LeRoy Ellis obit

LeRoy Ellis, one of the original Trail Blazers, passes away Saturday at 72

 

He was not on the list.

LeRoy Ellis, the starting center on the first Trail Blazers team, passed away Saturday evening in Portland after a battle with cancer. He was 72.

A 6-foot-10 center, Ellis played 14 NBA seasons, and was the backup center to Wilt Chamberlain on the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers during the 1971-1972 season. That Lakers team won an NBA-record 33 consecutive games and finished 69-13. The next season, Ellis was traded to Philadelphia, which finished with a 9-73 record, the NBA's worst record in an 82-game schedule.

For the Blazers, Ellis started the first game in franchise history in 1970, when he had 15 points, 22 rebounds and five blocks in a victory over Cleveland. Ellis went on to be the team's third leading scorer (15.9 points a game) and top rebounder (12.3). The points and rebound averages would stand as career highs. He was traded to the Lakers the following season for a second-round pick in the 1972 draft.

"LeRoy Ellis was a very important member of the first Blazers team and was a very high-class individual. We extend our deepest sympathy to his family,'' said Blazers founder and president emeritus, Harry Glickman in a statement.

The Brooklyn, NY native began his NBA career in 1962, when the Lakers selected him with the sixth overall pick in the NBA draft out of St. John's University. His first roommate was NBA legend Jerry West, and he would go on to play in four NBA Finals with the Lakers.

In addition to two stints with the Lakers, Ellis played with Baltimore, Portland and Philadelphia, finishing with career averages of 9.7 points and 8.3 rebounds.

After his career ended in 1976, he lived in Los Angeles and worked for a tire company, then returned to Portland 14 years ago and worked in property management until his illness forced him to stop working in 2009.

He had five kids, including son LeRon Ellis, who played at Kentucky and was a first-round pick in the NBA. The Blazers confirmed his passing Saturday evening, but no details for a service were released.