ARTIS GILMORE, KNOWN AS THE "A-TRAIN," was the first player selected by the Chicago Bulls in the ABA Dispersal Draft. He enjoyed an 18-year professional career, five in the ABA with the Kentucky Colonels (1971-76), 12 in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls (1976-82, 1987), San Antonio Spurs (1982-87) and Boston Celtics (1988) and one season in Italy.
Gilmore was a dominating ABA player, leading the Colonels to the ABA Championship in 1975, and being named the ABA's Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player in 1972, his first season as a professional. Gilmore was an All-ABA First Team selection five straight years(1972-76) and was an ABA All-Defensive First Team selection four straight years (1973-76). In addition, the 7-foot-2 Gilmore led the ABA in rebounding four times and holds the ABA single-season record for the most blocked shots, 422 in 1976.
In 12 NBA seasons, Gilmore averaged 17.1 ppg, and his .599 career shooting percentage remains an NBA record. His career total of 24,941 combined ABA/NBA points ranks him 14th best in history. Gilmore played 43,836 minutes during his career, fifth best all-time.
As a Bull, Gilmore ranks 10th for games played (482), sixth in points (9,288), fifth in rebounds (5,342), first in field goal percentage (.587), sixth in field goals made (3,466), fourth in free throws made (2,355), seventh in minutes played (16,777), eighth in field goal attempts (5,907) and fourth in free throw attempts (3,307). Gilmore led the Bulls in scoring, rebounding, field goal shooting and blocked shots in three consecutive seasons and four overall (1976-78, and 1981). He also led the team in field goal shooting and blocked shots in 1980.
Question: What were thoughts when you were selected by the Bulls in the ABA dispersal draft?
Artis Gilmore: Well, I was excited, I thought it was a real high moment for me.
Q: What kind of move was it for you, moving from Kentucky to Chicago?
Gilmore: Well, it was kind of a tough move. Moving from a smaller town to a larger city. But it was an exciting move.
Q: What were your first impressions of Chicago?
Gilmore: We were in a position to turn the club around. I think that they only won 24 games the year before. It was a chance to turn things around. They had just drafted Scott May, who was Indiana's top college player of the year. There were some exciting moments to look forward to. But we thought we had Jerry Sloan back, but he was not able to return.
Q: What was Sloan like when he returned as a coach?
Gilmore: He had tremendous energy. He was a motivator. He had an idea of what it takes to win.
Q: What was your most memorable moment as a Chicago Bull?
Gilmore: There were some great moments. One of the high moments when we had a chance to play in that one mini-series. I think another series we played in New York. We played the Knicks and between them and the Boston Celtics, they had one of the better records. We beat them and we went on and lose the next series to Boston and they went on to win the championship.
Q: How did you get your nickname "A-Train"?
Gilmore: I'm not sure. One of the announcers sort of picked up on it and from that point the whole media kind of picked up on the idea of me being the A-Train and I guess through that point it caught on. My teammates had nothing to do with it. I think it was one of the announcers. The nickname got attached once I arrived in Chicago.
Q: You got a chance to play with Michael in 1987. What were your impressions of him?
Gilmore: When I played with Michael it was my second trip. There was no question Michael was a tremendous talent. He is an extraordinary talent. He's just a unique individual player. There will be another like him.
Q: What was it like playing against Michael in practice?
Gilmore: It was very intense. He worked tremendously hard. It carried over in practice and everybody else worked just extremely as hard.
Q: What was it like coming back to Chicago (in '87)?
Gilmore: Well it was pretty exciting. I think initially the people kind of remembered me from before and got pretty excited about it. They thought I would be able to fit in and make a contribution.
Q: Had anything really changed?
Gilmore: I think people had been rejuvenated. They were excited. They had a new interest in the game and Michael had brought about that. Michael's style created a exciting point of view, where as before basketball was kind of conservative in Chicago and the only time people really came out was when Boston, LA or Philadelphia came to town. There was fans, but none like there was afterwards.
Q: What differences do you see in the NBA today and when you played.
Gilmore: There's certainly much more exposure nationally and internationally. There's more teams. There's an awful lot of talented players.
Q: Has the NBA changed for the better or for the worse?
Gilmore: I think they've done a great job for marketing the league. There's some things being emphasized about the league and within the league. The commissioner is going to find some way to resolve some of the negative things that the NBA is being exposed to because they need to continue to try to create a positive image of the NBA throughout the nation and internationally.
Q: What did you do right after retiring from the NBA?
