The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Blanks named to 2007 Men's Hall of Honor class
08.31.2007 | Men's Basketball
AUSTIN, Texas -- Lance Blanks, a two-year starter at shooting guard (1989-90) who helped lead the Longhorns to the 1990 NCAA "Elite Eight," is one of seven former University of Texas athletes who will be inducted into the Men's Longhorn Hall of Honor later this fall, it was announced today. Blanks will join fellow inductees Jim Ehrler (baseball), Hollis Gainey (track), Priest Holmes (football), Randy McEachern (football), Calvin Murray (baseball) and Charlie Talbert (football) in the 2007 class.
These seven individuals will be honored at a banquet on Friday night, Nov. 9 and enshrined at ceremonies during the Texas-Texas Tech football game on Saturday, Nov. 10. Tickets to the dinner are available through the T-Association.
Blanks transferred to Texas after playing two years at Virginia and became part of the famed "BMW" Longhorn backcourt that included Blanks, Travis Mays and Joey Wright. In his two seasons at Texas, he helped the Longhorns post a 49-18 mark. Blanks left Texas as the eighth-leading scorer in school history with 1,322 points, the highest total by a two-year player in school history. He concluded his career as the all-time leader in steals (198), and his career scoring average (20.0 ppg) still ranks fourth in school history.
During his junior season, Blanks ranked second on the team in scoring (19.7 ppg) while leading Texas to a 25-9 record and the NCAA Tournament Second Round. He was tabbed the Southwest Conference's Newcomer of the Year and set school single-season marks for minutes played (1,295) and steals (111). Both of those records still stand today.
As a senior, Blanks ranked second on the squad in scoring (20.3 ppg) while pacing Texas to a 24-9 mark and a trip to the "Elite Eight." This marked the school's first appearance in the "Elite Eight" since 1947, when the Horns advanced to the Final Four of what was then an eight-team tournament. Blanks earned a spot on the five-man NCAA All-Midwest Regional team and the USBWA All-District 7 squad.
After earning his bachelor's degree in radio/television/film, Blanks was selected by the Detroit Pistons as the 26th overall pick in the first round of the 1990 NBA Draft. He played two seasons with the Pistons (1991-92) and one year with the Minnesota Timberwolves (1993). Blanks served as the head scout and later Director of Scouting for the San Antonio Spurs for five seasons and is now an assistant general manager with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
A panel of 50 Longhorn lettermen from a current era athlete ballot that included 16 representatives from all men's sports selected Blanks for induction.
