Mark Landsberger

Mark Walter Landsberger (born May 21, 1955) is a retired American professional basketball player. At 6'8" and 215 pounds, he played power forward and center for the Los Angeles Lakers from 1980–1983.

Mark Landsberger
Personal information
Born (1955-05-21) May 21, 1955
Minot, North Dakota, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High schoolMounds View
(Arden Hills, Minnesota)
College
NBA draft1977: 2nd round, 35th overall pick
Selected by the Chicago Bulls
Playing career1977–1993
PositionPower forward / center
Number54
Career history
1977–1980Chicago Bulls
1980–1983Los Angeles Lakers
1983–1984Atlanta Hawks
1987–1989Panionios
1989–1991Montecatini Sporting Club
1991–1992CB Collado Villalba
1992–1993Gimnasia y Esgrima (CR)
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points2,468 (5.6 ppg)
Rebounds2,681 (6.1 rpg)
Assists236 (0.5 apg)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

Career

Landsberger attended Mounds View High School (Arden Hills, Minnesota) where he graduated in 1973 after leading the Mustangs to the 1972 AA State Championship as a junior.[1] In his senior campaign, he averaged 26.1 points per game,[2] and led the Mustangs back to the state tournament and the consolation championship. Over his high school varsity career, he scored 1,290 points and grabbed 910 rebounds.[2]

Landsberger then attended Allan Hancock College, where he was the California junior college player of the year,[3] the University of Minnesota, and Arizona State University. At ASU, he set school records for most rebounds in a game (27) and highest rebounds-per game average in a season (14.4).[4] After college, he was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the second round of the 1977 NBA draft.[5] He appeared in 196 games for the Bulls from 1977 to 1980, averaging 7.4 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game.[6] On January 28, 1979, Landsberger grabbed 29 rebounds in a game against the Denver Nuggets. At the time, this was the third-highest single-game rebounding total in Chicago Bulls history.[7] That season, Landsberger ranked seventh in the league in total offensive rebounds, with 292.[8]

On February 13, 1980, the Bulls traded Landsberger to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Oliver Mack and two second round draft choices.[9] Landsberger remained in Los Angeles until 1983. Playing behind future hall-of-famers like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, and Magic Johnson, he averaged 4.7 points per game and 5.2 rebounds per game with the Lakers. He won NBA Championship rings as a reserve in 1980 and 1982.[5]

Landsberger started the 1983-84 NBA season with the Lakers but was waived later that year before given any playing time. He signed with the Atlanta Hawks on December 29, 1983,[10] where he averaged 1.5 points and 3.4 rebounds in 35 games to finish the season. This was his last season in the NBA, and he ended his NBA career with 2,468 total points and 2,681 total rebounds.[5] He played professionally in Europe until the 1990s.[11] Among the highlights of his European career was a 34 rebound game while playing for Lotus Montecatini Terme in Lucca/Italy on November 11, 1990.[12] That performance set a record for most rebounds in an Italian league game.[13] Landsberger also set Greek league records for most rebounds in a game (31) and highest rebounds per game average for a season (17.9).

On June 21, 2021, it was announced by Deadline that Landsberger will be portrayed by actor Austin Aaron in the upcoming HBO series Winning Time. The series is set to premiere in March 2022.[14]

References
  1. David La Vaque. "Mustangs man 38 years in the making ; Mounds View boys' basketball coach Ziggy Kauls will enter his 39th season of coaching as a Hall of Fame member". Star Tribune. October 26, 2005. 1N.
  2. Mounds View High School Basketball Program. 2010. Retrieved on October 16, 2011.
  3. "Landsberger stars as Minnesota wins". The Milwaukee Journal. January 21, 1975. 8.
  4. Arizona State men's basketball media guide. 2006. pages 147-148.
  5. Jan Hubbard, et al. The Official NBA Encyclopedia. New York: Doubleday, 2000
  6. Alex Sachare. The Chicago Bulls Encyclopedia. Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1999.
  7. K.C. Johnson. "Performance a grabber". Chicago Tribune. December 16, 2006.
  8. Mark Landsberger. basketball-reference.com. Retrieved on October 16, 2011.
  9. Chicago Bulls All-Time Transactions. NBA.com. Retrieved on December 27, 2006.
  10. 1983-84 NBA Transactions basketball-reference.com. Retrieved on August 18, 2022.
  11. Sam Smith. "Johnson leads rookie race". Austin-American Statesman. April 12, 1992.
  12. against Banco Sardegna Sassari 93-73, Landsberger 24 pts.
  13. "BASKET STORY intervista: Mark Landsberger" [BASKET STORY interview: Mark Landsberger] (in Italian). BasketNet. 22 January 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-04-05. Retrieved 17 October 2011.
  14. "Mike Epps Set as Richard Pryor, Three Others Cast in HBO's L.A. Lakers Drama Series". 21 June 2021.
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