Early career

Okur notes Toni Kukoč was his favorite player while he was growing up. He helped the Turkish 22-and-under national team to 6th place at the 1997 world championship. He was transferred to Efes Pilsen in 2000 and won a championship in the 2001-2002 Turkish Basketball League season. He averaged 13.5 points per game during his last season in Turkey.

NBA career

Detroit Pistons

Okur was selected 37th overall in the second round of the 2001 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons. He played two seasons for the Pistons from 2002-03 to 2003-04, helping Detroit win the NBA championship in June 2004. He became the first Turkish player to win an NBA championship. Due to salary cap limitations, the Pistons were unable to pay a top-level salary for Okur, but he was able to parlay his success into a six-year, US$50 million contract with the Utah Jazz.

Utah Jazz

Standing 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) and 290 lbs (132 kg), Okur played the center and power forward positions for the Utah Jazz. In his first season (2004-2005) with Utah, he played in all 82 games, starting in 25 of them. Nicknamed "Memo", Okur made his presence felt during his second (2005-2006) season with Utah, increasing his scoring average from 12.9 points per game the previous season to 18.0 points per game. He started in all 82 games for the second straight season, the only Utah Jazz player to do so. In his third season, he continued to be a key player for Utah.

He was named to the Western Conference All-Star team for the 2007 NBA All-Star Game. He and Ray Allen were selected as replacements for injured original members Allen Iverson and Steve Nash. He was the first Turkish player to participate in this event.

On Monday, January 12, 2009, Okur established a new career high in points scored when he scored 43 points against the Indiana Pacers.

On July 10, 2009 Okur signed a two-year contract extension reportedly worth approximately $21 million.

On April 17, 2010, Okur ruptured his Achilles' tendon during the first game of the post-season against the Denver Nuggets, eliminating him from the remainder of the NBA playoffs, as well as the World Basketball Championships in his native Turkey later that summer.

He returned on December 17, 2010 and scored 2 points against the New Orleans Hornets.

New Jersey Nets

On December 22, 2011, Okur was traded to the New Jersey Nets for a 2015 second round pick.

Portland Trail Blazers

On March 15, 2012, Okur was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers along with Shawne Williams and a 2012 1st round draft pick in exchange for Gerald Wallace. He was waived by Portland on March 21, 2012.

Later in 2012, Okur decided to retire from basketball, citing injuries.

Türk Telekom Ankara

In September 2011, Okur signed a contract with Türk Telekom B.K. His contract had an out-clause, which allowed him to return to the NBA when the 2011 NBA lockout was resolved.

Personal life

He is married to actress and former Miss Turkey finalist Yeliz Çalışkan. They have a daughter, Melisa, born on March 21, 2007, and a son, Yiğit Mehmet, born on February 19, 2010.

NBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

†	Denotes season in which Okur won an NBA championship

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2002-03	Detroit	72	9	19.0	.426	.339	.733	4.7	1.0	.3	.5	6.9
2003-04†	Detroit	71	33	22.3	.463	.375	.775	5.9	1.0	.5	.9	9.6
2004-05	Utah	82	25	28.1	.468	.270	.850	7.5	2.0	.4	.8	12.9
2005-06	Utah	82	82	35.9	.460	.342	.780	9.1	2.4	.5	.9	18.0
2006-07	Utah	80	80	33.3	.462	.384	.765	7.2	2.0	.5	.5	17.6
2007-08	Utah	72	72	33.2	.445	.388	.804	7.7	2.0	.8	.4	14.5
2008-09	Utah	72	72	33.5	.485	.446	.817	7.7	1.7	.8	.7	17.0
2009-10	Utah	73	73	29.4	.458	.385	.820	7.1	1.6	.5	1.1	13.5
2010-11	Utah	13	0	12.9	.355	.313	.750	2.3	1.5	.3	.3	4.9
2011-12	New Jersey	17	14	26.7	.374	.319	.600	4.8	1.8	.5	.3	7.6
Career		634	460	29.1	.458	.375	.797	7.0	1.7	.5	.7	13.5
All-Star		1	0	15.0	1.000	.000	.000	2.0	1.0	.0	.0	4.0

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2003	Detroit	17	0	19.0	.438	.538	.531	4.1	.8	.7	.7	5.5
2004	Detroit	22	0	11.5	.470	.400	.692	2.8	.4	.2	.4	3.7
2007	Utah	17	17	34.4	.388	.316	.786	7.8	1.8	1.4	.9	11.8
2008	Utah	12	12	38.5	.423	.373	.773	11.8	1.9	.7	.7	15.4
2009	Utah	2	2	21.5	.167	.333	.750	5.0	2.0	.0	.5	4.0
2010	Utah	1	1	11.0	1.000	1.000	1.000	2.0	.0	.0	.0	7.0
Career		71	32	23.6	.415	.362	.713	5.9	1.1	.7	.6	8.1

[ Source: Wikipedia ]