Robert Elmore (basketball)

Robert Elmore
Personal information
Born(1954-10-23)October 23, 1954
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedNovember 26, 1977(1977-11-26) (aged 23)
Rome, Italy
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High schoolJohn Adams (Queens, New York)
College
NBA draft1977: 4th round, 67th overall pick
Drafted byNew Jersey Nets
Playing career1977–1977
PositionCenter
Career history
1977Lazio
Career highlights
  • 3× First-team All-MVC (1975–1977)
  • MVC Newcomer of the Year (1975)
Stats at Basketball Reference 

Robert Louis Elmore (October 23, 1954 – November 26, 1977) was an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Wichita State Shockers and was a fourth round selection by the New Jersey Nets in the 1977 NBA draft. Elmore began his professional career in Italy where he died of drug induced circulatory failure during his rookie season.

Early life

Elmore lived in housing projects in Brooklyn until his family moved to a house in Jamaica, Queens, when he was nine.[1] He was raised alongside his three siblings: brothers Len and Cliff, and sister Laverne.[2] Elmore's first passion was baseball but he was encouraged to play basketball in high school because of his height.[2] He was known as "Big Mo" to his friends.[2]

Elmore was involved with what he described as "kid gangs" while growing up in Queens.[3] When he was around 14, he made the decision to leave his friends to focus on basketball.[3] Elmore's father wanted him to attend Power Memorial Academy in Manhattan where his brother Len was emerging as a basketball player but Elmore decided to stay in Queens where he attended John Adams High School.[2] He was ineligible to play on the school basketball team during his first two years because of his academics.[2] Elmore debuted during his senior year when he averaged 16 points and 13 rebounds per game.[3] He was again declared academically ineligible for the final two games of the season.[2]

Elmore did not graduate from high school and received his high school equivalency at Jamaica Vocational School.[2]

College career

Elmore enrolled at Wharton County Junior College where he played basketball and averaged 16 points and 12 rebounds per game.[3] Elmore was contacted by Wichita State Shockers head coach Harry Miller who offered him a scholarship.[3]

Elmore broke his foot two games into his first year with the Shockers and missed the rest of the 1973–74 season.[4] He returned to be named as the MVC Newcomer of the Year in 1975 and was a three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) first-team selection from 1975 to 1977.[5] He led the MVC in rebounding all three seasons he played.[2] Elmore was the first Shockers player to record more than 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.[5] His career totals of 1,039 rebounds and 132 blocks both rank second in Shockers program history.[6]

Elmore was inducted into the Wichita State Shocker Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.[5]

Professional career

Elmore was selected by the New Jersey Nets as the first pick of the fourth round in the 1977 NBA draft.[7] He reacted to his drafting: "I was kind of surprised. But they need a center."[7] On July 24, Elmore signed a multi-year deal with the Nets.[8] During a Nets practice session in September, Elmore "showed astounding lack of physical conditioning" and Nets head coach Kevin Loughery remarked that he "has probably never really been in shape in his life."[9] On October 10, Elmore was waived by the Nets.[10]

On October 12, 1977, Elmore signed with Lazio Eldorado in Italy;[11] his contract was for $30,000 a year.[12] His Lazio teammate, Abdul Jeelani, remarked that Elmore was "kind of disappointed that he hadn't made the Nets."[13] Elmore played in six games with Lazio and scored 115 points; he ranked third in the league in blocks and fourth in rebounds.[14] Lazio head coach, Giancarlo Asteo, called Elmore "a great player with a great personality."[11]

Death

Elmore shared an apartment in Rome with his teammate Jeelani until two weeks before his death when Jeelani's wife arrived and they moved into their own apartment.[15] Asteo remarked that Elmore was "obviously alone" during his time in Rome and "especially when [Jeelani] left."[15]

On November 26, 1977, Elmore was found dead in his Rome apartment.[16] Lazio's general manager, de Micheli, had been unable to contact Elmore by phone throughout the day;[12] the general manager visited Elmore's apartment where he received no answer.[15] de Micheli and the building's night porter entered Elmore's apartment by smashing the balcony window.[15] Elmore was discovered slumped in an armchair in front of a television.[15] On the floor next to the chair were several grams of hashish, a syringe containing a yellow liquid, and heroin in both powdered and hardened form.[15]

An autopsy performed by an investigating judge declared that Elmore died of "a massive circulatory failure due to the presence of heroin in the system."[15] The heroin dose was powerful enough to kill him outright.[15] A second autopsy and the findings of a police investigation were not released.[15] Elmore was not a regular user of drugs and the fatal needle mark that was found on his arm was the only one located.[13] His friends were adamant that Elmore had not committed suicide.[17]

Elmore had written earlier to his brother, Cliff, that he had met a local black woman who was a dealer of hashish and cocaine.[15] When Cliff and his father arrived in Rome to return Elmore's body, they tracked down the woman who offered them a jar with cocaine and flashed a purse filled with money during their meeting.[15] Cliff believed that she had intended to display that she had no need for Elmore's finances nor had any role in foul play.[15]

On November 27, Lazio observed a minute of silence before their game against Pintinox in memory of Elmore.[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ Charlip, Julie; Williamson, Don (January 15, 1978). "Big Mo's Story". The Wichita Eagle. p. 1. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Charlip, Julie; Williamson, Don (January 15, 1978). "At 6-10, He Couldn't Be Just Robert Elmore". The Wichita Eagle. p. 15. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b c d e Swagerty, John (July 22, 2014). "Shocker Summer: Elmore's early crossroad led to choice of basketball". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  4. ^ "Shocker Cagers Young, Promising". The Wichita Eagle. October 17, 1974. p. 42. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b c "2014 Hall of Fame Inductee: Robert Elmore". Wichita State University. January 18, 2014. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  6. ^ Suellentrop, Paul (December 23, 2013). "Robert Elmore leads list of Shocker Sports Hall of Fame inductees". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  7. ^ a b Elliott, Mal (June 11, 1977). "Nets Choose Elmore In 4th Round of Draft". The Wichita Eagle. p. 41. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Bob Elmore signs multi-year Net pact". The Star-Ledger. July 24, 1977. p. 113. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Weber, Mike (September 21, 1977). "Fox quitting after 10 years". The Star-Ledger. p. 67. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Nets Down To 13 Players". Daily Record. October 11, 1977. p. 25. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ a b "Wichita's Elmore Dies in Rome". Tulsa World. November 27, 1977. p. 73. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ a b "In Rome, Determination To Recapture the Glow". The Wichita Eagle. January 15, 1978. p. 1. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ a b Newman, Bruce (January 28, 1980). "BASKETBALL ITALIAN STYLE". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  14. ^ a b "Cagers Mourn Teammate". The Salt Lake Tribune. November 28, 1977. p. 28. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "In Rome, Determination to Recapture the Glow". The Wichita Eagle. January 15, 1978. p. 14. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Sports News Briefs". The New York Times. November 27, 1977. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  17. ^ Charlip, Julie; Williamson, Don (January 15, 1978). "'Dead Players Don't Produce,' a Friend Said Quietly". The Wichita Eagle. p. 16. Retrieved August 25, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
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