Marcos Antônio Abdalla Leite, also commonly known as Marquinhos Leite (born March 23, 1952) is a retired Brazilian professional basketball player and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He represented the senior Brazilian national basketball team at three

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

and four

FIBA World Cup The FIBA Basketball World Cup, also known as the FIBA World Cup of Basketball or simply the FIBA World Cup, between 1950 and 2010 known as the FIBA World Championship, is an international basketball competition contested by the senior men's nat ...

competitions. At a height of 2.08 m (6'10") tall, he played at the center position.

Early career

Leite, originally from Rio de Janeiro, began playing club basketball with the Brazilian team Fluminense (1967–1974). In addition, he played on loan at E.C. Sírio in some championships between 1971 and 1973.

College career

In 1972, Leite averaged 16 points per game, at the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics.Profile, Basketball Brasil (Portuguese)
, accessed September 14, 2011 Pepperdine University's American head coach,

Gary Colson Gary Colson (born April 30, 1934) is an American basketball coach and executive. The Logansport, Indiana native guided several college men's basketball teams, including Valdosta State University, Pepperdine University, University of New Mexico ...

, recruited Leite to the California school, based on his performance at the Olympics. Leite later went on to play college basketball at the school, where he starred with the Pepperdine Waves, from 1974 to 1976. He made an immediate impact in the West Coast Athletic Conference, earning All-WCAC Second Team honors as a freshman, and All-WCAC First Team honors as a sophomore. As a junior, in the 1975–76 season, Leite and

junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...

transfer

Dennis Johnson Dennis Wayne Johnson (September 18, 1954 – February 22, 2007), nicknamed "DJ", was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's (NBA) Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns, and Boston Celtics. He was a c ...

, led the Waves to a conference title, the school's second Division I NCAA Tournament appearance, and first NCAA Tournament win. The Waves beat

Memphis State } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering, the Center for Ea ...

, in the first round, before losing to defending national champion UCLA, in the Sweet 16. Leite was named the WCAC Player of the Year, and an Honorable Mention All-American. Following the season, Leite informed Colson that he would forgo his final year of college eligibility, in order to play professionally. During his college career, Leite scored 1,119 points (18.7 points per game), and grabbed 638 rebounds (10.6 per game). He was inducted into Pepperdine's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2013.2013 Hall of Fame Inductee: Marcos Leite.
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Professional career

After college, Leite was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers, in the

1976 NBA draft The 1976 NBA draft was the 30th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 8, 1976, before the 1976–77 season. In this draft, 18 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players a ...

, in the 10th round, with the 162nd overall pick. However, he never played in the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

. During his pro career, Leite played club basketball in his native Brazil, with Fluminense, E.C. Sírio, C.R. Flamengo, and E.C. Bradesco. He also played in the

Italian League The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on 30 August 1454, between the Papal States, the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples, following the Tr ...

, with

Athletic Genova Athletic Genova is an Italian basketball club from Genoa. History Athletic was founded in 1968 in the premises of the parish in San Pio X avenue, where there was also the registered office, at the hands of Gino Negro, Elio Fertonani and Don Gian ...

and Virtus Bologna. He retired in 1989.

National team career

Leite first suited up with Brazil's senior national team at the age of 18, at the 1970 FIBA World Cup. "Marquinhos" played sparingly during that tournament, as he scored 6 points in 4 games, as Brazil won the tournament's silver medal. Leite remained on the Brazilian national team, and was one of the team's top players, as they won the gold medal at the

1971 Pan American Games * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Jan ...

, a year later. Leite averaged 16 points per game, at the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics. He also represented Brazil at the

1974 FIBA World Cup The 1974 FIBA World Championship was the 7th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Puerto Rico from July 3 to 14, 1974. The tournament was won by the Soviet Union. Venues Comp ...

, and the

1975 Pan American Games The 1975 Pan American Games were held in Mexico City, Mexico, from October 12 to October 26, 1975, exactly twenty years after the second Pan American Games were held there. It was the third major sporting event held in the Mexican capital in seve ...

. In later years, he was also a part of Brazil's

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

and

1982 FIBA World Cup The 1982 FIBA World Championship was the 9th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. The tournament was hosted by Colombia from 15 to 28 August 1982. Qualification Venues Competing nations ...

squads, and their

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

and

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...

teams.

References

External links

FIBA ProfilesItalian League Profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leite, Marcos 1952 births Living people Athletic Genova basketball players Basketball players at the 1971 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 1972 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 1975 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 1979 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 1980 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 1983 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 1984 Summer Olympics Brazilian basketball coaches Brazilian expatriate basketball people in the United States Brazilian expatriates in Italy Brazilian men's basketball players 1970 FIBA World Championship players 1974 FIBA World Championship players 1978 FIBA World Championship players 1982 FIBA World Championship players Centers (basketball) Esporte Clube Sírio basketball players Expatriate basketball people in Italy Flamengo basketball players Franca Basquetebol Clube players Medalists at the 1971 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1979 Pan American Games Olympic basketball players for Brazil Pan American Games bronze medalists for Brazil Pan American Games gold medalists for Brazil Pan American Games medalists in basketball Pan American Games silver medalists for Brazil Pepperdine Waves men's basketball players Portland Trail Blazers draft picks Power forwards (basketball) Sport Club Corinthians Paulista basketball players Vila Nova Basquete Clube players Virtus Bologna players Basketball players from Rio de Janeiro (city)