Eric Riley (born June 2, 1970) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player who was selected by the Dallas Mavericks in the second round (33rd pick overall) of the

1993 NBA draft The 1993 NBA draft took place on June 30, 1993, at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Chris Webber, Penny Hardaway, Allan Hou ...

. Riley played for the Mavericks, Houston Rockets,

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

and Boston Celtics in five NBA seasons, averaging 3.1 points per game. He was an injured reserve member of the 1993–94 Houston Rockets who won the

NBA championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, he played for Cleveland's St. Joseph High School and then collegiately at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. At Michigan, he

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Entertainment * ''Red Shirts'' (film), a 1952 film about Anita Garibaldi by Franco Rossi * Redshirt (stock character), originally derived from ''Star Trek'', a stock character who dies soon after ...

ed on the 1989 NCAA national champion Wolverines team, and then was the

sixth man The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the sta ...

on Michigan's 1991-92 & 1992-93 Fab Five teams that reached the 1992 &

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Men's Division I Basketball Championship final game.

College career

In 1991, as a sophomore, Riley led the entire 1990–91 Michigan team in both rebounding and blocked shots. In fact, Riley was second in the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

in rebounds for the 1990-91 season. He earned honorable mention All-Big Ten recognition in 1991. On the Fab Five teams, Riley led all reserve players in points,

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

and blocks. After being relegated to reserve status following the arrival of the Fab Five, he had the best game of his career in the Southeast Regional semifinals of the

1992 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 1992 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 19, 1992, and ended with the champion ...

Pro career

His rights were acquired by the Houston Rockets in a trade made prior to the

1993 NBA Draft The 1993 NBA draft took place on June 30, 1993, at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Chris Webber, Penny Hardaway, Allan Hou ...

. Riley spent his rookie season on the 1993–94 Rockets, coached by fellow Michigan alumnus

Rudy Tomjanovich Rudolph Tomjanovich Jr. (born November 24, 1948) is an American former professional basketball player and coach who is a consultant for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His professional playing career, whic ...

, who won the franchise's first NBA title. Though a member of the team, Riley was put on the injured list prior to the playoffs. Riley was waived on December 12, 1994 but was soon acquired by the

. During his playing career (1993–2004), Riley played for a total of five NBA franchises, as well as several professional teams outside the United States.

Later work

In 2009 Eric Riley started a non-profit called High Rise Foundation. HRF is a non-profit charity with the mission to mentor young adults through sports programs, sports clinics and academic tutoring.

Notes

External links

NBA.com page
@ basketball-reference.com

@ basketballreference.com
University of Michigan Basketball Statistical Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, Eric 1970 births Living people AEL Limassol B.C. players African-American basketball players American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Cyprus American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Venezuela American men's basketball players Apollon Patras B.C. players Basketball players from Ohio Boston Celtics players Centers (basketball) Cocodrilos de Caracas players Dallas Mavericks draft picks Dallas Mavericks players Houston Rockets players Liaoning Flying Leopards players Los Angeles Clippers players Michigan Wolverines men's basketball players Minnesota Timberwolves players Roseto Sharks players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople