Francisco Marinho Robby Elson (born February 28, 1976, in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

) is a Dutch retired professional basketball player. Elson was the seventh Dutch player to play in the

National Basketball Association 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 ...

(NBA). Elson served as the captain of the

Netherlands national basketball team The Netherlands men's national basketball team ( nl, Het Nederlands nationaal basketbalteam) represents the Netherlands in international basketball matches. The national team is governed by Basketball Nederland. The Dutch have reached the Euro ...

in international basketball, as he led the team in several EuroBasket qualifying rounds. He was the first Dutch player to become NBA champion, with the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

in 2007.

Youth and college career

Elson started his career at AMVJ Rotterdam at the age of twelve. After a couple of years playing, he stopped after his older brother Patrick died of a heart attack while playing basketball at the age of 21. His gym teacher at the Maria School asked him to return to the club at the age of sixteen. He played one game in the

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...

, the highest level Dutch league, in the 1994–95 season for Rotterdam. Elson was a member of the Dutch Under-20 National Team. He played two seasons at

Kilgore Junior College Kilgore College (KC) is a public community college in Kilgore, Texas. It has an annual enrollment in excess of 5,000 students and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the associate deg ...

in Texas before completing his college at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. As a senior, he helped lead the Bears to the NIT Championship. Elson was inducted into

Kilgore College Kilgore College (KC) is a public community college in Kilgore, Texas. It has an annual enrollment in excess of 5,000 students and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the associate deg ...

's Hall of Fame in 2016.

Professional career

Elson was drafted in the second round of the 1999 NBA Draft from Cal by the Denver Nuggets, but did not commence play with them until the 2003–04 campaign. He played four years in Spain: *1999–2001 with

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Found ...

averaging 3.4 points and 3.9 rebounds in 32 games for his first season and 6.9 points and 4.5 rebounds in 34 games for the second. *2001–02 with Pamesa Valencia averaging 4.1 points and 4.4 rebounds in 34 games. *2002–03 with Caja San Fernando averaging 9.7 point and 8.2 rebounds in 34 games. Over his first two seasons with Denver, Elson was mostly a reserve. He averaged 3.6 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. In 2005–06, his third season with the Nuggets, Elson played in 72 games and started in 54 of them. He averaged 21.9 minutes, 4.9 points (on 53.2% shooting) and 4.7 rebounds per game. Elson gained notoriety during Denver's 2004 playoff series with

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

through his physical attempts to contain

Kevin Garnett Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed KG by his initials, and the "Big Ticket" for his emphatic dunki ...

. Elson knocked Garnett into the seats behind the basket with a hard foul early in a game and later in the game was hit in the groin by Garnett. Elson caused controversy when he described Garnett as "gay" for the groin shot. Elson later apologized to the gay and lesbian community for his comments. In July 2006 Elson signed a 2-year, $6 million contract with the

. This was to help provide depth at center by replacing

Nazr Mohammed Nazr Tahiru Mohammed ( ; born September 5, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player who had a journeyman career in the National Basketball Association (NBA), playing for eight different teams over 18 seasons. He is the current ...

and Rasho Nesterovic. Elson split time at center with

Fabricio Oberto Fabricio Raúl Jesús Oberto (; born March 21, 1975) is an Argentine-Italian color analyst and former professional basketball player. At , he played as a center and power forward. With the LNB club Atenas, in his native Argentina, Oberto began ...

, with Elson providing rebounding and defense. Elson won his first

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 ...

in 2007 after the Spurs swept the Cleveland Cavaliers. On February 21, 2008, Elson was traded by the

along with

Brent Barry Brent Robert Barry (born December 31, 1971), also known by the nickname "Bones", is an American basketball executive, broadcaster and former player. He is the current vice president of basketball operations for the San Antonio Spurs. The shooti ...

to the

Sonics Sonic or Sonics may refer to: Companies *Sonic Drive-In, an American drive-in fast-food restaurant chain * Sonic (ISP), an Internet provider and CLEC, serving more than 100 California communities * Sonic Foundry, a computer software company wh ...

in exchange for Kurt Thomas. He spent most of this season coming off the bench for both the Spurs and the Sonics. Elson later signed a two-year, $3 million contract with the Bucks to serve as

Andrew Bogut Andrew Michael Bogut (born 28 November 1984) is an Australian former basketball player who spent the majority of his professional career playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The tall center was selected by the Milwaukee Buck ...

's primary backup. 2008-09, his first season with the Bucks, was the last of his NBA career where he started games with any regularity. On February 18, 2010, Elson was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers along with sharpshooter

Jodie Meeks Orestes Jodie Meeks II (born August 21, 1987) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Birmingham Squadron of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the University of Kentucky. ...

in exchange for Primoz Brezec and

Royal Ivey Royal Terence Ivey (born December 20, 1981) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is also the head coach of the South Sudane ...

