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Jerrod Mustaf

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Jerrod Mustaf
Personal information
Born(1969-10-28)October 28, 1969
Whiteville, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedOctober 28, 2024(2024-10-28) (aged 55)
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight238 lb (108 kg)
Career information
High schoolDeMatha Catholic
(Hyattsville, Maryland)
CollegeMaryland (1988–1990)
NBA draft1990: 1st round, 17th overall pick
Selected by the New York Knicks
Playing career1990–2001
PositionPower forward, center
Number32, 0
Career history
1990–1991New York Knicks
1991–1994Phoenix Suns
1994–1995P.A.O.K. Thessaloniki
1995Festina Andorra
1996Strasbourg IG
1996–1998FC Barcelona
1998–1999Paris Basket Racing
1999–2001Prokom Trefl Sopot
2001Egepen Altay
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points721 (4.0 ppg)
Rebounds452 (2.5 rpg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Terrah Jerrod Mustaf (October 28, 1969 – October 28, 2024) was an American professional basketball player. In high school, he was a three-time Parade All-American. He participated in the Capital Classic and McDonald's All-American Game. Mustaf played four seasons in the National Basketball Association, after being drafted 17th in the 1990 NBA draft. After his girlfriend was murdered, Mustaf came under suspicion when his cousin was convicted of the crime. Mustaf later left the United States to play professionally in Europe. After returning to the United States, Mustaf committed himself to charitable causes for youth in Maryland.

Early life

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Mustaf was born in Whiteville, North Carolina where he was raised by his mother Lilly Mae George.[1] At age 14, Jerrod Mustaf moved to Maryland to live with his father, activist Shaar Mustaf.[2][3] Jerrod Mustaf's father, a self-described "black militant" would have a significant impact on his life, encouraging him to be a community leader and activist.[4] Mustaf went on to play basketball at DeMatha High School in Hyattsville, Maryland. He was one of the most heavily recruited players in his senior year.[5]

Basketball career

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With his father's urging, went on to play collegiately for the Maryland Terrapins.[6][2] While at Maryland, Mustaf played in 59 games, averaging 16.6 points. During the 1989-90 collegiate season, he scored 609 points across 33 games.[7]

After two seasons at Maryland, Mustaf entered the 1990 NBA draft.

Mustaf was selected by the New York Knicks as the 17th overall pick in the first round of the draft.[8] He would play intermittently in the NBA from 1990 to 1994 with the Knicks[9] and the Phoenix Suns.[10] He additionally played three days for the Seattle SuperSonics,[4] after which he played professionally in Europe. He also signed with the Charlotte Hornets in 1996 briefly before being waived.[11]

He retired in 2001, last playing with Altay Kartal Makarna of the Turkish Basketball League.

Murder of Althea Hayes

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While Mustaf was playing for the Phoenix Suns, on July 22, 1993, Musaf's alleged girlfriend Althea Hayes was found shot to death in her apartment in Glendale, Arizona.[12] Hayes, age 27, was reportedly pregnant with Mustaf's child at the time of her murder.[13] Multiple witnesses reported that Mustaf was not happy about the pregnancy and had asked Hayes to have an abortion, but Hayes refused. Mustaf denied the allegations.[14] On the night Hayes was murdered, she phoned a friend and told them that Mustaf's cousin, Lavonnie Wooten, was in her apartment and that she was frightened of him.[15] An off-duty police officer reported seeing both Mustaf and Wooten in the apartment complex where Hayes lived on the night she died.[11][better source needed] Wooten was later arrested, convicted of the murder, and sentenced to life in prison in 1996.[16][17]

Mustaf was never charged with Hayes's murder and strongly denied wrongdoing, claiming that Hayes was not his girlfriend and that he had been convicted without a trial.[18][19] The Phoenix Suns placed Mustaf on the injured list to address the charges, later releasing him in 1994.[20] Mustaf continued to be a person of interest in the murder investigation.[21] In 1995 the family of Althea Hayes later filed a civil wrongful death lawsuit against Mustaf.[22] Mustaf settled the lawsuit out of court for an undisclosed amount.[16]

In 2017, K.C. Scull, the lead homicide investigator for the Hayes case, stating to Sports Illustrated that "I think, even today, if the U.S. Attorney's office would take this case on, it could be won."[16]

Later life and death

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After Hayes' murder, Mustaf continued to play professionally in Greece, Spain, and France. He returned to Maryland in the 2000s.[16] In 2001, he was charged with assault for attacking his then partner Shalamar Muhammad Mustaf, and later violating a protective order related to the case.[11][16]

Mustaf died on October 28, 2024, on his 55th birthday.[23]

Activism

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In Maryland, Mustaf led the Take Charge program, a non-profit founded by his father designed to keep vulnerable teens out of the criminal justice system.[18][24] He would continue to work with at risk youth and run basketball camps for the remainder of his life.[25]

