Steve Puidokas
Personal information
Born(1955-04-12)April 12, 1955
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedAugust 12, 1994(1994-08-12) (aged 39)
Sardinia, Italy
Listed height6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight265 lb (120 kg)
Career information
High schoolSt. Laurence (Burbank, Illinois)
CollegeWashington State (1973–1977)
NBA draft1977: 3rd round, 57th overall pick
Selected by the Washington Bullets
PositionCenter
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

Steven John Puidokas (April 12, 1955 – August 12, 1994) was an American professional basketball player in Europe.[1] He played college basketball for the Washington State Cougars from 1973 to 1977.[2][3] He left Washington State as both their all-time leading scorer with 1,894 points and all-time leading rebounder with 992 rebounds. He was inducted posthumously into the Pac-12 Conference Men's Basketball Hall of Honor in 2012.[2]

Puidokas was the first Washington State men's basketball player to have his number (55) retired, and remained the only one until the school retired Klay Thompson's in 2020.[4]

As a high school player, Puidokas was named a third-team All-American by Parade Magazine in 1973.[5]

Personal life

In 1955, Steve Puidokas was born in a Lithuanian American family of John Julian Puidokas and Genovaitė Giedraitis in Chicago.[6] Puidokas was married to an Italian woman and had five children. He died at the age of 39 because of problems with his heart while living in Sardinia, Italy.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Newnham, Blaine (February 14, 1997). "Puidokas' Impact Great Even Without WSU Scoring Record". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on February 4, 2015.
  2. 1 2 Degerman, Eric (March 5, 2012). "Pac-12 to honor WSU great Puidokas during tournament". Tri-City Herald. Archived from the original on May 5, 2012.
  3. ↑ Weaver, Dan (September 12, 2006). "The life and times of Steve Puidokas". Scout.com. Archived from the original on May 17, 2012.
  4. ↑ "WSU Athletics to Retire Klay Thompson's Jersey" (Press release). Washington State Cougars. September 30, 2019. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Prep All-America". Pomona Progress-Bulletin. March 30, 1973. p. 24. Retrieved August 7, 2014 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. 1 2 "Pamiršta žvaigždė: laiką aplenkęs Čikagos lietuvis, kuriam prilygsta tik Klay Thompsonas". DELFI (in Lithuanian). Retrieved March 6, 2021.


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