Mark McNamara, the 6-foot-11 center who etched his name into the Cal men’s basketball record books during his two seasons there before moving onto an eight-year NBA career, died Monday of heart failure. He was 60.
McNamara had been dealing with heart issues and other health problems for several years.
McNamara played two seasons at Cal after transferring from Santa Clara. He was voted first-team All-Pac-10 for the Bears after leading the conference in scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage as a senior in the 1981-82 season. Only three other players have matched that triple in conference history: UCLA’s Lew Alcindor and Bill Walton and Arizona State’s Ike Diogu.
McNamara finished his Cal career with 19.2 points, which ranks second all time in school history; 11.6 rebounds, which ranks third; and a .662 field goal percentage, which remains the school record.
The 76ers picked him No. 22 overall in the first round of the 1982 draft, and he was part of Philadelphia’s title-winning team the following season. He went on to play for the San Antonio Spurs, Kansas City Kings, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Orlando Magic.
McNamara averaged 3.5 points and three rebounds in his NBA career.