Melvin Turpin

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Melvin Harrison "Mel" Turpin (born December 28, 1960 in Lexington, Kentucky) is an American former professional basketball player.

A 6'11" center known for his powerful slam dunks, Turpin attended the University of Kentucky for four seasons before being drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1984 NBA Draft. Turpin's first two seasons in the NBA were productive, but he struggled with his weight, and after five seasons with the Cavaliers, Utah Jazz, and Washington Bullets, he was forced to retire. Earning the derisive nicknames "Dinner Bell Mel" and "The Mealman," Turpin would be considered one of the biggest busts in a draft class that included Hakeem Olajuwon, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton [1]. As evident in recent interviews, however, Turpin has maintained a healthy sense of humor in regards to his disappointing career, telling Sports Illustrated, "In my day, they thought the big man was supposed to be thin. They didn't know too much. It was medieval" [2].