Olden Polynice (born November 21, 1964) is a Haitian former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player. He played

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

for the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...

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 ...

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at L ...

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

, and

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), ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, 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 i ...

(NBA).

Career

After graduating from

All Hallows High School All Hallows High School (formerly known as the All Hallows Institute) is a Catholic boys' high school in the South Bronx, New York, United States. Located at 111 East 164th Street, near Yankee Stadium, the school has an enrollment of approximate ...

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

, Polynice played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

. As a Freshman during the 1983–84 season, Polynice helped lead the UVA Cavaliers to the NCAA final four when they won the NCAA Eastern Region as the # 7 seed. UVA defeating the #10 seed Iona (58–57), the #2 seed Arkansas (53–51 in OT), the #3 seed Syracuse (63–55) and the #4 seed Indiana (50–48) en route to the final four. In the final four, UVA lost in overtime 49–47 to the Midwest Region Champion University of Houston denying UVA a chance at the National Championship game. As a Junior during the 1985–86 season, Polynice was honored for his play by being named first team All-ACC. After three years in college and playing with

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...

's Hamby Rimini in 1986–87, he was selected 8th overall by the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...

in the

1987 NBA Draft The 1987 NBA draft was held on June 22, 1987, in New York City. This draft included two future members of the NBA 50 Greatest Players list, David Robinson and Scottie Pippen, as well as fellow Hall of Famer Reggie Miller, who was named to t ...

, but was immediately traded to the

for Scottie Pippen. Polynice then arrived in Detroit in 1992 after being traded by the Los Angeles Clippers and departed two years later when he was traded to the Sacramento Kings for

Pete Chilcutt Peter Shawn Chilcutt (born September 14, 1968) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born in Sumter, South Carolina, Chilcutt attended Tuscaloosa Academy in Tuscaloosa, A ...

and two draft picks. In 15 NBA seasons, Polynice averaged 23.5 minutes, 7.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, with a career PER of 13.2. At 6'11", he was often signed by teams in need of a rebounder and interior player, and consistently ranked among the league leaders in offensive rebounds. Polynice retired from the NBA in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...

after a brief return to the Clippers. He later played for the Los Angeles Aftershock of the ABA. Upon retiring, Polynice served as coach for the ABA's

Long Beach Breakers The Long Beach Breakers were a minor league baseball team that played at Blair Field in Long Beach, California. They played in the independent Western Baseball League since 1978 and were not associated with any Major League Baseball team. The ...

. In 1997, still active, he worked as a

color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main ( play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and ...

for the WNBA's

Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a basketball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 until folding on November 20, 2009. They played their home games at ARCO Arena. The Mon ...

. He now runs a basketball training camp called NextStar Basketball. His nephew Eniel Polynice, who went undrafted in 2011, currently plays for the Atleticos de San German in the BSN of Puerto Rico.

Personal life

In a two month span in 2000, Polynice was arrested for impersonating a police office
CBS News - Polynice pinched again

Career statistics

NBA

Source

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-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 region o ...

, 82 , , 0 , , 13.2 , , .465 , , .000 , , .639 , , 4.0 , , .4 , , .4 , , .3 , , 4.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 80 , , 0 , , 10.4 , , .506 , , .000 , , .593 , , 2.6 , , .3 , , .5 , , .4 , , 2.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 79 , , 7 , , 13.7 , , .540 , , .500 , , .475 , , 3.8 , , .2 , , .3 , , .3 , , 4.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 48 , , 0 , , 20.0 , , .545 , , – , , .588 , , 5.6 , , .3 , , .5 , , .4 , , 8.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Clippers , 31 , , 30 , , 36.5 , , .579 , , .000 , , .572 , , 9.1 , , .8 , , .5 , , .4 , , 12.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Clippers , 76 , , 65 , , 24.1 , , .519 , , .000 , , .622 , , 7.1 , , .6 , , .6 , , .3 , , 8.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

