Nice Profile of 7-0, 255 pound Mark Blount

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http://www.post-gazette.com/sports_headlines/20000802blount6.asp

Ex-Pitt center Blount changes lifestyle, gets shot at NBA with Celtics

Wednesday, August 02, 2000

By Paul Zeise, Post-Gazette Sports Writer


At 12:01 yesterday morning, one minute past the official start of the
NBA's free-agent signing period, former Pitt center Mark Blount signed a
contract with the Boston Celtics.

Blount, a 7-footer who left Pitt to turn pro after his sophomore year,
will finally get a shot at making it in the NBA. It's the end of a
three-year journey that has been strange and sometimes sad for Blount.

"I have been to the bottom, I have made some bad decisions," he said.
"But I really wouldn't change anything because I have learned a lot
about life, about myself and about what's important. I think part of
life is growing up and learning from your mistakes. A fool is someone
who doesn't ever learn from their mistakes.

"I've learned."

To understand how far he has come, one must know how far he had fallen.

Blount was a part of coach Ralph Willard's star-studded 1995 recruiting
class at Pitt. The class included Vonteego Cummings, Kellii Taylor,
Michael Gill and Andre Howard and was ranked as one of the five best in
the country that year.

Of the five freshmen, only Cummings made it through his four years and
fulfilled his promise. He was drafted in the first round of the 1999 NBA
draft by the Indiana Pacers, traded to the Golden State Warriors and
enjoyed a productive rookie season. Taylor's career was marred by stints
in alcohol rehab programs, injuries and academic problems; Gill and
Howard transferred.

And there was Blount.

He arrived at Pitt after a rocky high school career, having attended
seven different schools and enduring rumors which linked him to an agent
while at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia. But in two seasons at Pitt,
Blount seemed to be putting his troubles behind him. By the middle of
his sophomore year he had shown that he had the tools to become one of
the top players in the Big East by the time he graduated.

Appearances can be deceiving.

"My college career was what it was," said Blount. "I had a lot of bad
people around me, I had a lot of people around me who didn't have my
best interests at heart, and I got a lot of bad advice. I did far too
much partying and not enough time taking care of me. That really set me
up for failure, but I wouldn't change it because in struggle I found
that peace."

Against the advice of many people, Blount decided to leave Pitt after
the 1996-97 season and enter the NBA draft. He was drafted in the second
round by the SuperSonics, but when Seattle worked him out he was an
awkward, skinny 215-pounder and not close to being ready for the NBA.
Seattle didn't sign him.

So Blount didn't get an NBA career, and Pitt basketball foundered
without a big man. Willard lost his job after the '99 season, and Ben
Howland is trying to rebuild the program.

The fact that Blount wasn't ready for the rigors of the NBA physically
was magnified by the fact that he wasn't ready mentally, either. He was
into the party scene and wasn't listening to the people who cared the
most about him.

"I just wasn't mature," Blount said. "I wasn't ready to be a
professional anything at that point. In some ways, the people you have
around you define you if you let them."

After the rejection by Seattle, Blount figured he'd waltz into the
Continental Basketball Association, dominate for a short period and
return to the NBA to collect his millions.

It didn't happen. In fact, it was his experiences in the CBA that
finally brought him to his senses. In 1997-98, he played for the Sioux
Falls Skyforce and averaged just 3.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.
Later in '98 he made a stop in the United States Basketball League but
played only sparingly, making it clear that his height alone would no
longer be enough.

"You start riding buses and going into gyms where there are only 300 or
500 fans, and it is a humbling experience," said Blount. "I was humble
to begin with, but that's when the reality hit me."

In the winter of '98, Blount said he was born again. This meant that he
was no longer going to let what other people thought define him. He was
out to find true peace in his life, and he believed he'd find it only by
accepting Jesus Christ

"It wasn't so much that someone had to come to talk to me about the
Lord," he said, "because I always knew. I was raised in the church, but
I walked away from everything I knew was right and lived a lifestyle
that was contrary to what I knew to be how God wanted me to live. Once I
did that, I had peace.

"Basketball is no longer what drives me or defines me. My whole life,
especially since I was always tall, people always looked at me as a
basketball player first and a person second. Now, whatever people think
of me is not important, I know who I am and I am happy with that
person."

After that experience, Blount began to work more with youth
organizations and was involved in different ministries while trying to
resurrect his basketball career. He quit drinking and partying and cut a
lot of his old friends out of his life.

He began lifting weights, running, practicing his game. At night, he
read his Bible or watched television. Soon, he found that he was ready
to deal with the ups and downs of life and regrets about the past no
longer held him back.

In '99, Blount signed with the Baltimore BayRunners of the International
Basketball League after nearly a year away from the court. He worked
himself back into shape and, by the end of the season, he was the team's
leader in blocked shots. He had gained 20 pounds and was beginning to
look like the dominant center everybody thought he would be when he was
at Pitt.

His workouts increased in intensity, and he gained 20 more pounds after
the IBL season. He then joined the USBL's New Jersey ShoreCats, where he
again dominated He was named first team All-USBL.

He was clearly ready to take the next step, but was the NBA ready to
give him a second chance?

A 7-foot, 255-pound center who can play? Of course.

Several teams showed interest in Blount, but the Celtics were the most
aggressive. Given the team's lack of depth on the front line, Boston was
a perfect fit. After several tryouts, he played for the team in the Shaw
Summer League and impressed enough people to earn a shot at the NBA. The
Celtics signed him to a one-year deal with another year at the club's
option.

"Here's a guy who went through a lot of struggles, failed, but never
quit," said Rick Pitino, the Celtics' president and coach. "Now, he's
worked hard, he's gotten a lot stronger, he's developed his skills, and
he will be a part of an NBA team, whereas a lot of guys who got drafted
this year won't. It is great success story, but one that is still in
progress."

Blount's work ethic is what impressed Pitino and the Celtics most.. The
self-described gym rat said he has 6 percent body fat. He spends three,
four sometimes five hours per day in the gym working on his jump shots
and post moves, and he lifts weights, runs and works out on treadmills.

"My mother always said that sometimes you have to go through the
wilderness to get to the promised land," he said. "Now, I'm on the verge
of getting into the promised land, but this doesn't mean I quit working
now and take it easy. Now, the hard work begins. Now, every day, I have
to push it harder and keep focused on the things that have brought me
here. I know where I have been, I'm not ever going to return.

"People may still say I made a mistake in leaving Pitt or whatever, but
the truth is, I might not be here today if I didn't."