Ok, so maybe he's not known as the nicest guy ever to play for Duke. He was almost as tough on his teammates as he was on his opponents. Former Duke teammates (like Bobby Hurley, Cherokee Parks, and Grant Hill)admit that he was just trying to push everyone around him to reach new heights in their respective games, but that it could be as annoying as hell. "He's fun to be around, because he's always trying to challenge you," says Grant Hill, adding, "and you want to hurt him sooo bad!"
Yes, I am referring to the same Christian Laettner that plays for the Atlanta Hawks
After graduating from Duke in 1992, Laettner has matured into a solid professional, and ranks highly on the league's list of premier forwards. Christian's pro career is very sucessful, and although he will never be a candidate for MVP honors, he has positioned himself as a perennial all-star for the next decade; however, it is not his NBA experience which occupies us today.
OK, get ready because I'm saying it again: "Christian Donald Laettner is the greatest collegiate basketball player of all time" At first this statement may sound more
bizarre than the last "Weird Al Yankovic" album, but as we look closer, and begin to analyze Laettner's accomplishments at Duke, this statement seems to carry some validity.
Christian ended his NCAA career averaging 16.6 ppg, 7.7 boards while shooting 57% from the field, and 80% from the stripe. Laettner is the only player in NCAA history to start in 4 final fours, coming home with back to back victories in the big dance in 1991 and 1992.
One must acknowledge that on all 4 of those Final Four teams, Laettner played an integral role and in fact,was Duke's main man and team leader from his sophomore season onward. Add to this being only the 3rd Dukie to drain 2000 points and 1000 boards in a career, owning the record for the most career points(407) and games in the NCAA tournament, finishing second in 3 point percentage with an absurd 57% (remember he is 6'11") in 1992, and 123-26 career win-loss record with an astounding 56 home wins in front of the Cameron Crazies against a meager 2 losses. Yes, the Blue Devils were an awesome team with a pragmatic coach, consumate point guards and a blossoming young star (some guy named Grant Hill), but there is no doubt that Laettner was the one constant.
With or without Hurley, Hill and Ferry, Laettner brought the Devils into the final four. In both his junior and senior seasons, Laettner was a consensus All-American, and in 92 he captured the Naismith and Wooden awards as national player-of-the-year. Most of all he won. Laettner's second trip to the big dance in 1990 ended with a national championship showdown and eventual "s---" kicking against a talent-laden UNLV squad. The Devils were stomped 103-73 (largest margin of victory in NCAA history) and their heart and leadership were under seige. In 1991, Laettner and the Devils returned to the Final Four only to face the name UNLV team, which had been unbeaten in more than a season and a half, in the semifinal. In the biggest upset in recent NCAA history, David beat Goliath, on the strength of 2 Laettner free throws by a score of 79-77. The championship was a mere formality as they beat Kansas, and Laettner was named the tournament's most outstanding player. 1992 was Laettner's last season at Duke, and he went out with a bang.
Duke spent most of the 1992 season at #1 TO BE CONTINUED
TO BE CONTINUED!
CAREER:
After graduating from Duke,in 1992, Laettner joined eleven living legends of the NBA to form the Dream Team in Barcelona. A lot of people questioned the selection of Laettner over, say, Shaq, as the one amatuer on the team, but Laettner had done the most (he won back-to-back championships), is more versatile than Shaq, and -- according to the committee--was less likely to take on the Dream Team with an attitude and a huge ego.(Oh yeah, Shaq later claimed that he didn't really want to play on the first Dream Team because he wouldn't have gotten enough minutes. Yeah, right) But things went pretty much downhill from there. Laettner was taken third overall in the 1992 draft, by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minnesota was lucky to win 25 games a season, and Laettner did not like being in a losing atmosphere. His attitude got worse with every additional number in the "L" column, and he feuded with his coaches and assistant coaches. In the '95-'96 season, Minnesota picked up 18-year-old Kevin Garnett, who went straight from high school to the pros, and who was looked upon as the new backbone of the team. Laettner didn't appreciate Garnett's "helpful" suggestions, and didn't attempt to make that a secret. Picking on Garnett is what finally got Laettner out of hell---er, that is, Minnesota -- and onto a team with a wonderful, supportive coach who also happens to be the winningest coach of all time, Lenny Wilkins. Wilkins was questioned about bringing someone with Laettner's reputation onto his team, and shrugged off the questions with little effort. "He wants to win. I want to win. If he sees something wrong, he speaks out. If I see something wrong, I speak out. I don't see a problem there," Wilkins said. Wilkins has been a strong supporter of Laettner's ever since working with him in the first Dream Team (Wilkins was assistant coach to Chuck Daly) These days he's coach of the third Dream Team)
Laettner was relieved to finally have a "real" coach and his attitude improved overnight. There's a big difference between going to a game knowing, realistically, that you're going into a game with the idea that you're probably going to lose, and going into a game with the idea that you've got a very good chance of winning."
