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Looking forany autographMehmet Okur
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 Mehmet Okur: 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.
'Memo is Money,' Jazz fans said, and the 6'11" Turk earned it — a three-point shooting center with a taste for big shots across seven Utah seasons. Okur arrived in 2004 on a six-year, $50 million deal, fresh off becoming the first Turkish player to win an NBA title with Detroit. In 2007 he became the first Turk in an All-Star Game, and he once scored 43 against Indiana. A ruptured Achilles in the 2010 playoffs cut his prime short.
He served as a Jazz ambassador, then in 2016 became the first Turkish-born coach on an NBA staff, developing players for Phoenix. He and his wife Yeliz, a former Miss Turkey finalist, are raising three children in San Diego.
HOW HE CAME & WENTFresh off a title in Detroit, he signed a six-year deal with Utah on July 27, 2004 and gave the club seven seasons and an All-Star appearance. A ruptured Achilles and back trouble cost him almost all of 2010-11, and that December the Jazz moved his $11 million salary to New Jersey for a trade exception and a second-round pick.
- Full name
- Mehmet Murat Okur
- Utah Jazz tenure
- 2004–11
- Position
- Center
- Born
- 1979, Yalova, Turkey
- Height
- 6′11″ (211 cm)
- Weight
- 249 lb (113 kg)
- Drafted
- 2001, 2nd round (No. 38), Detroit
A card. A photo. A program. A page from an old autograph book. Anything he put his name on.
You do not need to know what it is. Take a photo with your phone and send it to me. I will tell you what you have, for free, whether or not anything comes of it. I pay the postage both ways. I answer every message myself, usually the same day.
With the Jazz
MEHMET OKUR · 2004–11 · PER GAME| SEASON | TEAM | G | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004–05 | UTA | 82 | 28.1 | 12.9 | 7.5 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 0.8 | .468 | .270 | .850 |
| 2005–06 | UTA | 82 | 35.9 | 18.0 | 9.1 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.9 | .460 | .342 | .780 |
| 2006–07 | UTA | 80 | 33.3 | 17.6 | 7.2 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | .462 | .384 | .765 |
| 2007–08 | UTA | 72 | 33.2 | 14.5 | 7.7 | 2.0 | 0.8 | 0.4 | .445 | .388 | .804 |
| 2008–09 | UTA | 72 | 33.5 | 17.0 | 7.7 | 1.7 | 0.8 | 0.7 | .485 | .446 | .817 |
| 2009–10 | UTA | 73 | 29.4 | 13.5 | 7.1 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 1.1 | .458 | .385 | .820 |
| 2010–11 | UTA | 13 | 12.9 | 4.9 | 2.3 | 1.5 | 0.3 | 0.3 | .355 | .313 | .750 |
| JAZZ TOTAL | 7 SEASONS | 474 | 31.7 | 15.3 | 7.6 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 0.7 | .462 | .381 | .804 |
Season by season, regular season, with this franchise only. More info: Basketball-Reference ↗ · Wikipedia ↗
Did you know
MEHMET OKUR · 4 NOTES- A stretch centre before the term existed, shooting nearly 38 percent from three for his career.
- He grew up idolizing Toni Kukoc, a fitting model for a big man whose defining skill was shooting from the perimeter.
- Before Detroit called he won the Turkish championship with Efes Pilsen in 2002, averaging 13.1 points and 8.1 rebounds.
- He left the floor late in a win over Golden State on learning his wife was headed to the hospital, then flew with the team to Los Angeles two days later on almost no sleep.