Eric Piatkowski
A sharpshooting specialist who carved out a 14-year NBA career as a reliable long-range threat, most famously with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Born 1970 (age 56)·American basketball player·Birthday: September 30·Generation X
Biography
Eric Piatkowski shot 39.9 percent from three-point range over 14 NBA seasons. The Los Angeles Clippers drafted him 15th overall in 1994 out of Nebraska. He spent nine seasons with the Clippers, becoming a fixture off the bench with his quick release and consistent outside shooting. His father, Walt Piatkowski, played in the ABA. 'Pike' later played for Houston, Chicago, and Phoenix. He never started more than 17 games in a season but carved out a long career as a specialist. Coaches trusted him to space the floor and knock down open shots. He finished with 7,156 career points and a .432 field goal percentage.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Eric was born in 1970, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Eric Was Born
The biggest hits of 1970
#1 Movie
Love Story
Best Picture
Patton
#1 TV Show
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Eric's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1970Born
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1975Started school
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1983Became a teenager
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1986Could drive
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1988Could vote
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1991Turned 21
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2000Turned 30
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 40
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2020Turned 50
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 56 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Played 14 seasons in the NBA, with his longest tenure being nine years with the Los Angeles Clippers franchise.
- Finished his career with a 39.9% shooting percentage from the three-point line, ranking among the best marks of his era.
- Set the Los Angeles Clippers' franchise record for career three-pointers made, a record that stood for several years.
Did You Know?
His father, Walt Piatkowski, played in the American Basketball Association (ABA) for the Pittsburgh Pipers and Minnesota Pipers.
He was a first-round draft pick (15th overall) by the Indiana Pacers in the 1994 NBA Draft but was immediately traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.
He still holds several three-point shooting records at the University of Nebraska.
“My job was simple: be ready to shoot when the ball comes your way.”
