 Ratliff with the Pistons in 2008. | |
| No. 42, 50 | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Power Forward / Center |
| League: | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Full name: | Theophalus Curtis Ratliff |
| Born: | April 17, 1973 Demopolis, Alabama |
| Nationality: |  American
|
| Physical stats | |
| Listed height: | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) |
| Listed weight: | 225 lbs (102 kg) |
| National Basketball Association career | |
| Debut: 1995 for the Detroit Pistons | |
| Final game: 2011 for the Los Angeles Lakers | |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Demopolis (Demopolis, Alabama) |
| College: | Wyoming (1991–1995) |
| NBA Draft: | 1995 / Round: 1 / Pick: 18th |
| Selected by the Detroit Pistons | |
| Playing career: | 1995–2011 (16 years) |
| Career history | |
| 1995–1997 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1997–2001 | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 2001–2004 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 2004–2006 | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 2006–2007 | Boston Celtics |
| 2007–2008 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2008 | Detroit Pistons |
| 2008–2009 | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 2009–2010 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 2010 | Charlotte Bobcats |
| 2010–2011 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Career highlights and awards | |
As player:
| |
As coach:
| |
| Medals | |
| Men's basketball | |
| Representing the United States
| |
| FIBA U21 World Championship | |
| FIBA Americas Championship | |
 Gold
|
1993 Valladolid |
Theophalus Curtis Ratliff (born April 17, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player who played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Primarily a Center, he was an excellent shot-blocker who had led the league three times in blocks per game. As of 2020, he is ranked 20th all-time in career blocks.
College career[]
At Wyoming, Ratliff had a successful career, finishing as the career leader in blocked shots. He accumulated 425 blocked shots in his career as a Cowboy, a record that still stands today. Ratliff was inducted into the University of Wyoming Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005.
NBA career[]
Ratliff was selected with the 18th overall pick in the 1995 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, for whom he played 2½ seasons. During the 1997–98 season he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, along with Aaron McKie, in a package for Eric Montross and Jerry Stackhouse.
He played in Philadelphia for three seasons, and was voted Eastern Conference reserve center of the 2001 All-Star Game, but was unable to play due to injury. He was a key fixture on the Sixers team that made it to the NBA Finals, but an injured Ratliff was dealt at the trading deadline to the Atlanta Hawks for Dikembe Mutombo.
He missed most of the next season due to injury, but rebounded to post 262 blocks the next year with the Hawks. His best year as a pro was 2003–04, when he recorded a league-leading 307 blocked shots. During that season he was dealt to the Portland Trail Blazers, along with Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Dan Dickau, for Rasheed Wallace and Wesley Person. After the 2004 season, he signed a three-year contract extension with the Blazers, but was not as effective in 2004–05 and lost his starting job to Joel Przybilla midway through the schedule.
In June 2006, the Boston Celtics acquired Ratliff along with Sebastian Telfair from the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for the draft rights of Randy Foye, Power Forward–Center Raef LaFrentz, and Point Guard Dan Dickau.
In July 2007, he was traded along with Gerald Green, Ryan Gomes, Al Jefferson, Sebastian Telfair, and draft picks, to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kevin Garnett. In February 2008, Ratliff was waived by the Timberwolves, and he rejoined the Detroit Pistons in March.
Ratliff returned to the Philadelphia 76ers for 2008–09 season. In the offseason, he was signed by the San Antonio Spurs. In February 2010, he was traded to the Charlotte Bobcats for a projected second round draft pick in 2016.
Ratliff was signed by the Los Angeles Lakers on July 22, 2010 to a one-year deal.
In December 2011, Ratliff retired from basketball.
Personal life and business ventures[]
Ratliff played basketball at Demopolis High School in Demopolis, Alabama, and later graduated from the University of Wyoming. He created The Theo Ratliff Center in Demopolis, Alabama which is a recreation center with a basketball court.
Ratliff is the owner of the Rome Gladiators basketball team.
