Ruben Patterson

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Ruben Nathaniel Patterson (born July 31, 1975 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American professional basketball player in the NBA. He was signed (but later released) by the Los Angeles Clippers after playing the final year of a six-year contract with the Milwaukee Bucks. He plays small forward, but has also shown the ability to defend any opposing player from the point guard to the power forward. During his college career at the University of Cincinnati, Patterson earned third-team All-American honors and helped lead the Bearcats to Conference USA titles in both of his seasons there.

[edit] Early life

Patterson had a troubled family life, when both parents and one of his sisters battled drug addiction, and his father spent time in prison. As a youth, he lived mostly with his mother, Charlene Patterson, who eventually died of a heart attack when he was at the University of Cincinnati.

After hearing of her death while on a road trip, he rejected an offer to fly home and spend time with his family, instead staying with his team for the game and scoring 37 points. "My mother would have wanted me to play," Patterson later explained.

[edit] NBA career

Patterson was a second-round selection of the 1998 NBA Draft (31st pick overall), chosen by the Los Angeles Lakers. Due to the lock-out season of 1998, he started the season in Greece playing with AEK Athens BC where he averaged 12.6 points and 3.6 rebounds in 19 games. He has since played for the Lakers, the Seattle SuperSonics, the Portland Trail Blazers, the Denver Nuggets, and the Milwaukee Bucks, averaging a career 10.2 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. He nicknamed himself the "Kobe Stopper" after claiming he could play strong defense against NBA superstar Kobe Bryant, but has long since disowned the nickname.

Often outspoken and erratic, Patterson was temporarily suspended from the Trail Blazers in the 2005-2006 season for speaking harshly at coach Nate McMillan and refusing to return to a game, upset about his lack of playing time. Patterson later explained his outburst, saying he was frustrated and it was "like the devil hit me and told me to get it out".[1] He also demanded that he get at least 25 minutes per game or be traded.

In February 2006, Patterson was traded to the Denver Nuggets. In the following off-season, he was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for Joe Smith. ^[1]

After setting career highs in points and assists, on August 29, 2007, he signed a contract with the Los Angeles Clippers. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. ^[2] The Los Angeles Clippers waived Patterson on December 13, 2007.^[3]

[edit] Personal life

Patterson has been involved in a number of off-the-court issues during his basketball career. Patterson would have to register himself as a sex offender to establish legal residency in many U.S. states, due to pleading guilty in 2001 to attempted rape of his child's nanny in September 2000.^[4] It was reported that he forced the nanny to perform a sex act on him.^[4][5] In February 2001, Patterson was convicted of misdemeanor assault for attacking a man who scratched his car outside a Cleveland, Ohio night club. Patterson was arrested in 2002 for felony domestic abuse charges on his wife. His wife later dropped the charges and they divorced.

He was accused of failing to register as a sex offender on May 15, 2007 after moving into a new house in Cincinnati and a bench warrant was issued.^[6] His agent, former NFL player Tim McGee, said Patterson's failure to register was "an oversight" after Patterson was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine on June 8.

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Ruben Patterson Info Page at NBA.com
• Ruben Patterson Statistics at Basketball-Reference.com
• His stats with AEK