Getting into the 1996 playoffs was a major accomplishment for Laettner. After winning 2 championships at Duke (the first time back-to-back championships had been won by any NCAA team since UCLA had with John Wooden), being the college player of the year, and going to the Olympics, he spent three seasons in the NBA knowing that the .500 mark was an unrealistic goal. Suddenly, his future was looking much better.. To even get as close as the second round of the playoffs, the Hawks would have to defeat the Indiana Pacers, who had knocked them out of the playoffs for three consecutive seasons. This year, they had two distict advantages:one, Laettner was an excellent match for Indiana's Rik Smits, even though Smits was five inches taller, because they both played a similar game, relying on their shooting skills rather than physical ability to dominate the lane. Two, Reggie Miller, Indiana's superstar, All-star, and two-time Dream Teamer, had been sidelined by an eye injury and was not expected to return to the playoffs until, at best, the second round, assuming the Pacers could make it past the Hawks. The best-of-five series lasted all five games, coming to an end at Market Square arena, as, despite Miller's exciting return for the final game, the Hawks managed to secure victory.
The Hawks-Magic series was much less exciting, as the Hawks fell three games to zero within about a week. NBC and TNT, in opening clips for the games, likened the Hawks to Cinderella,("Are you gonna get it!" "Serves you right, spoiling people's best dreams!"), and gave them anthems such as "Help!", "Danger Zone", and finally "To Dream the Impossible Dream". Atlanta won game four, but eventually fell four games to one.
As far as what Laettner will do this season, well, the sky's the limit. The Hawks signed Dikembe Mutombo over the summer, and every pre-season basketball magazine cites Laettner as having "unlimited potential now that he's freed up to play his natural position, power forward" With his skill, his talent, and his new, 
improved attitude, he should finally attain the superstardom that he should have reached years ago.
1997-98 NOTES:
posted 23 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 blocks, and 3 steals in a double overtime win over the Toronto Raptors on 11/26
recorded a game high 25 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists in a 98-89 overtime victory over the Washington Wizards on 11/18
posted 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists in a 93-88 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on 11/5
Registered 20 points (9-15 FG), a team-high 6 assists and 5 rebounds against the Detroit Pistons on 3/22
Totaled 18 points and 12 rebounds, in 21 minutes, in a 101-76 victory over the Vancouver Grizzlies on 3/1
Posted 16 points, 13 rebounds and 3 assists against the Portland Trail Blazers on 1/24
Recorded a game-high 23 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists in a 102-89 win over the Golden State Warriors on 1/16
Registered a team-high 23 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists in a 107-102 victory over the Washington Wizards on 1/11
Totaled a team-high 22 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocked shots against the L.A. Lakers on 1/2
Posted team-highs of 20 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocked shots against the Utah Jazz on 12/22
Recorded team-highs of 19 points and 13 rebounds and added 3 assists in a 99-90 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on 12/15
Registered 21 points and 12 rebounds in an 83-74 victory over the L.A. Clippers on 12/12
Totaled a team-high 22 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals against the Miami Heat on 12/9
Posted 23 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 blocked shots and 3 steals in a 109-104 double-overtime win over the Toronto Raptors on 11/26
Recorded a season-high 25 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists against the Detroit Pistons on 11/22
Registered 24 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists in a 98-89 overtime victory over the Washington Wizards on 11/18
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
The Sporting News All-American 2nd Team (1991)
The Sporting News All-American 3rd Team (1990)
celebrated his senior year of college by capturing the Sporting News College Player of the Year, and becoming a first-team All-American and the ACC Player of the year.
