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Walter Davis (basketball)

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For the 1950s player, see Walt Davis.

Walter Davis
Davis in 1987
Personal information
Born(1954-09-09)September 9, 1954
Pineville, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedNovember 2, 2023(2023-11-02) (aged 69)
Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight193 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High schoolSouth Mecklenburg
(Charlotte, North Carolina)
CollegeNorth Carolina (1973–1977)
NBA draft1977: 1st round, 5th overall pick
Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Playing career1977–1992
PositionShooting guard / small forward
Number6
Career history
1977–1988Phoenix Suns
1988–1991Denver Nuggets
1991Portland Trail Blazers
1991–1992Denver Nuggets
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points19,521 (18.9 ppg)
Rebounds3,053 (3.0 rpg)
Assists3,878 (3.8 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1976 Montreal Team competition

Walter Pearl Davis (September 9, 1954 – November 2, 2023) was an American basketball player. After his college years with the North Carolina Tar Heels he played professionally as a forward/guard for 15 years in the National Basketball Association (NBA), spending the majority of his career with the Phoenix Suns. Davis was a six-time NBA All-Star, a two-time All-NBA Second Team member, and the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1978. In 1994, the Suns retired his No. 6 jersey and in 2004 he was enshrined in the team's Ring of Honor. Davis' 15,666 points during his time with the Suns is the most in franchise history. In 2024, it was announced that Davis would be posthumously inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.[1]

High school and college career

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Born in Pineville, North Carolina, Davis was the youngest of 13 children born between 1937 and 1954. His high school teams at South Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte won three state titles and lost only four games. After his senior year, he prepped at the Sanford School in Hockessin, Delaware, and made the Delaware All-State team in the 1972-73 season.

As a standout college player at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he was selected to play on the USA men's basketball team coached by UNC's Dean Smith that won the gold medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics. In his freshman year, Davis hit a buzzer-beating jump shot against Duke at the end of regulation to send the game into overtime. At Chapel Hill, Davis was called "Sweet D" because of his seemingly effortless, smooth style of play and because of his strong defensive play.[2]

NBA career

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The Suns selected Davis with the fifth pick of the 1977 NBA draft. He made an immediate impact, playing in 81 games and averaging 24.2 points per game in his first season, which would also be his career-high. He won the 1978 Rookie of the Year Award, and earned second team All-NBA honors. Over his first ten seasons, Davis averaged over 20 points per game six times, and earned trips to six All-Star Games.

On February 25, 1983, Davis set an all-time NBA record when he successfully scored his first 34 points before finally missing a shot. He made his first 15 field goals and converted four straight free throws before missing a jumper with 55 seconds left in the game. Larry Costello had formerly held the record, having made all of his attempts on his first 32 points for the Syracuse Nationals in 1961.[3] The following year, during the 1984 NBA Playoffs, Davis led the Suns to the Western Conference Finals, averaging 24.9 points, 6.7 assists, and 2.7 rebounds through 17 games, before Phoenix was eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers.[4]

Over his career, Davis averaged 18.9 points, 3.8 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game. Davis was affectionately known as "The Greyhound" for his speedy style and sleek physical appearance. Suns broadcaster Al McCoy created many alternate nicknames for him, including "The Candyman", "Sweet D" and "The Man with the Velvet Touch." Davis is the Suns' all-time leading scorer with 15,666 points.

Davis's later years with the Suns were marred by recurring back problems and an ugly drug scandal. In 1987, he was called on to testify on illegal drug use by other Suns players in exchange for immunity from prosecution. (He had twice entered rehabilitation clinics to deal with cocaine addiction.)[5]

Davis's decline mirrored the short decline of the Suns franchise, and at the expiration of his contract in 1988 at age 33, the team did not seriously attempt to re-sign him, offering a one-year contract at half his previous salary.

Davis signed a two-year, $1.35 million deal with the Denver Nuggets as an unrestricted free agent. He ended up playing for two years beyond this contract, and was included in a three-team trade in early 1991 that sent him to the Portland Trail Blazers for half a season. Davis finished 479 points shy of 20,000 points in a career.[6] In the summer of 1991, he returned to Denver to close out his playing career.

After basketball

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Davis later served as a broadcaster for the Nuggets and as a scout for the Washington Wizards. As time passed, Davis and the Suns repaired their relationship. In 1994, his No. 6 was retired by the Suns, and in 2004 he was enshrined in the team's Ring of Honor.[7] On October 28, 2023, Davis was reintroduced and given a commemorative watch from new Suns owner Mat Ishbia to celebrate the revamped version of the Phoenix Suns Ring of Honor.

Davis was the uncle of UNC men's head coach Hubert Davis, who also played for UNC and in the NBA.

