NBA.com: Derrick McKey Bio

A smooth, 6-10 forward with multiple skills, Derrick McKey may not put up spectacular numbers, but he is a talented all-around player who can pass, score and play superb defense, which he has done in a lengthy career.

2000-01:
Averaged 2.2 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 15.0 minutes in 66 games, 20 starts....His 20 starts were the most since the 96-97 season when he started 49 games....As a starter, he averaged 2.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 17.1 minutes per game....Fifth on the team in steals even though he averaged only 15.0 minutes per game....Recorded his 1,000th career steal with the first of his three at Golden State, 11/30....Grabbed a season-high 10 rebounds at Washington, 11/10, to go with two points and three steals....Tied a career-high with five steals against Washington, 11/24, and had seven points, three rebounds and three assists....Handed out a season-high nine assists against Minnesota, 2/25, his most since he registered a career-high 11 vs. the L.A. Lakers, 12/20/95....One of only two Pacers'players with more steals than turnovers (48 stls to 47 tos)....Played in all but four of the season's first 60 games, but was then plagued by a lower back strain which caused him to miss seven games while on the injured list (3/9 - 3/18 and 4/17 - 4/18)....Sat out nine games due to coaching decisions.

1999-2000:
Recorded 14 points and 10 rebounds in a 100-83 win over Chicago on 2/24.

1998-99:
Recorded 15 points (6-7 FG, 3-4 FT) and 5 rebounds in a 108-100 overtime win over the Milwaukee Bucks on 4/21....Scored 13 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in a 120-104 victory over the Boston Celtics on 4/19....On the injured list from 2/19 to 4/12 due to quadricep tendinitis in his right knee.

1997-98:
Recorded 16 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals in a 93-92 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on 4/5....Posted 11 points and 8 rebounds in a 95-91 victory over the Washington Wizards on 3/19....Totaled 10 points and 7 rebounds in an 82-77 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on 2/19....Registered 12 points and team-highs of 10 rebounds and 3 steals in an 89-83 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on 1/30....Recorded 14 points (7-9 FG) and 4 rebounds in a 117-92 victory over the Sacramento Kings on 1/16....On the injured list from 10/30 to 12/19, missing the first 23 games of the season, due to a ruptured left Achilles tendon.

1996-97:
McKey averaged 8.0 ppg and shot .391 from the field in 50 games, all career lows, in a season in which he was plagued by injuries....Spent 26 games on the injured list after being diagnosed with a stress fracture of the fourth metatarsal in his left foot on 2/4....After returning to the lineup he played in four games, then went back on the injured list with a ruptured right Achilles tendon suffered in a game against Atlanta on 4/11....Averaged 11.3 ppg and 9.3 rpg in the season's first four games, including his only two double-doubles of the campaign. He scored a season-high 17 points three times and grabbed a season-high 12 rebounds, one off his Pacers high, in a 97-95 loss to Miami on 11/2....One of his best games of the season was on Dec. 13 against Boston, when he had 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals in 39 minutes of a 97-94 victory.

1995-96:
The versatile McKey averaged 11.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.11 steals per game for the Pacers, ranking third on the team in scoring, fourth in rebounding and second in assists and steals....Continued to play standout defense, and was voted to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team for the second year in a row.....Though his scoring average was his lowest since his rookie season of 1987-88, registered in double figures 47 times and had 20 or more six times.....Posted the first triple-double of his career and the only one by a Pacer this season on 12/20 when he got 17 points, 13 rebounds and a career-high 11 assists against the Lakers....The 13 rebounds were a season-high which he matched at Philadelphia on 2/7, and he scored a season-high 25 points at New Jersey on 12/8.....Missed all the preseason and the first six games of the regular season due to a torn thigh muscle. He also sat out against Toronto on 3/17 because of a sprained right wrist. He started the other 75 games of the season for Indiana, as well as all five games of the playoff series against Indiana, when he averaged 12.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game.....Ranked third on the team in scoring, rebounding and assists and second in steals.

