NBA.com: Joe Kleine Bio

Joe Kleine has been a competent backup and occasional starting center in the NBA for 14 seasons. Perhaps best known as an understudy to Robert Parish with the Boston Celtics in the early 1990s, Kleine has also made contributions for the Sacramento Kings and the Phoenix Suns. A huge talent in college and a member of the gold-medal-winning 1984 U.S. Olympic basketball team, Kleine began his college career at Notre Dame but transferred to Arkansas after his freshman season. After sitting out a year, he became the Southwest Conference Newcomer of the Year for 1982-83. Kleine increased his scoring in each of three seasons at Arkansas, averaging 22.1 points and 8.4 rebounds as a senior in 1984-85. As a junior, his scoring average was better than that of Southwest Conference foe Hakeem Olajuwon, who was then a senior. The Kings took Kleine with the sixth overall pick of the 1985 NBA Draft, and he spent 3 seasons in Sacramento. Although he is a strong 7-footer, his lack of explosiveness has prevented him from becoming an NBA force--his highest scoring average in the NBA so far was 9.8 points per game with the Kings in 1987-88. But he is a solid defensive presence and possesses a nice shooting touch. In 1988-89, his .882 free throw percentage tied for sixth in the league. After 3 seasons at Sacramento, Kleine, who bears a physical resemblance to former Boston Celtics great and current Charlotte Hornets coach Dave Cowens, was traded to Boston, where he backed up Robert Parish for more than four seasons. Kleine averaged between 3.3 and 5.4 points and between 3.4 and 4.4 rebounds in those seasons. Kleine became a free agent in 1993 and signed with Phoenix. In his second year with the Suns, 1994-95, he started 42 games for a team that won the Pacific Division title. He primarily came off the bench in 1995-96, providing solid rebounding and pivot play in limited playing time. After spending 11 seasons with three teams, Kleine managed to wear three uniforms within a span of six weeks in 1996-97. He began the season with Phoenix, was traded to the Lakers in January and was dealt on to New Jersey in February. Overall he appeared in 59 games, making 10 starts while with Phoenix but otherwise playing in a reserve role. Prior to the 1997-98 season, Kleine was signed by the Chicago Bulls to provide depth at the center position and he appeared in 46 games, averaging 2.0 points and 1.7 rebounds. But he was not on the team's playoff roster as it won the NBA Championship. He returned to Phoenix as a free agent prior to the 1998-99 season and played in 31 games, including five starts. Kleine averaged 2.2 points and 2.2 rebounds per game.

1998-1999 REGULAR SEASON
Activated from the injured list on 12/1 Placed on the injured list with a sprained right index finger on 11/16 Scored 10 points (4-7 FG, 2-2 FT) in a 104-90 victory over the Houston Rockets on 3/14

1997-1998 REGULAR SEASON
On the injured list from 1/23 to 2/1, and from 3/29 to 4/9, due to patellar tendinitis of the left knee

1996-1997 REGULAR SEASON
Keline began the season with Phoenix and played in 23 games, making 10 starts, before he was traded by the Suns with Robert Horry to the Lakers for Cedric Ceballos and Rumeal Robinson on Jan. 10, 1997. He then appeared in eight games with Los Angeles before he was traded again on Feb. 20, this time going to New Jersey along with a 1997 first-round draft choice and a conditional second-round draft choice for George McCloud. Kleine appeared in 28 games for New Jersey, averaging 3.0 points, 4.1 rebounds and 16.2 minutes. For the season he played in 59 games, making 10 starts, and averaged 2.8 poins and 3.4 rebounds in 14.4 minutes.