In 2006, he was nominated Sports Ambassador of Gambia where he advocated for greater support for the development of basketball in the country.[26][27] In 2008, he was hired as the Director of Athletic Development at Laurinburg Institute.[28] Mustaf later became CEO and president of the Street Basketball Association based in Mitchellville, Maryland.[23]

Career statistics

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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

NBA

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Source[29]

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1990–91 New York 62 5 13.3 .465 .000 .644 2.7 .6 .2 .2 4.3
1991–92 Phoenix 52 3 10.5 .477 – .690 2.8 .9 .4 .3 4.5
1992–93 Phoenix 32 9 10.5 .438 .000 .623 2.6 .3 .4 .3 4.6
1993–94 Phoenix 33 2 5.9 .357 – .591 1.7 .2 .1 .2 2.2
Career 179 19 10.6 .449 .000 .648 2.5 .6 .3 .3 4.0

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1991 New York 3 0 7.3 .800 – .800 1.7 .0 .0 .3 4.0
1993 Phoenix 7 0 1.4 .600 – – .3 .0 .0 .1 .9
Career 10 0 3.2 .700 – .800 .7 .0 .0 .2 1.8

References

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  1. ^ "MUSTAF "A LINEAGE OF HOPE & MOTIVATION"". Beyond The Legacy. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Cotton, Anthony (February 4, 1990). "For Maryland's Mustaf, the Sky's the Goal, and the Limit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  3. ^ Rhoden, William C. (September 19, 1993). "COLLEGE BASKETBALL; A Careful Game Plan Goes Awry". The New York Times.
  4. ^ a b Almond, Elliott (October 20, 1996). "The Case Of Jerrod Mustaf -- A Mater Of Suspicion". Seattle Times. Retrieved July 5, 2020. the Sonics learned that Maricopa County prosecutors still suspect Mustaf although he has never been charged or indicted. After only three days with the Sonics, Mustaf was gone
  5. ^ Huff, Donald (December 28, 1987). "No longer 'gangly', injured, DeMatha's Mustaf Blossoms". The Washington Post.
  6. ^ "Mustaf Makes it official Maryland". The Washington Post. March 30, 1988.
  7. ^ SUN, EDWARD LEE | BALTIMORE (October 28, 2024). "SUN: Jerrod Mustaf, former UMD men's basketball standout, dies Monday on 55th birthday". WBFF. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  8. ^ Wilbon, Michael (May 10, 1990). "A Year too Soon? We'll know soon enough". The Washington Post.
  9. ^ Berkow, Ira (1991). The Long Arms of the Bulls Start at Their Coach, Jackson. France: International Herald Tribune.
  10. ^ Jerrod Mustaf
  11. ^ a b c "Mustaf remains shrouded in suspicion". The Washington Times. May 7, 2001. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
  12. ^ "PLAYER'S COUSIN CONVICTED OF MURDER". Greensboro News and Record. January 29, 1996. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  13. ^ "Girlfriend of former Phoenix Sun murdered in '93". ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix (KNXV). July 22, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  14. ^ "MUSTAF INVESTIGATION CONTINUES IN PHOENIX". scholar.lib.vt.edu. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  15. ^ https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/az-court-of-appeals/1447745.html
  16. ^ a b c d e Wertheim, Jon (April 17, 2019). "Has anyone ever Googled Jerrod Mustaf?". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  17. ^ "Girlfriend of former Phoenix Sun murdered in '93". ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix (KNXV). July 22, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  18. ^ a b Wertheim, Jon (April 17, 2019). "Jerrod Mustaf Is a Community Hero. Has Anyone Ever Googled Him?". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
  19. ^ "The Case Of Jerrod Mustaf -- A Mater Of Suspicion | The Seattle Times". archive.seattletimes.com. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  20. ^ "Mustaf's cousin indicted in killing". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  21. ^ "Mustaf ties to Slaying still Probed". Washington Post. January 29, 1996.
  22. ^ "Slain woman's kin settle with ex-Sun - Tucson Citizen Morgue, Part 2 (1993-2009)". tucsoncitizen.com. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  23. ^ a b Magliocchetti, Geoff (October 28, 2024). "Knicks' First-Round Pick Jerrod Mustaf Dies at 55". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
  24. ^ Petersen, Kirsten (November 12, 2014). "Forestville group empowers at-risk county teens". SoMdNews.com. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  25. ^ Eichstaedt, Jake (June 22, 2022). "Former NBA player Jerrod Mustaf has a message for our kids". WWAYTV3. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  26. ^ "Gambia: 'I'm Concerned About My Misrepresentation' - Says Jerrod Mustaf". AllGambian.net (Onalaska). June 2, 2005.
  27. ^ "Gambia: Interview With Jerrod Mustaf, Gambian Sports Ambassador". AllGambian.net (Onalaska). June 5, 2006.
  28. ^ "Former NBA Star New Athletic Hire at Historic Laurinburg Institute". PR.com. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  29. ^ "Jerrod Mustaf NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
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