1994-95:
The importance of McKey's contribution to the Indiana Pacers' first division championship isn't immediately apparent from his stat line (13.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 3.4 apg), but the eight-year veteran had as much to do with the club's 50-win season as anybody on the team....Keyed a defense that held opposing teams to a franchise record-low 95.5 points per game....The team leader in steals (1.54 per game) and a noted defensive stopper, McKey was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team at season's end....Also led the Pacers in minutes played at 2,805, an average of 34.6 per game....Scored a season-high 24 points against the Los Angeles Lakers on 1/18.....In an unusual offensive outburst late in the season he scored 20 or more points in three consecutive games beginning with a 23-point effort against the New York Knicks on 4/14....During that stretch he drained 21 consecutive free throws.....A reliable, if reluctant, three-point shooter, he posted a long-distance field-goal percentage of .360. In a string of 15 late-season games he hit 13 of 24 treys for a .542 mark....During the Pacers' postseason run McKey came close to matching his regular season numbers with averages of 12.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game in 17 outings.....Logged a .539 field-goal percentage while hitting 9 of 10 free throws against the Atlanta Hawks in Indiana's three-game sweep in the first round. He struggled from the field in seven games against the New York Knicks, posting a field-goal percentage of .372.....Against the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals he struck for 22 points in Game 3 and came back with 21 points in Game 5. During that series he averaged 14.0 points.

1993-94:
On 11/1, only days before the start of the 1993-94 season, the Seattle SuperSonics sent McKey and Gerald Paddio to the Indiana Pacers for Detlef Schrempf.....At first glance, the trade looked to be a boon for the Sonics, who added another All-Star to an already talented cast. In the end, however, it was McKey who went furthest in the postseason, helping the Pacers on an historic run to the Eastern Conference Finals....As the season wore on, McKey proved indispensable for his all-around contributions from the small forward position. He played more minutes (2,613) than any other Pacers player except Reggie Miller (2,638), and he ranked third on the team in scoring with 12.0 points per game....The seven-year veteran also contributed 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.46 steals per contest. He hauled down 13 rebounds against the Milwaukee Bucks on January 24, and he poured in 30 points versus the Miami Heat on 2/9....Bolstered by McKey's contributions, the Pacers reached the conference finals for the first time in their NBA history, taking the New York Knicks to the limit before losing in seven games....In 16 postseason contests McKey contributed 9.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.

1992-93:
As the Sonics' cocaptain in 1992-93, McKey helped lead Seattle to its most successful season in recent years....After winning 55 games in the regular season, the Sonics advanced to the Western Conference Finals before losing to the Phoenix Suns in seven games....Unsung player on a team brimming with talent....Although he started 68 of 77 games, he shared the spotlight in Seattle with Shawn Kemp, Gary Payton, Ricky Pierce, Eddie Johnson, Michael Cage, and Sam Perkins....Finished the season with averages of 13.4 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, his lowest output since his rookie season....But it was McKey's game-winning bucket with four-tenths of a second remaining against the Phoenix Suns on February 13 that launched the Sonics on a season-high 10-game winning streak....Scored in double figures 56 times during the year and led the team in scoring on 10 occasions. He drilled a season-high 30 points against the Golden State Warriors on 2/18....Started 17 of Seattle's 19 postseason games and was particularly effective in the series against Phoenix....Had 18 points and 11 rebounds in Game 3 and 20 points in Game 4.....Overall, he averaged 11.3 points in the playoffs, tying Michael Cage for the team's best field-goal percentage, with .525.

1991-1992:
McKey struggled with a host of injuries in 1991-92 and managed only 52 appearances in the regular season....Missed 22 straight games with a torn ligament in his right thumb and sat out 8 others with a strained groin, sore wrist, and sore ankle....When healthy, McKey averaged 5.2 rebounds and 14.9 points, scoring his 5,000th career point on March 27 against the Milwaukee Bucks....On 11/26 the fourth-year forward grabbed 15 rebounds against the Golden State Warriors, and on 11/22 against the Chicago Bulls he had his best performance from the free-throw line, hitting all 15 of his attempts.... Put his injuries behind him once the postseason began....Led the Sonics in scoring twice during the playoffs, including a 27-point effort in Game 1 of a first-round series against Golden State.....Seattle advanced past the Warriors in four games but then lost to the Utah Jazz in the Western Conference Semifinals....Shot .525 from the floor in the postseason and averaged 16.3 points.