Gilmore: I got involved in adjusting business claims.
Q: What do you miss the most about not playing in the NBA?
Gilmore: Well, initially I did (miss it). I've been out of the league for over 10 years now and initially being out there everyday on the court playing, but I went through an adjustment period like probably so many others.
Q: Have you returned to Chicago after you retired?
Gilmore: Yes, I've been back a number of occasions. When the Bulls celebrated 25 years of being an NBA franchise and the 30 years, they invited me. It's kind of neat. They gave us a piece of the old floor as part of the celebration. They presented us a plaque, a part of the old floor from the Stadium. I thought that was very special and considerate of them, thanking so many ex-players for being part of their family.
Q: What kind of place was Chicago Stadium for you?
Gilmore: It was an exciting place. I think I look back and we were having a tremendous amount of success. We were probably the first team to create the light gesture, to turn down the lights and the introduction. I think the Chicago Bulls initiated that. It was a special moment.
Q: Thoughts on the United Center.
Gilmore: It certainly is a very special place to play and it's got its own environment. I know initially some of the players, Michael probably even said that he wasn't very comfortable playing over there, but I'm sure they've all made that adjustment. It's nice to have great, new facilities. I have not had a chance to go into the locker room or anything of that nature, but I'm certain that they are very comfortable.
Q: Your impressions of Chicago fans.
Gilmore: They're very excited. They're very enthusiastic. There was a lot of disappointing moments before the Chicago Bears won the NFL Super Bowl and now with the success the Bulls have, they have become a bit spoiled. It's tough for them to see anything less than winning a championship. And certainly the players expect to have that kind of success and the fans do not expect anything less. They've had a chance to experience something very unique. I remember earlier when people said that Chicago didn't care about their teams, the Cubs, the Bears. They didn't seem to have that same interest, that motivation as far as trying to put together a competitive, winning franchise. That certainly has changed with the arrival of Michael and Co.
Q: What do you think about Michael retiring?
Gilmore: Well, I know Michael thoroughly enjoys the game. I know certainly that he is one of few players that know of made a tremendous amount of money playing the game and he plays it hard and he plays it just as hard as he the first day he walked on the court or the first day he started playing. So the money has not made that kind of difference because he enjoys the game, he loves it. Certainly he must maintain that level of interest and desire to continue to play.
Q: What led you to retire?
Gilmore: I think I was kind of forced out of the game. I thought I could probably played another year. I think sometimes the older players feel like they could go another year. I thought maybe I had control over that, but .... Like most players I kept myself in pretty good shape, so I thought I could give it another year. I was released by the Bulls, signed with the Celtics and played a backup role with the Celtics with Robert Parish and Larry Bird. It was just a question of fitting in. And at the end of that year, I knew nobody else was going to express any interest so I went to Europe, to Italy for a year.
Q: What kind of experience was that (playing in Italy)?
Gilmore: It was a learning experience. Educational for myself and my family. It was nice, very nice. A chance for all of us to grow a little bit. (On the court) It was different, very different. Their basketball mentality is so much different. Well, they played international rules. They played zone, kind of upscale professional level.
Q: Did you think about going into coaching?
Gilmore: I thought about it, but I guess I waited too long. Before, initially I didn't want to do that kind of traveling again, but thought about, I really wanted to get back into it. But I guess I waited to long because it's hard to create interest from other sources in the league. They don't seem to have the interest. It's not like I can walk in back in there and get a coaching job. I gave it a shot.
Q: What do you plan to do down the line?
Gilmore: Just continue to create an environment for my family. And beyond that I'm content. I have a daughter that plays for Division I Louisiana Tech. Her name is Priya Gilmore. She's a junior. (I get to see) a couple of games, not nearly as many as I'd like. She about almost 6-3, plays center. We work together.
Q: Do you think there's pressure on her because she's Artis Gilmore's daughter?
Gilmore: I tried to make sure that was not the case. But I'm sure there's a number of people that have a scenario and try to compare it. She's a young lady who has worked very hard to get to this point.
Q: Sum up your playing days in Chicago.
Gilmore: It was a great experience. I thought it was a wonderful city to play in. I don't have a championship ring from Chicago but I still consider myself as part of that family, part of the franchise. Chicago's always my team and always will be my team.
Q: If you get into the Hall of Fame, do you go in as a Bull?
Gilmore: I really don't know how that works. I haven't thought about that. I think it's a wonderful opportunity being nominated but it's a different story being selected.
