Michael Ruffin
Years on Bulls 1999-2001
Stats: 2.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 0.6 bpg, 16 mpg
My Bulls Memory: I hate to be this shallow but I mostly remember the teeth, not gonna lie. Michael Ruffin has a quite healthy set of chompers that are hard to miss. Beyond that, I seem to remember him as a ball of energy. The dude seemed to be everywhere on the court and I was there for it as an “energy player” (read: no skill, in some circles) myself in my playing days.
I remembered him getting several multiple block games, but I always knew he wouldn’t be that great of a player. This was one I happened to call right. Go me. But it was definitely a joy to watch him and Popeye Jones take the court together. Those dudes both had nothing to lose and it was great.
Career Trajectory: Always a defensive presence and spark plug on the court, Ruffin had plenty of interest around the league as an end of the bench spark plug for an NBA team over his 9 season career. He had stints with the 76ers, Jazz, Wizards, Bucks, and Trail Blazers ending with career averages of 1.7 points and 3.9 rebounds. He briefly went overseas to play for Obradoiro CAB in Spain before calling it quits.
Where are they now? Michael Ruffin continued to coach and be involved with various levels of basketball from 2010 until 2014 when he was hired on as the Player Development Coach for the New Orleans Pelicans. According to the organization’s 2018-19 media guide, Mr. Ruffin is enjoyed his fourth season in that role last season, as well as his third as the team’s assistant strength and conditioning coach.