Luke Ridnour

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Lucas Robin (Luke) Ridnour (born February 13, 1981) is an American professional basketball player for the Seattle SuperSonics of the NBA. He was born in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and grew up in Blaine, Washington.

[edit] High school career

He is the son of Rob Ridnour, a former high school basketball coach and current coach of the International Basketball League's Bellingham Slam. When Luke was a high-school sophomore he was given the keys to the gym by his father to practice at night. He was on two state title-winning teams at Blaine High School, and was named a high school All-American by both McDonald's and Parade in 2000 his graduating year.

[edit] College career

Ridnour went on to star at the University of Oregon, where he teamed with Luke Jackson to take the Ducks to the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament twice including the Elite 8 in 2002. He set the school season record for assists (218) and made a conference-record 62 consecutive free throws.

Ridnour left Oregon after his junior year, when he was Pac-10 Player of the Year, and was picked 14th in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics. Ridnour was so widely appreciated for his efforts at University of Oregon that, during his final game, the entire arena of MacArthur Court chanted "one more year" so loudly that the game had to be stopped while he walked off the court^{[citation needed]}. Though he seemed to hint during this game that he might stay, he later announced his early departure from the University of Oregon to pursue his endeavor to play in the NBA.

[edit] NBA career

Ridnour played sparingly his rookie season, but became the starting point guard for the Sonics in the 2004-05 season. He participated in the 2005 All-Star weekend, playing in the Rookie Challenge and in the Skills Challenge.

Nate McMillan, despite giving substantial minutes to career backup PGs like Kevin Ollie and Antonio Daniels in place of Ridnour, is reported to have projected Ridnour as a future superstar of the NBA. NBAdraft.net compared him to Steve Nash and John Stockton, although his statistics such as Player Efficiency Rating and defense are actually inferior at roughly the 7,000-minute mark of his career when compared to those two at the same point. Ridnour considers Michael Jordan one of his biggest influences and personal heroes^{[citation needed]}. He is currently sharing minutes at the point guard spot for the Sonics with Earl Watson, as former coach Bob Hill has said Ridnour, "Needs to keep working hard if he wants to continue starting."^[1]

[edit] References

1. ^ Percy Allen (2006-10-02). Sonics facing a harmony test. The Seattle Times. Retrieved on 2007-02-22.