, 67 , , 18 , , 19.4 , , .490 , , .000 , , .465 , , 6.2 , , .4 , , .5 , , .3 , , 7.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 37 , , 36 , , 36.5 , , .547 , , .000 , , .457 , , 12.3 , , .6 , , .6 , , 1.0 , , 13.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 31 , , 29 , , 33.9 , , .484 , , .000 , , .556 , , 11.4 , , .6 , , .6 , , 1.0 , , 9.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 81 , , 81 , , 31.3 , , .544 , , 1.000 , , .639 , , 9.0 , , .8 , , .6 , , .6 , , 10.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 81 , , 80 , , 30.1 , , .527 , , .333 , , .601 , , 9.4 , , .7 , , .6 , , .8 , , 12.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 82 , , style="background:#CFECEC; width:1em", 82* , , 35.3 , , .457 , , .000 , , .562 , , 9.4 , , 2.2 , , .6 , , 1.0 , , 12.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 70 , , 25 , , 20.8 , , .459 , , .000 , , .452 , , 6.3 , , 1.5 , , .5 , , .6 , , 7.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 48 , , 47 , , 30.9 , , .472 , , 1.000 , , .309 , , 8.9 , , .9 , , .4 , , .6 , , 7.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-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 its ...

, 82 , , 79 , , 22.2 , , .510 , , .500 , , .311 , , 5.5 , , .5 , , .4 , , 1.0 , , 5.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 79 , , 20.0 , , .496 , , .000 , , .262 , , 4.7 , , .4 , , .3 , , 1.0 , , 5.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Clippers , 2 , , 0 , , 6.0 , , – , , – , , – , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .5 , , .0 , , .0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 1,058 , , 658 , , 23.5 , , .505 , , .192 , , .535 , , 6.7 , , .7 , , .5 , , .6 , , 7.8

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 5 , , 0 , , 8.8 , , .455 , , – , , .000 , , 1.6 , , .0 , , .6 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 8 , , 0 , , 20.3 , , .610 , , – , , .538 , , 7.8 , , .1 , , .8 , , .5 , , 7.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engin ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Clippers , 5 , , 0 , , 12.6 , , .583 , , – , , .333 , , 3.6 , , .4 , , .2 , , .2 , , 3.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

, style="text-align:left;",

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 4 , , 4 , , 35.3 , , .522 , , 1.000 , , .667 , , 12.0 , , .8 , , .3 , , 1.8 , , 13.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 10 , , 10 , , 26.0 , , .538 , , – , , .500 , , 6.6 , , .5 , , .3 , , .8 , , 5.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 5 , , 5 , , 20.0 , , .533 , , .000 , , .700 , , 3.8 , , .2 , , .2 , , .4 , , 7.8 , - , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 37 , , 19 , , 20.8 , , .547 , , .500 , , .543 , , 6.0 , , .3 , , .4 , , .6 , , 6.4

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 1983–84 , style="text-align:left;",

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

, 33, , , , 26.2, , , .551, , , , .588, , 5.6, , 0.6, , 0.1, , 0.5, , 7.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1984–85 , style="text-align:left;",

, 32, , , , 34.2, , , .603, , , , .599, , 7.6, , 0.5, , 0.4, , 1.1, , 13.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1985–86 , style="text-align:left;",

, 30, , , , 35.8, , , .572, , , , .637, , 8.0, , 0.5, , 0.3, , 1.1, , 16.1 , - , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", , 95, , , , 31.9, , , .578, , , , .612, , 7.0, , 0.5, , 0.3, , 0.9, , 12.1

References

External links

NBA.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polynice, Olden 1964 births Living people American Basketball Association (2000–present) coaches Basket Rimini Crabs players Centers (basketball) Chicago Bulls draft picks Detroit Pistons players Grand Rapids Hoops players Haitian emigrants to the United States Haitian men's basketball players Harlem Globetrotters players Long Beach Jam players Los Angeles Clippers players Michigan Mayhem players National Basketball Association players from Haiti Sacramento Kings players Seattle SuperSonics players Sportspeople from Port-au-Prince Utah Jazz players Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball players