There are many players who have made their way to basketball in the NBA, such as Duncan as a swimmer as a young man, Nowitzki as a tennis player at 12, and Rodman as Xi 19 years old, all of whom eventually succeeded in the league with their great talents. There is a player who also had a low starting point in his career, and he didn't even like basketball when he was younger, but after he got into basketball, he quickly became a dominant player on the inside. He only entered the NBA at the age of 25 and averaged only 6 points per game in his career, but he became the best blocker in history.
He is Mark Eaton, and I believe many fans have heard of his name. By the time he was in high school, Eaton was already taller than his peers, but at that time he didn't love basketball, but had a soft spot for water polo. After graduating from high school, Eaton did not follow the path of basketball, he chose to enter the automotive graduate school to Xi, and then it was logical to become an auto mechanic. Interestingly, a basketball assistant found him while repairing his car and invited him to play at Cypress Academy.
Mark Eaton quickly became the ace of the academy and helped the team win the California championship in his sophomore year, after which he transferred to UCLA, where his performances were mediocre, but Eaton's training became more and more professional. In the 1982 draft, the 25-year-old Mark Eaton was selected by the Jazz with the third pick in the fourth round, and his career began ever since.
As a center forward, Eaton's offensive means are mediocre, but his talent is too good, with a height of 2.24 meters, a super long arm span, and the strength is also among the best in the league, even Karl Malone stands next to him, looking very petite. In his rookie season, Eaton averaged only 4It's only 3 points, but he can pick 57 rebounds and 34 blocks, so after his rookie year, Mark Eaton became the starting point for the Jazz.
At the top of their game, Eaton became one of the league's best rim protectors. In the '84-85 season, Mark Eaton averaged 9 per game7 points 113 rebounds and 5Crazy stats of 6 blocks, averaging 5 per game for the season6 blocks, also the most in NBA history, he not only won the title of king of blocks that year, but also was selected for the best defensive team, and was elected as a DPOY, which can be said to be the best defender in the league. Since then, he has worked with Malone and Stockton for many years, is the team's third big man, and has also been selected as an All-Star, and has a brilliant career.
Throughout Eaton's career, he averaged 6 points per game9 rebounds and 35 blocks for an exaggerated statistic, a career average of 35 caps is also the highest in history, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is the strongest blocker of all time. He won the cap king title four times and has two DPOY trophies in his hands. As a halfway monk who entered the NBA at the age of 25, Eaton's achievements are admirable.