At 55, Felton Spencer, the former first-round draft pick of the Minnesota Timberwolves, died. Let’s find out how Felton Spencer died as a former Timberwolves center and what Felton Spencer was killed by.
How did Felton Spencer die?
Felton Spencer, an ex-NBA center, died on March 12, 2023. According to the University of Louisville, Felton Spencer, who was a former NBA center, has died. He was selected by the Timberwolves as a sixth-round selection in 1990.
Felton Spencer Causes of Death
We are sorry to announce that Felton Spencer has died. Felton Spencer was known for being a friend and a generous person. An abundance of people are curious about the Felton Spencer cause-of-death. It is not yet known what the exact cause of Felton Spencer’s death was. We will update this story as soon as we have more information. Although our staff cannot confirm any rumors about the news, you can be certain that we are doing all that we can to gather pertinent information about the tragedy as well as present the most current updates as soon as possible. However, please remember that privacy of family members should always be respected.
Who was Felton Spencer?
Felton LaFrance Spencer was an American professional NBA basketball player. He was the center of the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves, Utah Jazz and Orlando Magic teams, as well as San Antonio Spurs, San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks.
Education
Spencer was an all-state basketball star at Eastern High School, Middletown, Kentucky. He led the team to Lexington in the KHSAA state tournament as a junior and senior. Eastern was defeated by Metcalfe County 60-58 in round one of the inaugural season. Eastern was beaten in the quarterfinals by Hazard High School as a senior the next year. While a student at University of Louisville, Spencer was a basketball player for the Louisville Cardinals. He rose to the top with a 62.8% percentage in field goals. Pervis Ellison, who was a senior in 1989-1990 and wanted to play in the NBA, replaced Spencer at center. In that season, Spencer was the Cardinals’ leader in scoring (14.9 ppg), rebounding (8.5 rpg), blocked shots (69) and field goal percentage (68.1%).
NBA
The Minnesota Timberwolves chose Spencer as their sixth overall pick in the 1990 NBA Draft. Spencer played center in his first season with veteran Randy Breuer (7 feet 3 inches, 2.21 meters). Spencer still managed solid stats. He averaged 7.1 points per game and 7.9 rebounds per contest while shooting 51.2% from behind the arc. He finished the season with 272 offensive rebound, which was the seventh most in the NBA. He also stopped 121 shots, which was a record that stood until Kevin Garnett’s rookie campaign 1995-96. For his efforts, Spencer was named to the NBA All-Rookie 2 Team. However, Spencer’s playing time declined over the following two seasons as Luc Longley joined. Minnesota traded Spencer for Mike Brown from the Utah Jazz, a power forward and center, after the 1992-1993 season. Spencer, who was Mark Eaton’s replacement in Minnesota, gave the Jazz strong defense, rebounding, pivot scoring and defense. In 1993-94, he averaged 8.6 points per game and 8.3 rebounds. He also played alongside Karl Malone and John Stockton while shooting 50.5% from behind the arc. Spencer and the Jazz seemed to be on the right track in 1994-95. But, 34 games into the campaign Spencer tore his left Achilles tendon. This ended Spencer’s season.
Despite winning 60 games during the regular season, Utah failed to advance past the first round in the NBA Finals. He was forced to miss 11 games due to an Achilles injury, but he continued to play in all 71 of the games, starting 70, and scoring 5.6 points and 4.3 boards in 17.8 minutes. With a 52.0% career-high field goal percentage, he tied Adam Keefe as second-best. The Orlando Magic lost Shaquille Oleal to the Los Angeles Lakers via free agency. They acquired Spencer on August 10, 1996 in exchange for Kenny Gattison, forward Kenny Thompson, and a first round lottery pick. He only played in one game for Orlando, before being traded to Golden State for Rony Seikaly. Rony joined the Magic. Later, he played in 71 games with the Warriors. He did a great job in the middle, finishing third on the team for rebounding and third in shot block. He was a reserve player in only 68 games due to Erick Dampier’s second-year success and Adonal Foyle’s selection. He played only 6.9 minutes in his 26 substitute appearances in 1998-1999. Spencer became a security guard at Atherton High School after his playing career ended.
In 2011, Spencer joined Spalding University’s Basketball staff as an assistant coach. After that, Spencer was an assistant coach for Spalding University’s basketball team.
Tributes To Felton Spencer
There has been a flood of condolences for the Felton Spencer family, both from the basketball community as well as beyond, since the passing of Felton.
Golden State Warriors PR wrote,
“We remember Felton Spencer, a former Warriors center who died today at the tender age of 55. Felton, a native of Louisville, Kentucky played three seasons with Warriors (1996-1999) during his 12-year NBA career. We send our condolences and sympathies to his family.
Kevin Wright wrote
“I have been watching @LouisvilleMBB for over 35 years and can confidently say that Felton Spencer was the best player I’ve ever seen. He lost weight, took ballet and boxing classes, and worked hard on his footwork in order to become a NBA Lottery Pick.
Thurl Bailey wrote
Felton Spencer’s loved ones are in my thoughts and prayers. He was a great friend and a good NBA teammate. He brought unmatched toughness to the team, and lots of laughter, fun and love to everyone who was around him. REST IN PEACE CHIEF “
Obituary
Losing a loved one is one of the most devastating things in life. Every journey should have an end. Unfortunately, the person’s life on this earth has ended. We send our condolences and thoughts to his family and friends. We pray that he may rest in peace.
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