Eric Walfred Anderson (May 26, 1970 – December 9, 2018) was an American

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 (appro ...

player. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the demonym for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Coll ...

and played two seasons in the

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

(NBA) for the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

Amateur career

Anderson attended St. Francis de Sales High School on Chicago's far southeast side and was named 1988's Mr. Basketball for the state of Illinois as well as a

McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American multinational fast food chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese chain Mixue Ice Cream & Tea. Brothers ...

in the same year. He appears in one scene in the documentary ''

Hoop Dreams ''Hoop Dreams'' is a 1994 American documentary film directed by Steve James, and produced by Frederick Marx, James, and Peter Gilbert, with Kartemquin Films. It follows the story of two African-American high school students, William Gates ...

''. Anderson then enrolled at

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...

, where he played for the Hoosiers while studying

sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

. He was named Most Outstanding Player of 1992 NCAA Tournament's West Regional after helping lead Indiana to the Final Four. He completed his college career with 1,715 points and 825 rebounds.

Professional career

Anderson signed with the

for the

1992–93 NBA season The 1992–93 NBA season was the 47th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls winning their third straight NBA Championship, beating the Phoenix Suns 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals. Notable occurr ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. As the team's twelfth man, he played only 44 total minutes in sixteen games, and 39 minutes in eleven games the following season before being waived. He received a loud ovation by fans when inserted in the final six minutes of the Knicks' 114–79 home blowout over the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

on February 2, 1994, in which he went scoreless with four personal fouls while the Knicks bench later stood and cheered his drawing an offensive foul. Anderson held NBA career averages of 1.6 points and 1.1 rebounds, and 2-for-2 on

three-point field goal A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or triple) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two ...

s. He spent the remainder of his career playing in Europe and with the Fort Wayne Fury of the

Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA), originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association, was a men's professional basketball m ...

until retiring in 1998.

Personal life

Anderson was married to fitness guru Tracy Anderson from 1998 to 2008 and had a son named Sam.

Death

Anderson died on December 9, 2018, in

Carmel, Indiana Carmel () is a suburban city in Hamilton County, Indiana, United States, immediately north of Indianapolis. With a population of 99,757 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city spans across Clay Township, Hamilton County, Indi ...

. An autopsy was conducted, and preliminary findings suggested that he died of natural causes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Eric 1970 births 2018 deaths American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Spain American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Basketball players from Chicago BC Andorra players American expatriate basketball people in Andorra Fabriano Basket players Fort Wayne Fury players Galatasaray S.K. (men's basketball) players Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball players Liga ACB players McDonald's High School All-Americans New York Knicks players Pallacanestro Varese players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Power forwards Undrafted NBA players Summer World University Games medalists in basketball FISU World University Games gold medalists for the United States 20th-century American sportsmen