Davis died in Charlotte, North Carolina, on November 2, 2023, at the age of 69.[8] Following his death, Davis received his first nomination to be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.[9][10] On April 6, 2024, it was announced that Davis would be inducted to the Hall of Fame as part of the 2024 class.[11] After the initial induction set for August 2024 was delayed until October due in part to the 2024 Summer Olympics, Davis would officially be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame on October 12-13, 2024.

NBA career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1977–78 Phoenix 81 – 32.0 .526 – .830 6.0 3.4 1.4 0.2 24.2
1978–79 Phoenix 79 – 30.8 .561 – .831 4.7 4.3 1.9 0.3 23.6
1979–80 Phoenix 75 – 30.8 .563 .000 .819 3.6 4.5 1.5 0.3 21.5
1980–81 Phoenix 78 – 28.0 .539 .412 .836 2.6 3.9 1.2 0.2 18.0
1981–82 Phoenix 55 12 21.5 .523 .188 .820 1.9 2.9 0.8 0.1 14.4
1982–83 Phoenix 80 79 31.1 .516 .304 .818 2.5 5.0 1.5 0.2 19.0
1983–84 Phoenix 78 70 32.6 .512 .230 .863 2.6 5.5 1.4 0.2 20.0
1984–85 Phoenix 23 9 24.8 .450 .300 .877 1.5 4.3 0.8 0.0 15.0
1985–86 Phoenix 70 62 32.0 .485 .237 .843 2.9 5.2 1.4 0.0 21.8
1986–87 Phoenix 79 79 33.5 .514 .259 .862 3.1 4.6 1.2 0.1 23.6
1987–88 Phoenix 68 48 28.7 .473 .375 .887 2.3 4.1 1.3 0.0 17.9
1988–89 Denver 81 0 22.9 .498 .290 .879 1.9 2.3 0.9 0.1 15.6
1989–90 Denver 69 0 23.7 .481 .130 .912 2.6 2.2 0.9 0.1 17.5
1990–91 Denver 39 13 26.8 .474 .303 .915 3.2 2.2 1.6 0.1 18.7
1990–91 Portland 32 1 13.7 .446 .333 .913 1.8 1.3 0.6 0.0 6.1
1991–92 Denver 46 0 16.1 .459 .313 .872 1.5 1.5 0.6 0.0 9.9
Career 1,033 373 27.9 .511 .272 .851 3.0 3.8 1.2 0.1 18.9
All-Star 6 1 18.2 .455 1.000 1.000 3.3 2.5 1.2 0.0 9.8

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1978 Phoenix 2 – 33.0 .475 – .750 8.5 4.0 1.5 0.0 25.0
1979 Phoenix 15 – 32.7 .520 – .813 4.6 5.3 1.7 0.3 22.1
1980 Phoenix 8 – 30.6 .504 .000 .737 2.9 4.4 0.5 0.1 20.8
1981 Phoenix 7 – 28.4 .481 .000 .588 2.7 3.1 1.0 0.1 16.0
1982 Phoenix 7 – 24.7 .448 .333 .917 3.1 4.3 0.7 0.1 18.1
1983 Phoenix 3 – 37.7 .435 .500 .810 5.0 4.3 2.0 1.7 26.0
1984 Phoenix 17 – 36.6 .535 .273 .897 2.7 6.4 1.7 0.2 24.9
1989 Denver 3 0 31.3 .517 .000 1.000 1.7 1.3 1.0 0.0 25.7
1990 Denver 3 0 23.3 .400 .000 1.000 3.0 2.0 0.3 0.0 14.0
1991 Portland 13 0 8.5 .396 .000 .833 1.2 0.5 0.3 0.0 3.3
Career 78 ? 28.0 .496 .192 .830 3.1 4.0 1.1 0.2 18.6

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announces 13 inductees for Class of 2024". NBA.com. April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  2. ^ Alexander, Chip (November 2, 2023). "Walter Davis, former UNC and NBA basketball star, dies". The News & Observer. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
  3. ^ USA Today. Davis sets record. February 28, 1983
  4. ^ 1983-84 Phoenix Suns Roster and Stats
  5. ^ Baker, Chris (April 21, 1987). "The NBA : Davis, Suns Will Have Tough Time Recovering". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 22, 2011.
  6. ^ "Davis Joins Nuggets". The New York Times. Associated Press. July 7, 1988.
  7. ^ "SUNS: Ring of Honor". Suns.com. August 26, 2007. Retrieved October 22, 2011.
  8. ^ "UNC Athletics Legendary Tar Heel Walter Davis Passes Away At Age 69". Go Heels. November 2, 2023. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  9. ^ "The Naismith Basketball Hall Of Fame Adds Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway And Walter Davis To List Of Nominees For The Class Of 2024". Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. December 29, 2023. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  10. ^ Munz, Jason (December 29, 2023). "Penny Hardaway a Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame nominee for first time". Memphis Commercial Appeal. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  11. ^ "Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announces 13 inductees for Class of 2024". NBA.com. April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
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