. Elson missed most of the season after hernia surgery, and appeared in only one game with his new team. On September 15, 2010, Elson signed a guaranteed two-year contract with the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

. After his contract expired, he returned to the Netherlands for treatment on his knee. On January 27, 2012, Elson was signed by the Philadelphia 76ers to provide the team with front-court depth because of injuries at the position. He signed two 10-day contracts, then was not re-signed for a third time after Spencer Hawes returned from injury. In January 2013, Elson signed with Mahram Tehran of the

Iranian Basketball Super League The Iranian Basketball Super League (IBSL) is a professional men's basketball league in Iran. It was founded in 1998. The current champions is Shahrdari Gorgan. The league follows the promotion and relegation system in which the worst two tea ...

. On June 20, 2013, Elson's retirement was announced on Dutch websites. He later stated that his retirement was just from

international International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

basketball. In March 2014, his retirement became official.

National team career

Elson played 60 games for the Netherlands men's national basketball team, after making his debut on 5 June 1998 against

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

Personal life

Elson is fluent in Dutch, Spanish, English, Portuguese, and Mandarin. He is of Surinamese descent. His father is half Chinese and half African. His mother is half Indian and half African. Elson has a brown belt in karate.''Ian Thomsen's Fast Break'', Sports Illustrated
March 14, 2005

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, 62 , , 14 , , 14.1 , , .472 , , .000 , , .667 , , 3.3 , , .5 , , .6 , , .6 , , 3.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 67 , , 11 , , 14.0 , , .468 , , .333 , , .570 , , 3.0 , , .5 , , .5 , , .6 , , 3.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 72 , , 54 , , 21.9 , , .532 , , .200 , , .662 , , 4.7 , , .7 , , .8 , , .6 , , 4.9 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , align="left" ,

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, 70 , , 41 , , 19.0 , , .511 , , .000 , , .775 , , 4.8 , , .8 , , .4 , , .8 , , 5.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 41 , , 3 , , 13.0 , , .419 , , .000 , , .833 , , 3.3 , , .4 , , .2 , , .3 , , 3.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, 22 , , 2 , , 12.7 , , .341 , , .000 , , .462 , , 3.0 , , .4 , , .3 , , .3 , , 3.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

, 59 , , 23 , , 16.6 , , .491 , , .250 , , .846 , , 3.9 , , .5 , , .6 , , .6 , , 3.4 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 11 , , 0 , , 5.6 , , .308 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 1.2 , , .2 , , .1 , , .0 , , .9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, 1 , , 0 , , 4.0 , , .500 , , .000 , , .000 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, 62 , , 1 , , 9.8 , , .478 , , .000 , , .839 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .3 , , .2 , , 2.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 5 , , 0 , , 3.2 , , .333 , , .000 , , .000 , , .2 , , .2 , , .2 , , .2 , , .4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 472 , , 149 , , 15.3 , , .478 , , .188 , , .700 , , 3.5 , , .6 , , .5 , , .5 , , 3.7

Playoffs

, - , align="left" , 2004 , align="left" ,

, 4 , , 0 , , 15.0 , , .583 , , .000 , , .500 , , 2.3 , , .5 , , .5 , , .3 , , 3.8 , - , align="left" , 2005 , align="left" ,

, 1 , , 0 , , 6.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , 3.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , - , align="left" , 2006 , align="left" ,

, 5 , , 2 , , 15.0 , , .600 , , .000 , , .000 , , 2.2 , , .4 , , .8 , , .0 , , 1.2 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", 2007† , align="left" ,

, 20 , , 8 , , 11.5 , , .591 , , .000 , , .700 , , 3.1 , , .1 , , .4 , , .3 , , 3.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 30 , , 10 , , 12.4 , , .581 , , .000 , , .682 , , 2.8 , , .2 , , .5 , , .2 , , 2.9

References

External links

NBA.com Player bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elson, Francisco 1976 births Living people California Golden Bears men's basketball players Centers (basketball) Denver Nuggets draft picks Denver Nuggets players Dutch expatriate basketball people in Iran Dutch expatriate basketball people in Italy Dutch expatriate basketball people in Spain Dutch expatriate basketball people in the United States Dutch men's basketball players Dutch sportspeople of Surinamese descent FC Barcelona Bàsquet players Junior college men's basketball players in the United States Kilgore College alumni Liga ACB players Mahram Tehran BC players Milwaukee Bucks players National Basketball Association players from the Netherlands Philadelphia 76ers players Real Betis Baloncesto players San Antonio Spurs players Seattle SuperSonics players Sportspeople from Rotterdam Utah Jazz players Valencia Basket players