Spurs By The Numbers- Matt Othick suffers the same fate as Jeff Lebo

When I joined Pounding The Rock, I pitched a project that would cover every player who ever wore a Spurs jersey. Not equally, by any means, but each jersey would be identified numerically by the players who wore it.

There is a significance to the numbers of jerseys as it pertains to the five NBA Championships that have been won by the San Antonio Spurs.

There is only one jersey number associated with all five San Antonio Spurs NBA Championships- #21. Tim Duncan. He is coincidentally also the only player to be involved in all five titles.

There are five numbers associated with four Spurs titles. #9 Tony Parker and #20 Manu Ginobili, as well as #2, #4, and #11 worn by different players.

The next set of jersey numbers are those associated with three of the Spurs NBA titles.

Those numbers are 3, 5, 8, 12, 17, and 33. Today we continue our look at #12.

#12

Matt Othick

Matt Othick is one of a few former basketball players at the University of Arizona to score 1000 points and acquire 500 assists, a stat sure to please Sean Elliott. He went undrafted in the 1992 NBA Draft but was signed by the San Antonio Spurs on August 19. He played in just 4 games, like Jeff Lebo had done three years prior.

And like Lebo, Othick was released to make a spot for a returning Spurs guard.

On November 19, Othick was waived and the Spurs signed Avery Johnson after his lone season in Houston.

As with Jeff Lebo, these four games were the only NBA action Matt Othick ever saw.

Matt Othick continued to play for the Omaha Racers, Fargo Fever and Yakima Sun Kings in the CBA until 1998.

Jump to 2006 when Othick started developing a film based on the life of Bison Dele (then known as Brian Williams), his former high school and college teammate. Dele, who won a 1997 NBA Championship with the Chicago Bulls (that featured another former Wildcat Steve Kerr), died during a boat trip in 2002 at the hands of his brother.

The film never came to fruition, but an episode of the series Disappeared entitled “Dark Waters” did tell Dele’s story.

His continued interest in feature films paired Othick with his brother Trent as producers for “Yonkers Joe” in 2008 starring Chazz Palminteri.

Since then, Othick has served as a land-broker and investor in Nevada and California. He started Crust Pizzeria with multiple California locations.

After Lebo and Othick, #12 would go almost a full decade unused before Bruce Bowen would suit up with the Spurs.

Next number: After Bruce Bowen, #12 was used for one game.

What’s on your mind, Pounders? Gearing up for the completion of the 2020 NBA season?

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