recieved the Wooden, Kodak, and Naismith Awards
graduated from Duke as the second leading scorer and rebounder in school history
NCAA Division 1 Tournament Most Outstanding Player (1991)
holds NCAA Division 1 career record for most games played : 148
member of the NBA All-Rookie Team in 1993
selected to represent USA Basketball at the 1998 FIBA men's world championships from July.29 to August .9, 1998 in Athens, Greece
finished second on the Hawks in scoring (18.1ppg) and in rebounding (8.8rpg) for a second consecutive season
scored a career high 37 points and grabbed 14 rebounds against Chicago on 12/26/96
has appeared in 20 career NBA playoff games, averaging 16.6ppg, and 7.0rpg
led the Timberwolves in scoring (16.8 ppg) and in rebounding (8.6 rpg) during the 1993-94 season
named to the 1994 NBA All-Rookie team
hit 18 of 20 freethrows against Sacramento on 2/18/93 to establish a Timberwolves record for most free-throws made in a game
highest draft pick in Timberwolves history (3rd overall in '92)
member of the gold-medal winning United States Olympic Basketball team at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona
CAREER TRANSACTIONS:
Minnesota, looking to fill the big forward spot on it's roster, selected Christian Laettner with the 3rd pick in the 1992 NBA draft. Laettner, the winner of the Wooden and Naismith awards as college player of the year in 1991-92 averaged 21.5 points and 7.9 rebounds per game as he led Duke to it's second consecutive championship. Laettner is the first player ever to start in four NCAA Final Fours and holds the NCAA Tournament career scoring record with 407 points. After playing for the US National Team in 1990 and in the Pan American Games in 1991, Laettner was the only college player selected to the USA Basketball Team in 1992. He was traded by Minnesota with Sean Rooks to the Atlanta Hawks for Spudd Webb and Andrew Lang on 2/22/96
Charlotte defeated Atlanta 3 games to 1 to eliminate the Hawks from further playoff contention. PLAYOFFS AND FINALS NOTES
Totaled 11 points and 3 steals in a 96-64 victory over the Charlotte Hornets in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference First Round
HAWKS TRIVIA!
#1 Which former Hawks player scored the 6,000,000th point in NBA history back in 1992?
Jon Koncak
Dominique Wilkins
Stacey Augmon
Adam Keefe
#2 Which player has the record for making the most consecutive free throws (47 straight) in Hawks history?
Tom McMillen
Christian Laettner
Steve Smith
Mookie Blaylock
#3 Which player donated 2.5 million to his university for a new student-athlete academic center to be named after his mother?
Mookie Blaylock
Steve Smith
Priest Lauderdale
Tyrone Corbin
#4 Which current Hawk player participated in 4 straight NCAA Final Fours? (You get this one wrong and I'll really wonder)
Steve Smith
Christian Laettner
Diekembe Mutombo
Alan Henderson
#5Which Hawks player had a musical group named after him?
Eldridge Recasner
Mookie Blaylock
Alan Henderson
Ed Gray
Answers at bottom of page!
Links to other sites on the Web
NBA.COM's Playerfile on Christian
Picture:Christian with Minnesota
The Official Atlanta Hawks Page
Nando.Net's take on the Atlanta Hawks
Here's what CNNSI has to say about Christian
Picture:Laettner with Atlanta
An interview by NBA.COM on Laettner
Duke University
Coach K, Christian's coach at Duke
NCAA Playoffs
Welcome to the (unofficial) Christian Laettner homepage... Well, sit back, relax, and enjoy the most informative Christian Laettner site on the web today!
Other miscellaneous notes about Christian:
He stands 6'11" tall, and weighs 235 lbs (that's ~211 cm and ~106 kg for all you people cool enough to be on the metric system)
He has several pets, one of which is a nurse shark...yes you read that right...a shark
He can play the piano "well enough to garner a living in a hotel bar"
He was named after Fletcher Christian and Christian Diestl, both Marlon Brando characters, despite the fact that he already had an older brother named Christopher. (Good thing he was born before the Godfather era. Imagine: "And now, from Duke University, 6'11", number 32,...Don Vito Laettner!" Juuust kidding!
And finally: He was pantsed by Micheal Jordan just before the first Olympic game in Barcelona. The horror! He shouldn't feel bad though..MJ did the same thing to Penny Hardaway at the '96 All-star game.
Christian is married to Lisa, who worked with the Minnesota Timberwolves, and they have one daughter, born in the summer of 1997, named Sophia
ARTICLES:
Hoop Magazine, June, 1998
Inside Sports, April, 1998
Sports Illustrated, May 20, 1996
The Sporting News, March 11, 1996
U.S Kids January/February 1996
Sports Illustrated for Kids, July 1994
MPLS & St.Paul Magazine, October, 1993
Sports Illustrated, April 6, 1992
People Weekly, March 16, 1992
Sports Illustrated, November.25, 1991
TELEVISION APPEARANCES
"The Tonight Show" - 1992
Answers to Trivia!
#1- Stacey Augmon did it in the second quarter on a layup against Golden State on March.23, 1992
#2- Tom McMillen made 47 straight in the 1978-79 season
#3- Steve Smith made the donation to Michigan State on Jan.6, 1997
#4- Christian Laettner and the Duke Blue Devils played in 4 Final Fours, and won 2 national championships during his years there.
#5- Mookie Blaylock was the original name of the alternative rock band 'Pearl Jam'
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