NBA career statistics[]
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| * | Led the league | ||||
Regular season[]
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995–96 | Detroit | 75 | 2 | 17.4 | .557 | .000 | .708 | 4.0 | .2 | .2 | 1.5 | 4.5 |
| 1996–97 | Detroit | 76 | 38 | 17.0 | .531 | .000 | .698 | 3.4 | .2 | .4 | 1.5 | 5.8 |
| 1997–98 | Detroit | 24 | 12 | 24.4 | .514 | .000 | .683 | 5.0 | .6 | .5 | 2.3 | 6.5 |
| 1997–98 | Philadelphia | 58 | 55 | 32.1 | .512 | .000 | .706 | 7.3 | .7 | .7 | 3.5 | 11.2 |
| 1998–99 | Philadelphia | 50 | 50 | 32.5 | .470 | .000 | .725 | 8.1 | .6 | .9 | 3.0 | 11.2 |
| 1999–00 | Philadelphia | 57 | 56 | 31.5 | .503 | .000 | .771 | 7.6 | .6 | .6 | 3.0 | 11.9 |
| 2000–01 | Philadelphia | 50 | 50 | 36.0 | .499 | .000 | .760 | 8.3 | 1.2 | .6 | 3.7* | 12.4 |
| 2001–02 | Atlanta | 3 | 2 | 27.3 | .500 | .000 | .545 | 5.3 | .3 | .3 | 2.7 | 8.7 |
| 2002–03 | Atlanta | 81 | 81 | 31.1 | .464 | .000 | .720 | 7.5 | .9 | .7 | 3.2* | 8.7 |
| 2003–04 | Atlanta | 53 | 52 | 31.1 | .458 | .000 | .653 | 7.2 | 1.0 | .6 | 3.1 | 8.3 |
| 2003–04 | Portland | 32 | 31 | 31.8 | .540 | .000 | .629 | 7.3 | .6 | .8 | 4.4* | 7.3 |
| 2004–05 | Portland | 63 | 45 | 27.5 | .447 | .000 | .692 | 5.3 | .5 | .4 | 2.5 | 4.8 |
| 2005–06 | Portland | 55 | 19 | 23.7 | .571 | .000 | .651 | 5.1 | .5 | .3 | 1.6 | 4.9 |
| 2006–07 | Boston | 2 | 2 | 22.0 | .333 | .000 | .750 | 3.5 | .0 | .5 | 1.5 | 2.5 |
| 2007–08 | Minnesota | 10 | 6 | 21.4 | .511 | .000 | .680 | 3.9 | .7 | .3 | 1.9 | 6.3 |
| 2007–08 | Detroit | 16 | 3 | 13.9 | .450 | .000 | .667 | 3.1 | .4 | .3 | 1.1 | 3.0 |
| 2008–09 | Philadelphia | 46 | 0 | 12.6 | .531 | .000 | .600 | 2.8 | .2 | .4 | 1.0 | 1.9 |
| 2009–10 | San Antonio | 21 | 3 | 8.7 | .444 | .000 | .500 | 1.9 | .4 | .1 | .9 | 1.6 |
| 2009–10 | Charlotte | 28 | 26 | 22.3 | .466 | .000 | .783 | 4.2 | .6 | .3 | 1.5 | 5.1 |
| 2010–11 | L.A. Lakers | 10 | 0 | 7.0 | .167 | .000 | .000 | 1.3 | .3 | .2 | .5 | .2 |
| Career | 810 | 533 | 25.5 | .496 | .000 | .710 | 5.7 | .6 | .5 | 2.4 | 7.2 | |
Playoffs[]
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Detroit | 1 | 0 | 4.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 |
| 1997 | Detroit | 3 | 0 | 6.0 | .750 | .000 | .500 | 1.3 | .3 | .3 | 1.3 | 2.7 |
| 1999 | Philadelphia | 7 | 7 | 29.1 | .465 | .000 | .579 | 7.3 | .9 | .7 | 2.6 | 7.3 |
| 2000 | Philadelphia | 10 | 10 | 37.4 | .475 | .000 | .723 | 7.9 | .9 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 13.0 |
| 2008 | Detroit | 12 | 0 | 10.9 | .500 | .000 | .500 | 2.3 | .1 | .1 | .9 | 1.3 |
| 2009 | Philadelphia | 6 | 0 | 15.7 | .818 | .000 | .500 | 3.8 | .0 | .2 | .7 | 3.3 |
| 2010 | Charlotte | 4 | 4 | 11.8 | .375 | .000 | .500 | .8 | .3 | .5 | .0 | 1.8 |
| 2011 | L.A. Lakers | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 1.0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 |
| Career | 44 | 21 | 19.8 | .497 | .000 | .643 | 4.3 | .4 | .5 | 1.5 | 5.3 | |