1995-1996 REGULAR SEASON
Kleine played 663 minutes in 56 games, both career lows, in 1995-96, but continued to provide rebounding depth and pivot experience when called upon. He averaged 2.9 points and 2.4 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per game, but as a starter in nine games he averaged 6.0 ppg and 5.7 rpg in 25.0 mpg. On Jan. 17 against Orlando, he had season highs of nine rebounds and four assists, while on Jan. 12 vs. Dallas he scored a season-high 15 points, shooting 7-for-9 from the field and getting 12 of his points in the third quarter. Kleine, who missed four of the last five regular season games after fainting during the national anthem prior to a game at the Lakers on April 14, played a total of just eight minutes in two playoff games. He was scoreless, with one rebound.

1994-1995 REGULAR SEASON
In 1994-95 Kleine enjoyed one of the more satisfying seasons of his 10-year NBA career. With Oliver Miller and Mark West having departed, the Phoenix Suns instituted a tiered center rotation featuring Kleine, fellow veteran Danny Schayes, and forward-center Wayman Tisdale. Kleine started 42 games for the Suns, who won the Pacific Division with a 59-23 record. On a team filled with gunners, Kleine's job was to play defense, set screens, and hit the boards. He managed to average 3.7 points and 3.5 rebounds while shooting .449 from the field and .857 from the line. He logged 12.9 minutes per game, becoming 1 of 12 Suns players to average in double figures in minutes for the season. His season highs included 13 points and 11 rebounds. Kleine recorded some of his best games in the playoffs. He hit 6 of 8 field-goal attempts in the Suns' first-round sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers. Facing the Houston Rockets in the conference semifinals, Kleine was assigned to pull Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon away from the basket; Kleine hit 25 of 46 shots (.543), many of those from the outside, while averaging 7.3 points and 3.9 rebounds. Houston won in seven games.

1993-1994 REGULAR SEASON
Signing as a free agent with the Phoenix Suns on August 13, 1993, Kleine hoped to gain a new lease on life. During his eight-year career he had already played for a perennial lottery participant (the Sacramento Kings) and a playoff team on the downside of its former glory (the Boston Celtics). With Phoenix, Kleine had the opportunity to contribute to a team that appeared to be building toward a championship, and the Suns welcomed the extra power he brought to their front line. As the team's back-up center in 1993-94, Kleine appeared in 74 games, averaging 3.9 points and 2.6 rebounds in 11.5 minutes per contest. Phoenix did not realize its playoff dreams, however, dropping a Western Conference Semifinals series to the Houston Rockets, who went on to win the NBA title. Kleine saw action in 8 of the Suns' 10 postseason games, contributing 3.5 points per contest.

1992-1993 REGULAR SEASON
Completing his fourth full season as a member of the Boston Celtics, Kleine actually saw his playing time increase slightly in 1992-93. Injuries to Ed Pinckney and the retirement of Larry Bird opened up some space for the veteran on the Celtics' front line. Kleine appeared in 78 games and averaged 3.3 points and 4.4 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per game. In 32 minutes versus the Sacramento Kings on March 29, he recorded a career-high 20 rebounds, joining Robert Parish and Larry Bird as the only Celtics to grab 20 boards in a regular-season game since 1980-81. The Celtics were stunned by the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. Kleine played in all four games, averaging only 1.6 points.

1991-1992 REGULAR SEASON
Kleine played in 70 games for the Celtics and averaged only 4.7 points and 4.2 rebounds in 14.2 minutes per game. He managed to establish a career high in field-goal percentage (.491) despite the limited playing opportunities. On February 17 his three-pointer against the Utah Jazz was Boston's only field goal in a fourth quarter that saw the team shoot 1-for-19. Despite Larry Bird's appearance in only 45 games because of back injuries, the Celtics won 51 regular-season games, swept the Indiana Pacers in the opening round of the playoffs, and advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Boston then lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a tight seven-game series. Kleine appeared in nine postseason games and totaled 20 points and 22 rebounds.

