
The 1985 NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Tournament involved 32 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college basketball as a culmination of the 1984-5 NCAA Division II men's basketball season...
Quarter-Final, he was at first overlooked by NBA teams. Elie was selected with the 160th pick (out of 162 total) in the 1985 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks. However, he was waived by the Bucks less than two months later. He was also on the pre-season roster for the 1990-91 Los Angeles Lakers, but was waived before the season started.
Eventually he played in Europe, most notably in the Portuguese League
Portuguese Basketball League (LCB)
The Liga Portuguesa de Basquetebol is the top men’s basketball league in Portugal. From the 2008-09 season onwards, the competition will be organized once again by the Federação Portuguesa de Basquetebol after 13 seasons. This was caused by the fold of the LCB, after many years of financial...
with the Ovarense Aerosoles
Ovarense (basketball)
Ovarense Basketball is a team of professional basketball that plays in Ovar, Portugal. The team plays in the LCB. The Ovarense created its section of basketball in 1970, with the initiative of a member entrepreneur, John Gonçalves, but in this space of time managed to assert itself as one of the...
, then in the World Basketball League
World Basketball League
World Basketball League was a minor professional basketball league in the United States and Canada. It was founded as the International Basketball Association in November 1987, before changing its name prior to the 1988 season. One of the major differences between it and other leagues was that it...
, and also spent two years in the Continental Basketball Association
Continental Basketball Association
The Continental Basketball Association was a professional men's basketball league in the United States, which has been on hiatus since the 2009 season.- History :...
with the Albany Patroons
Albany Patroons
The Albany Patroons were a professional basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association ....
. In 1987 he played for Dart Killester
Dart Killester
Dart Killester is a basketball club based in Killester, Dublin, Ireland. Their senior men's team play in the Irish Superleague. They won the National League in 2007. The team is sponsored by Dublin Area Rapid Transit providers or the DART...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. He also played in the Argentine League
Liga Nacional de Básquetbol
The Liga Nacional de Básquet is the top level of the Argentine basketball league system. The league is controlled by the Basketball Clubs' Association...
, for Unión de Santa Fe
Unión de Santa Fe
Club Atlético Unión is a sports club from Santa Fe, the capital city of the province with the same name in Argentina. The club, founded in 1907, has a strong rivalry with Colón de Santa Fe....
.
NBA career
Later in the 1990-91 season, Elie finally broke into the NBA, playing three games for the Philadelphia 76ersPhiladelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...
, while on a 10-day contract. He then spent the rest of the season with the Golden State Warriors
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
, and also remained a Warrior in 1991-92. Elie spent the 1992-93 season with the Portland Trail Blazers
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
, before being traded to the Houston Rockets
Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before being...
prior to the 1993-94 season.
Elie won 2 NBA championships
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....
with the Rockets, first in 1994
1993-94 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets*Rookie of the Year: Chris Webber, Golden State Warriors*Defensive Player of the Year: Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets...
and again in 1995, making some incredible three-point field goal
Three-point field goal
A three-point field goal is a field goal in a basketball game, made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc radiating from the basket...
s and getting the nicknames Super Mario and Junkyard Dog.
The highlight of Elie's career came when he hit a clutch 3 in Game 7 of the 1995 Western Conference Semifinals
1995 NBA Playoffs
The 1995 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1994-1995 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Houston Rockets winning their second consecutive NBA championship by defeating the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic...
against the Phoenix Suns
Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US...
to put the Rockets up 113-110 with 7.1 seconds to play. The shot is called the Kiss of Death by Houston fans, as Elie made a taunting kissing gesture towards the Suns' bench shortly after the shot was made.
While Elie was a key role player for the Rockets off the bench throughout the regular season and the playoffs, he became a starter in the 1995 NBA Finals
1995 NBA Finals
The 1995 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1994–95 NBA season. The series pitted the Orlando Magic against the Houston Rockets. The pre-series hype and build-up of the Finals was centered around the meeting of the two centers Shaquille O'Neal of the Magic and Hakeem Olajuwon of the Rockets...
. This paid off for the Rockets, as he averaged 16.3 points per game, almost double his regular season average, while shooting a stellar 24 for 37 from the field (.649). He was also 8 for 14 (.571) from the three-point line, hitting 7 of 10 three-pointers in Games 3 and 4.
Elie played for the Rockets through the 1997-98 season
1997-98 NBA season
The 1997–98 NBA season was the 52nd season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls winning their third straight championship and sixth in the last eight years, beating the Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 in the 1998 NBA Finals...
, when he was signed as a free agent with the San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
. He won a third NBA championship when he was part of the Spurs' championship team in 1999.
After playing two seasons for San Antonio, then the 2000-01 season for the Phoenix Suns, he retired. Elie finished with 6,265 points in 732 career NBA games. The 72 players selected before him in the 1985 NBA Draft played a combined 421 games.
In 2007, Elie was inducted into the New York Basketball Hall of Fame.
Coaching career
On September 28, 2007, Elie was hired by the Dallas MavericksDallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
as an assistant coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
. He served with the Mavericks for one season. On June 22, 2009, Paul Westphal
Paul Westphal
Paul Westphal is a retired American basketball player and current head coach of the National Basketball Association's Sacramento Kings. Westphal has had a storied career in the NBA, both as a player and as a coach. As a player, he won an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics in the 1974 NBA...
hired Elie as an assistant coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
for the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
.
Personal life
Elie married Gina GastonGina Gaston
Gina Gaston is a television journalist and currently the lead female anchor for KTRK-TV in Houston, Texas.-Career:...
, a journalist and anchorwoman for Houston's KTRK-TV
KTRK-TV
KTRK-TV, channel 13, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, located in Houston, Texas...
, while playing for the Suns. He and his wife have triplets; two boys and one girl.
External links
- ClutchFans.net Mario Elie Profile @ Houston Rocket Fan Site
- Basketball-Reference.com: Mario Elie