1990-91:
McKey opened the season as the Sonics' starting power forward, but he moved into the small forward slot in early December after Seattle traded Xavier McDaniel to the Phoenix Suns for Eddie Johnson....The multidimensional McKey seemed to find his true position at small forward, though Johnson replaced him in the starting lineup on 2/21 and, with the exception of a two-week stretch in March, remained there for the rest of the year....Made 55 starts for the season and finished with averages of 15.3 points and 5.8 rebounds in 73 games....Shot a career-best .517 from the field and .845 from the free-throw line, with season highs of 33 points against the Orlando Magic on December 18 and 9 assists against the Miami Heat on 1/4....His 56 blocked shots vaulted him into seventh place on Seattle's all-time list, and his 91 steals moved him into 10th....A sprained ankle limited McKey in the postseason, forcing him out of Game 2 of a first-round series against Portland. He returned to average 14.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in the next two games, but the Blazers ousted the Sonics with a 119-107 Game 5 victory.

1989-90:
McKey missed the first two games of his career near the end of his third NBA season....Compiled a string of 233 straight games before sitting out contests on 3/30 and 4/1 with a fractured rib....Probably sustained the injury on 3/6 in a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers and then went on to play 11 games without telling anyone of his pain and discomfort....A starter in the 80 games he played, McKey averaged 15.7 points and 6.1 rebounds....His rebounding mark would stand as a career high, as would his total of 81 blocked shots....Scored a season-high 33 points against the Golden State Warriors on February 25....The Sonics finished 41-41 but missed the playoffs for the first time in McKey's young career.

1988-89:
McKey had come off the bench as a rookie, but with the departure of Tom Chambers to the Phoenix Suns, he moved into the starting lineup in 1988-89.... Playing all 82 games, McKey bumped his scoring average to a career-high 15.9, third on the Sonics behind Dale Ellis (27.5 ppg) and Xavier McDaniel (20.5).... The second-year forward also finished second on the club in blocked shots (70) and third in steals (105)....Scored a season-high 34 points against the Portland Trail Blazers on 1/24 and grabbed 1/17 rebounds versus the Golden State Warriors on 4/17....For the season, he shot .502 from the floor and .803 from the free-throw line and lifted his rebounding output to 5.7 per game.... At year's end McKey received one vote for the NBA Most Improved Player Award.... In the first round of the 1989 NBA Playoffs, McKey became a hero in Seattle with a last-second layup in the fourth and deciding game....Seattle and the Houston Rockets were knotted at 96 when Nate McMillan threw a perfect pass to McKey under the basket....McKey's bucket as time expired gave the Sonics the game and the series, three games to one....Seattle then lost in four games to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals.

1987-88:
A Second-Team All-America selection as a junior at Alabama, Derrick McKey elected to forgo his final collegiate season and enter the 1987 NBA Draft....The 6-foot-10 forward had multidimensional talents perfectly suited to the pro game, a fact obvious to the Seattle SuperSonics, who snatched him up with the ninth overall pick....McKey and Sonics teammate Olden Polynice were two of six NBA rookies to play in all 82 games in 1987-88. With an 18-point effort against the Golden State Warriors on 4/6, McKey became the first Seattle player other than Tom Chambers, Dale Ellis, or Xavier McDaniel to lead the team in scoring in a single game since the 1985-86 season....He finished as the team's second-leading shotblocker, with 63, and earned a berth on the NBA All-Rookie Team with averages of 8.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game....McKey made major contributions in the postseason, though the Sonics lost in the first round to the Denver Nuggets....In five games the rookie forward averaged 12.0 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting .632 from the floor.

COLLEGE:
McKey spent three years at Alabama....In his junior year he averaged 18.6 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting .581 from the field....He declared himself eligible for the 1987 NBA Draft following his junior season and was chosen by the Seattle SuperSonics with the ninth overall pick....A member of the NBA All-Rookie Team in 1988, he averaged 8.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in his first season.