Elton Tyron Brand (born March 11, 1979 in Peekskill, New York) is an American All-Star professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's Los Angeles Clippers and the USA National Team. One of the more underrated players in the league, the Clippers' success in the 2005-06 season established to some extent the public's perception of Brand as one of the premier power forwards in the game.

At the age of thirteen, Brand enrolled in Peekskill High School, where he was immediately added to the varsity basketball roster. He played AAU basketball with future NBA player Ron Artest and, by his senior year, he was consistently ranked among the top high school basketball players in the country. At the same time, he became something of a cult hero in Peekskill, helping his team win two state championships while demonstrating a humble calm and an articulate intelligence. The Governor of New York, fellow Peekskill native George Pataki, was once asked about being the town's favorite son, and he answered that Peekskill's favorite son was not the Governor but Elton Brand. Recruited heavily after his successful high school career, Brand decided to enroll at Duke University alongside a cluster of other high school stars, including Shane Battier.

As a sophomore, Brand was the dominant inside presence for a Duke team that is widely regarded as one of the most talented teams in recent NCAA history. After leading the Blue Devils to the championship game of the Final Four–where they were upset by the University of Connecticut–Brand was named the consensus National Player of the Year. He subsequently decided to leave Duke after his sophomore season and apply for the NBA draft, where he was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the first pick. Brand, along with William Avery, were the first player in Duke basketball history to leave school early for the NBA Draft. Both entered the 1999 NBA Draft after their sophomore year at Duke.

After two successful seasons with the Bulls, during which he received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 2000, Brand was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in 2001 for Brian Skinner and the draft rights to Tyson Chandler. In Los Angeles, Brand became the first Clipper since Danny Manning (in 1994) to be selected to the All-Star team. As much as Brand shone through his first years in Los Angeles, however, the Clippers still remained among the worst franchises in the NBA and all of American sport.

When Brand became a restricted free agent in 2003, the Miami Heat dangled an offer worth $82 million over six years. In what was an unprecedented move by team owner Donald Sterling, the Clippers matched Miami's offer and managed to keep Brand a Clipper. Prior to this, the biggest contract Sterling had approved to that point was a five-year, $15 million deal for Eric Piatkowski in 1998.

In the 2006 NBA season, Brand experienced a personal renaissance. He posted career-highs in points per game (24.7) and field-goal percentage (52.7), while leading the Clippers to a 47-35 record, good enough for the sixth seed in the Western Conference. In February 2006, Brand was selected to the 2006 NBA All-Star Game as a reserve forward for the West. As a result of his individual prowess and the Clippers' recent success, many analysts believed that he was a strong candidate for Most Valuable Player for the 2006 season. Steve Nash went on to win the award. On April 22, 2006, Brand made his playoff debut scoring 21 points against the Denver Nuggets. On May 1, Brand helped lead the team to its first playoff series win since 1976, when the team was known as the Buffalo Braves. Although the Clippers eventually lost in game 7 against the Phoenix Suns, the Clippers had the best season that their franchise had ever seen. Brand received the Joe Dumars Trophy after being named the 2005-06 NBA Sportsmanship Award winner.
Source : Wikipedia