John Amaechi

One collector is trying to find a single signature from every man who ever played for the Jazz — all 370 of them, from the 1974 New Orleans team to today. For many of them, this page is the only one on the internet. Here is John Amaechi: what he did on the floor, a few things most people never knew, and every card that carries his name. If you own something he signed — or you know who might — there is a note at the foot of this page.

Boston-born but raised by his mother in Stockport, England, Amaechi did not play basketball until age 17 — and still made the NBA, becoming the first undrafted player to start his first game, for Cleveland in 1995. He famously turned down a $17 million Lakers offer to stay in Orlando at $600,000 a year, then played for the Jazz from 2001 to 2003.

In 2007 his memoir Man in the Middle made him the first former NBA player to come out publicly as gay. A two-time Academic All-American at Penn State, he built a second career as a psychologist and consultant, founded Amaechi Performance Systems, and holds an OBE.

HOW HE CAME & WENTUndrafted, he signed with Utah in July 2001 and played 104 games over two seasons. In September 2003 the Jazz traded him to Houston for Glen Rice and future draft picks. Houston later traded him to the New York Knicks, who bought out his contract, and he never played another NBA game.

Full name

John Uzoma Ekwugha Amaechi , OBE

Utah Jazz tenure

2001–03

Position

Center

Born

1970, Boston, Massachusetts

Height

6′10″ (208 cm)

Weight

271 lb (123 kg)

College

Penn State

Drafted

undrafted