1990-1991 REGULAR SEASON
With Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish still trudging along and Ed Pinckney and Kevin Gamble receiving significant minutes in the Boston frontcourt, Kleine's playing time dipped considerably in 1990-91. He nonetheless made 72 appearances and averaged 3.6 points and 3.4 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per game. Kleine played in 53 of the Celtics' first 56 games, including a stretch of 32 straight from December 20 through February 27. He appeared in 5 of Boston's 11 games in the 1991 NBA Playoffs, totaling 8 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes. He started in place of an injured Robert Parish in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, but Boston lost the game in overtime, handing the Detroit Pistons the series.

1989-1990 REGULAR SEASON
In his first full season with Boston, Kleine appeared in 81 games, largely playing the sixth-man role for "Gang Green." He averaged 5.4 points and 4.4 rebounds in 16.9 minutes per game. Despite being called upon for spot duty, he shot a respectable .480 from the floor and an impressive .830 from the free-throw line. Kleine recorded at least 10 rebounds six times and at least 10 points 14 times. In his first start of the season he scored 18 points against the Atlanta Hawks and held Moses Malone to 4 points on 1-for-7 shooting. In a March 11 game against the Philadelphia 76ers he hit the game-winning field goal with 8.2 seconds left on the clock. Kleine played in all five Celtics playoff games, shooting .765 from the floor as Boston lost a first-round series to the New York Knicks.

1988-1989 REGULAR SEASON
Kleine began his fourth NBA season with Sacramento but finished it in Boston, as a February 23 trade brought the former Arkansas star east. He played in 47 games for the Kings before Sacramento sent Kleine and Ed Pinckney to the Celtics for Danny Ainge and Brad Lohaus. The trade, which slipped in just before the NBA's trading deadline, was necessitated by the fact that Celtics star Larry Bird was sidelined with bone spurs in both heels. Bird missed all but six games in 1988-89. Despite the change in scenery, Kleine's role remained the same: his job was to spell Boston's laboring frontcourt players, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. At the time of the trade, Kleine was averaging 6.7 points and 5.1 rebounds in 19.4 minutes per game. He then appeared in 28 games with the Celtics and contributed 6.0 points and 4.9 rebounds in 17.8 minutes per contest.

1987-1988 REGULAR SEASON
Kleine was one of only two Sacramento Kings to play in all 82 games, coming off the bench for the first 22 contests and starting the final 60. His 9.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game would be the best marks of his career, as he ranked second on the team in rebounding behind Otis Thorpe (10.2 rpg). Continuing to improve, Kleine scored in double figures 38 times, up from 29 the previous season. He grabbed at least 10 rebounds in 21 games, up from 11 in 1986-87, and he scored a season-best 23 points twice-on March 23 at Los Angeles against the Clippers and on April 2 at home against the same club.

1986-1987 REGULAR SEASON
Kleine finished his second NBA season with improved scoring (7.9 ppg) and rebounding (6.1 rpg) numbers. In February he moved into the Kings' starting lineup and started 29 games during the rest of the season. He averaged 12.3 points and 8.1 rebounds in those games. Kleine scored in double figures 29 times during the year, including each of the final nine games. He poured in 20 or more points on five occasions, including a career-best 22 twice-on March 22 against the Los Angeles Lakers and on April 6 against the Jazz in Utah. Kleine had 11 double-figure rebounding outings and 10 double-doubles.

1985-1986 REGULAR SEASON
A two-time All-Southwest Conference selection who led the SWC in scoring in his senior year, the University of Arkansas' Joe Kleine was also a member of the gold medal-winning 1984 U.S. Olympic basketball team. After his freshman year in 1981, Kleine had transferred to Arkansas from Notre Dame. In his three seasons in Fayetteville he averaged 18.1 points and 9.0 rebounds. He led the Razorbacks in scoring and rebounding as a junior and senior. Kleine was selected by the Sacramento Kings in the first round (sixth pick overall) of the 1985 NBA Draft, then played in 80 of 82 games as a rookie. He started in 18 games, finishing with overall averages of 5.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. He shot .465 from the floor and .723 from the free-throw line.