Freeman Williams
![]() Williams as a senior at PSU | |
Personal information | |
---|---|
Born | Los Angeles, California | May 15, 1956
Nationality | American |
Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | Manual Arts (Los Angeles, California) |
College | Portland State (1974–1978) |
NBA draft | 1978 / Round: 1 / Pick: 8th overall |
Selected by the Boston Celtics | |
Playing career | 1978–1993 |
Position | Shooting guard / Small forward |
Number | 20, 5 |
Career history | |
1978–1982 | San Diego Clippers |
1982 | Atlanta Hawks |
1982 | Utah Jazz |
1984–1985 | Tampa Bay Thrillers |
1985–1986 | Washington Bullets |
1986 | Tampa Bay Thrillers |
1993 | Miami Tropics |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Career NBA statistics | |
Points | 4,738 (14.7 ppg) |
Rebounds | 510 (1.6 rpg) |
Assists | 516 (1.6 apg) |
Stats ![]() | |
Stats ![]() | |
Freeman Williams (born May 15, 1956) is an American retired professional basketball player. He was the 1978 NCAA men's basketball Division I scoring champion, and the Portland State University all-time scoring leader.[1] Williams was the NCAA Division I national men's basketball individual scoring leader in 1977 and 1978. Williams was a consensus second team All-American in 1978. He is second in Division I history in scoring, trailing only Pete Maravich. He was born in Los Angeles.
He was a 1978 first round draft pick (8th overall) by the Boston Celtics.[2] His pro playing career started in 1978 with the San Diego Clippers. He finished in the top 10 for three-point field goals in three consecutive seasons, 1980 through 1982.[3] In December 1980, Freeman became the first Clippers player to win a Player of the Month award, and the only one in franchise history until Elton Brand did so 25 years later.[4]
In September 1982, Freeman Williams was traded by the Atlanta Hawks along with John Drew, and cash to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Dominique Wilkins who was drafted by the Jazz and refused to sign.[5] After that season (1982–83), Williams only played in 27 more games: 18 with Utah in 1983 and nine with the Washington Bullets in 1986.
In 1987, Williams played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) for the Tanduay Rhum Masters, where he famously scored 82 points, including 10 three-pointers, in one game.
Freeman had a small part in the 1992 film White Men Can't Jump, playing fictional playground legend Duck Johnson.
Stats[]
Season | Team | GP | MPG | RPG | APG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1978–79 | Clippers | 72 | 16.6 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 10.4 |
1979–80 | Clippers | 82 | 25.8 | 2.3 | 2.0 | 18.6 |
1980–81 | Clippers | 82 | 24.1 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 19.3 |
1981–82 | Clippers/Hawks | 60 | 16.6 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 12.0 |
1982–83 | Jazz | 18 | 11.7 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 5.1 |
1985–86 | Bullets | 9 | 12.2 | 1.3 | 0.8 | 7.7 |
Career | 6 Seasons | 323 | 20.5 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 14.7 |
See also[]
- List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 60 or more points in a game
- List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season scoring leaders
- List of NCAA Division I men's basketball career scoring leaders
References[]
- ^ Kasinitz, Aaron (July 14, 2014). "Portland State basketball legend Freeman Williams returns for documentary screening". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
- ^ 1978 NBA Draft on Basketballreference.com Archived 2010-03-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Freeman Williams Statistics - Basketball-Reference.com
- ^ CLIPPERS: Brand Named Western Conference Player of the Month
- ^ NBA.com: Dominique Wilkins Bio
- 1956 births
- Living people
- All-American college men's basketball players
- American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines
- American men's basketball players
- Basketball players from Los Angeles
- Boston Celtics draft picks
- Philippine Basketball Association imports
- Portland State Vikings men's basketball players
- San Diego Clippers players
- Shooting guards
- Small forwards
- Tampa Bay Thrillers players
- Tanduay Rhum Masters players
- United States Basketball League players
- Utah Jazz players
- Washington Bullets players