Durand "Rudy" Macklin (born February 19, 1958) 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. A 6'7" forward from

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, Macklin played at

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

from 1976 to 1981. In his very first game for LSU, he grabbed 32 rebounds against

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...

. He missed most of the 1978–79 season because of an ankle injury, but recovered, and was named an NCAA First Team All-American in 1980 and 1981. As a senior, he was named the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

Player of the Year and led LSU to the NCAA Final Four. He graduated as LSU's all-time leading rebounder (1,276) and second-all-time leading scorer (2,080). In 1981, Macklin was selected by the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...

with the 52nd overall pick of the NBA draft. He played two seasons with the Hawks, averaging 6.5 points per game and 3.0 rebounds per game. He was then traded to the New York Knicks for

Sly Williams Sylvester Williams (born January 26, 1958) is a retired American basketball player. Born in New Haven, Connecticut. In 1979 he was drafted 21st overall by the New York Knicks and he played parts of seven seasons in the National Basketball Assoc ...

, but was cut by the Knicks after just eight games because chronic muscle cramping was hindering his play. Macklin tried to revive his basketball career with stints in the Continental Basketball Association and in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, but continued to be dogged by muscle cramping, and decided to retire from the sport to become a banker in

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties ...

. Macklin is currently the executive director of the Louisiana Bureau of Minority Health Access and Promotions and the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. On February 6, 2010, at halftime of the LSU vs. Kentucky basketball game, Macklin became the fourth LSU men's basketball player to have his jersey retired by the school. His number 40 jersey now hangs in the rafters of the Pete Maravich Assembly Center along with

Pete Maravich Peter Press Maravich ( ; June 22, 1947 – January 5, 1988), known by his nickname Pistol Pete, was an American professional basketball player. Maravich was born in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, and raised i ...

's number 23, Shaquille O'Neal's number 33, and Bob Pettit's number 50.Matt Dunaway
Macklin's Jersey Hangs in Honor; Tigers Fall
LSUSports.net. February 6, 2010. Retrieved on February 7, 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macklin, Rudy 1958 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Atlanta Hawks draft picks Atlanta Hawks players Basketball players from Louisville, Kentucky LSU Tigers men's basketball players New York Knicks players Shooting guards Small forwards American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines Philippine Basketball Association imports Shell Turbo Chargers players