Michael Stewart (basketball)

For the American basketball player who played in France, see Mike Stewart (basketball).

Michael Curtis "Yogi" Stewart (born April 24, 1975) is a French-born American former basketball player who last played for the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA.

Michael Stewart

Personal information
Born	(1975-04-25) April 25, 1975 (age 50) Cucq-Trepied-Stella-Plage, France
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight	230 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High school	John F. Kennedy (Sacramento, California)
College	California (1993–1997)
NBA draft	1997: undrafted
Playing career	1997–2005
Position	Power forward / center
Number	13, 4, 5, 44
Career history
1997–1998	Sacramento Kings
1998–2002	Toronto Raptors
2002–2003	Cleveland Cavaliers
2003–2005	Boston Celtics
2005	Atlanta Hawks
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

Early life

Stewart, son of former Santa Clara standout and European pro Mike Stewart, was born in Cucq, Pas-de-Calais, France and starred at Kennedy High School in Sacramento, California, leading the Cougars to back-to-back city section titles in 1990 and 1991.

Stewart earned his nickname "Yogi" from his older brother for his childhood love of Yogi Bear cartoons.^[1]

College career

Stewart played four seasons at the University of California, Berkeley. He averaged 4.3 ppg and 4.7 rpg in 117 games and finished as the Bears' all-time leading shot-blocker (207). Stewart set a school record by blocking 59 shots as a freshman in 1993–94 and holds the four best single-season totals for blocks in school history. He never missed a game, playing in all 117 games during his collegiate career and shooting .510 from the field.

At the 1994 U.S. Olympic Festival, Stewart was a member of the bronze medal-winning West team.

NBA career

Stewart went undrafted in the 1997 NBA draft, but was signed to a one-year contract by the Sacramento Kings on September 11, 1997. This was a dream come true for Stewart, as he had served as a ball boy for the Kings in his youth.^[1] As a rookie in 1997–98, he led the Kings in blocked shots and ranked second overall among NBA rookies. He also blocked nine shots in one game.^[1] On January 21, 1999, Stewart was signed as a free agent by the Toronto Raptors. During the ensuing offseason, he was re-signed to a six-year, $24 million contract by the team.

In 2002, Stewart was traded from the Raptors (along with a future first round pick) to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Lamond Murray.^[2]

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

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1997–98	Sacramento	81	37	21.7	.480	–	.458	6.6	.8	.4	2.4	4.6
1998–99	Toronto	42	2	9.4	.415	–	.680	2.4	.1	.1	.7	1.5
1999–00	Toronto	42	1	9.3	.377	–	.563	2.2	.1	.1	.5	1.4
2000–01	Toronto	26	0	4.7	.324	–	.611	1.1	.1	.2	.1	1.3
2001–02	Toronto	11	0	8.5	.348	.–	.545	2.3	.3	.4	.3	2.0
2002–03	Cleveland	47	0	5.3	.378	–	.667	1.2	.1	.0	.3	.8
2003–04	Cleveland	8	2	9.5	.429	–	1.000	2.3	.0	.1	1.0	1.0
2003–04	Boston	17	0	4.2	.400	–	.500	.6	.0	.1	.1	.3
2004–05	Atlanta	12	1	12.1	.524	–	.429	3.3	.4	.5	.4	2.1
Career		286	43	11.5	.442	–	.522	3.2	.3	.2	1.0	2.2

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2001	Toronto	2	0	2.0	.000	–	–	.5	.0	.0	.0	.0
2002	Toronto	1	0	8.0	1.000	–	–	3.0	.0	.0	1.0	4.0
2004	Boston	1	0	2.0	–	–	–	.0	.0	.0	.0	.0
Career		4	0	3.5	.667	–	–	1.0	.0	.0	.3	1.0