Tom Copa

Thomas James Copa (born October 30, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player. After graduating from Marquette he went on to play professionally in the NBA and in Europe. Born in Robbinsdale, Minnesota, he was named Minnesota Mr. Basketball in 1983.[1]

Tom Copa
Personal information
Born (1964-10-30) October 30, 1964
Robbinsdale, Minnesota
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight275 lb (125 kg)
Career information
High schoolCoon Rapids
(Coon Rapids, Minnesota)
CollegeMarquette (1983–1987)
NBA draft1987 / Undrafted
Playing career1988–1993
PositionCenter
Number30
Career history
1988–1991Maccabi Brussels
1991–1992San Antonio Spurs
1992–1993La Crosse Bobcats
1993Saski Baskonia
1993Libertas Livorno
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men’s basketball
Representing  United States
FIBA Americas Championship
1993 San Juan Team competition

College career

Copa played college basketball for Marquette Warriors from 1983 to 1987. In 120 career games, he averaged 8.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.

Professional career

Although chosen with the 44th pick in the 1987 CBA draft,[2] Copa moved to Vail, Colorado after graduating where he worked as a shuttle-bus driver from the Stapleton Airport to Vail for the winter. The following summer, he attended a camp for European scouts where he had an good showing and was eventually signed by Belgian club Maccabi Brussels. He spent three seasons in Belgium, including the 1990–91 season where he averaged 21.2 points and 14.4 rebounds. During the summer of 1991, he attended a rookie free agent camp in Austin ran by the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs later signed him as a free agent.[3] During the 1991-92 NBA season, Copa averaged 1.5 points and 1.1 rebounds in 33 total games played.[4]

The following season, he signed with the Houston Rockets but was waived before the start of the season.[3] He later signed with the La Crosse Bobcats in the CBA where he went on to average 8.3 points and 6.7 rebounds in 20 games.[5] In January 1993, he signed with Saski Baskonia.[6] The following season he signed with Italian club Libertas Livorno but was waived after one game. Following his release and due to the toll his playing career had taken on his body, Copa retired from professional basketball.[7][3]

References
  1. "Wadkins Holds On To Win Golf Meet". The Milwaukee Journal. Google News Archive. April 25, 1983. Retrieved August 19, 2010.
  2. "1987 CBA Draft". sportsstats.com. Archived from the original on 21 May 2006.
  3. "Tom Copa Is Talkin' With TJ". San Antonio Spurs. 9 November 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  4. "Spurs history" (PDF). NBA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 October 2012.
  5. "Tom Copa Statistics on JustSportsStats.com". JustSportsStats.com. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  6. "ACB - Tom Copa". acb.com (in Spanish). Liga ACB. Archived from the original on 13 February 2005.
  7. "Legabasket Serie A - Tom Copa" (in Italian). Retrieved 1 December 2020.


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