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This is going to rock
The Mark Eaton Story: Coming Soon to a Theater Near You
Posted Dec 27th 2006 6:00AM by Matt Watson
Filed under: Western, Jazz
If you thought former Jazz center Mark Eaton looked big on the basketball court, just wait until you see him on the silver screen. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that Utah-based screenwriter/producer/director Stacy Dymalski is working on a movie about Eaton's life, hoping audiences will relate to Eaton much in the same way they do Rudy and Rocky.
Wait, you're telling me a 7-foot-4 basketball player was once an underdog? Hard to believe, but it's true. After barely playing for his high school team, he became an auto mechanic for two years before being spotted by Tom Lubin, a local college recruiter. After a couple of years of junior college he landed at UCLA where he again languished on the bench.
Despite barely playing in college, the Jazz took a chance on him with a fourth-round pick simply because of his size, and it wasn't long until he developed into an absolute force (and I'm not just talking about his legendary beard). The guy put up numbers absolutely unheard of by today's standards: he averaged 3.5 blocks per game over an 11-year career, and in 1985 he rejected a ridiculous 5.6 shots per game, which is still an NBA record.
"So many people go through life and cannot change direction," said Lubin. "When I first met Mark, he didn't like being tall. He was very sound at work. He was a very good mechanic. But he didn't like himself for being that tall.
"The greatest thing I see is how basketball allowed him to smile and be happy with himself. Everything that has happened was supposed to happen. That's how I feel. It's just beautiful."
Beautiful enough to actually make it to theaters? Time will tell, but I'd sure as hell see this movie before I ever watch the Ryan Leaf story.
Last edited by white360 : 01-02-2007 at 04:37 PM.
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Is this for real?
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