NBA Birthday Spotlight: Players born on September 28

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Here are some of the most notable NBA players born on September 28th:

Jose Calderon (Sept. 28, 1981):

After playing professionally in Spain for seven seasons, Calderon began his 14-year NBA career in 2003 when he signed with the Toronto Raptors as a free agent. In his fourth NBA season, Calderon set the single-season record for highest free throw percentage (98.1%, 151-of-154) – a record that still stands entering the 2024-25 season. After his time in Toronto (2005-2013), Calderon played for the Pistons (2013, 2018-19), Mavericks (2013-2014), Knicks (2014-2016), Lakers (2016-2017), Hawks (2017) and Cavaliers (2017-18). Over 895 games, he totaled 7,921 points (8.9 ppg), 2,148 rebounds (2.4 rpg) and 5,148 assists (5.8 apg). With the Spanish National Team, Calderon won a FIBA World Cup title (2006), two Olympic silver medals (2008, 2012) and an Olympic bronze medal (2016).

Emeka Okafor (Sept. 28, 1982):

After winning an NCAA championship at UConn, Okafor was selected as the No. 2 pick in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Bobcats. Okafor won Rookie of the Year after averaging a career-best 15.1 points along with 10.9 rebounds in his debut season – the first of five straight seasons that he averaged a double-double with 13+ points and 10+ rebounds. After five seasons in Charlotte, Okafor played for the New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) from 2009-12 and the Washington Wizards in 2012-13 before his career was cut short by a neck injury that forced him to miss four straight seasons. Okafor made a brief comeback with the Pelicans in 2018 before his career ended. In 616 games, Okafor totaled 7,370 points (12.0 ppg), 5,967 rebounds (9.7 rpg) and 1,003 blocks (1.6 bpg).

Want to see every NBA player born on Sept. 28?

Here is the rest of the list in chronological order:

Mitchell Wiggins

(Sept. 28, 1959)

Keith Edmonson

(Sept. 28, 1960)

Johnny Dawkins

(Sept. 28, 1963)

Bonzi Wells

(Sept. 28, 1976)

Anderson Varejao

(Sept. 28, 1982)