Celebrating Our Heritage: Buck Williams page 2
Related Images
...continued
His performance was equally recognizable in the boxscore: regular double-doubles in points and rebounds and a solid field goal percentage.
Battling down low for the Blazers in an era which pinned him against the likes of Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, Charles Oakley, Dennis Rodman, Larry Johnson, James Worthy, Kevin Willis, Larry Nance, Horace Grant, Shawn Kemp, Otis Thorpe, Derrick Coleman and Wayman Tisdale, there was certainly a challenge every night for Williams and without his presence, the Blazers would have struggled on the boards. Just recently, the other great Blazer power forward, Maurice Lucas (a current Trail Blazer assistant coach), who wrote the book on how to play the position, said that every team needs a banger -- "somebody who won't get pushed around on the court and who will protect any of his teammates from a mugging."
"You don't have to be a mean, nasty guy," Lucas said, noting that Williams off the court was a gentle, caring man, "but I think you have to have an edge about you -- a demeanor that says, 'don't mess with us.'"
Williams had a reputation as a tough but fair competitor, a clean reputation which earned him the position as President of the NBA Players Association, 1994-97.
Playing alongside Jerome Kersey and backed up by Cliff Robinson in Portland's 1990s glory years, Buck left the Blazers as their all-time leader in field goal percentage (55 percent).
In 1996. Williams moved to New York to play one and a half injury-interrupted seasons with the Knicks, which put to a rest an honorable career which saw him tally more than 16,000 points and 13,000 rebounds Only seven players in NBA history have reached that standard of points and rebounds production.
The New Jersey Nets retired his jersey (52) in 1999.
Williams was a two-time All-Defensive 1st Team, two time All-Defensive 2nd Team, one time All-NBA 2nd Team, and the NBA's field goal percentage leader (1991, 1992)
Last year, Buck began his third season coaching the Maryland Madness, a 16-and-under 16s AAU team, which he took to a top five national finish in 2005. He recently was inducted into the Rocky Mount Twin County Hall of Fame. .Buck grew up in a four-room house in Rocky Mount, N.C., the youngest of six children born to Moses and Betty Williams. Buck's grandparents on both sides were both sharecroppers, picking cotton and tobacco. His parents worked in the cotton fields during Buck's childhood until his father got a job in highway construction.
>> continue
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
His performance was equally recognizable in the boxscore: regular double-doubles in points and rebounds and a solid field goal percentage.
Battling down low for the Blazers in an era which pinned him against the likes of Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, Charles Oakley, Dennis Rodman, Larry Johnson, James Worthy, Kevin Willis, Larry Nance, Horace Grant, Shawn Kemp, Otis Thorpe, Derrick Coleman and Wayman Tisdale, there was certainly a challenge every night for Williams and without his presence, the Blazers would have struggled on the boards. Just recently, the other great Blazer power forward, Maurice Lucas (a current Trail Blazer assistant coach), who wrote the book on how to play the position, said that every team needs a banger -- "somebody who won't get pushed around on the court and who will protect any of his teammates from a mugging."
"You don't have to be a mean, nasty guy," Lucas said, noting that Williams off the court was a gentle, caring man, "but I think you have to have an edge about you -- a demeanor that says, 'don't mess with us.'"
Williams had a reputation as a tough but fair competitor, a clean reputation which earned him the position as President of the NBA Players Association, 1994-97.
Playing alongside Jerome Kersey and backed up by Cliff Robinson in Portland's 1990s glory years, Buck left the Blazers as their all-time leader in field goal percentage (55 percent).
In 1996. Williams moved to New York to play one and a half injury-interrupted seasons with the Knicks, which put to a rest an honorable career which saw him tally more than 16,000 points and 13,000 rebounds Only seven players in NBA history have reached that standard of points and rebounds production.
The New Jersey Nets retired his jersey (52) in 1999.
Williams was a two-time All-Defensive 1st Team, two time All-Defensive 2nd Team, one time All-NBA 2nd Team, and the NBA's field goal percentage leader (1991, 1992)
Last year, Buck began his third season coaching the Maryland Madness, a 16-and-under 16s AAU team, which he took to a top five national finish in 2005. He recently was inducted into the Rocky Mount Twin County Hall of Fame. .Buck grew up in a four-room house in Rocky Mount, N.C., the youngest of six children born to Moses and Betty Williams. Buck's grandparents on both sides were both sharecroppers, picking cotton and tobacco. His parents worked in the cotton fields during Buck's childhood until his father got a job in highway construction.
>> continue
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
