| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1960-04-12) April 12, 1960 (age 64) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Listed weight | 196 lb (89 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Soldan (St. Louis, Missouri) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 1982: 1st round, 15th overall pick |
| Selected by the Phoenix Suns | |
| Playing career | 1982–1996 |
| Position | Small forward / shooting guard |
| Number | 40, 22, 21, 45 |
| Career history | |
| 1982–1983 | Phoenix Suns |
| 1983–1984 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1985 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 1985 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 1985–1986 | Boston Celtics |
| 1986–1987 | Tanduay Rhum Masters |
| 1988 | Purefoods TJ Hotdogs |
| 1987–1988 | Rochester Flyers |
| 1989 | Virtus Roma |
| 1989–1990 | Chorale Roanne Basket |
| 1991–1994 | Hapoel Tel Aviv |
| 1994–1995 | Hapoel Holon |
| 1995–1996 | Bnei Herzelia |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
David Thirdkill (born April 12, 1960) is an American retired basketball player. He played in the NBA, and was the 1993 Israeli Basketball Premier League MVP.
NBA career
He was selected by the Phoenix Suns in the first round (15th overall) of the 1982 NBA draft. A 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) small forward from the College of Southern Idaho and Bradley University, Thirdkill played in five NBA seasons from 1982 to 1987.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri and nicknamed "The Sheriff", he played for the Suns, Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks, San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics. On January 24, 1986, he scored a career-high 20 points and grabbed a career-high 8 rebounds in a 135–114 win over the Golden State Warriors. He earned a championship ring with the 1985-86 Celtics.
In his NBA career, Thirdkill played in 179 games and scored a total of 510 points. Thirdkill made one 3 point shot as a rookie with Phoenix, then never made another three pointer. He finished his career one for 11 from three point land.
NBA career statistics
| 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 |
| † | Won an NBA championship |
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982–83 | Phoenix | 49 | 2 | 10.6 | .435 | .143 | .577 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 4.0 |
| 1983–84 | Detroit | 46 | 0 | 6.3 | .431 | .000 | .484 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 1.7 |
| 1984–85 | Detroit | 10 | 1 | 11.5 | .522 | .000 | .455 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 2.9 |
| 1984–85 | Milwaukee | 6 | 0 | 2.7 | .750 | .000 | .500 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.2 |
| 1984–85 | San Antonio | 2 | 2 | 26.0 | .455 | .000 | .833 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 7.5 |
| 1985–86† | Boston | 49 | 0 | 7.9 | .491 | .000 | .625 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 3.3 |
| 1986–87 | Boston | 17 | 0 | 5.2 | .417 | .000 | .313 | 1.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 1.5 |
| Career | 179 | 5 | 8.2 | .457 | .091 | .565 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 2.8 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984–85 | San Antonio | 5 | 0 | 4.4 | .250 | .000 | .500 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.8 |
| 1985–86† | Boston | 13 | 0 | 3.6 | .333 | .000 | .455 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 1.3 |
| Career | 18 | 0 | 3.8 | .318 | .000 | .467 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 1.2 | |
International career
In 1987, Thirdkill played in a tournament (Open Conference) for the Tanduay Rhum Masters team in the Philippine Basketball Association and won the championship aside from being named "Best Import" of the conference. He returned for another conference in 1988, this time for the newly formed Purefoods team, which he led to another finals appearance. Thereafter, he played in Italy for Virtus Roma, in France for Chorale Roanne Basket and Saint-Quentin Basket-Ball.
He then played most notably in Israel for a spell of five years, mainly for Hapoel Tel Aviv, finally retiring in 1996. He was the 1993 Israeli Basketball Premier League MVP.
References
- "CBA all-stars". USA Today. January 22, 1988. p. 5C. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
- ^ In '80s, Bradley spread the news Archived August 16, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, July 28, 2002
- "David Thirdkill Player Profile, Boston Celtics, NBA Stats, NCAA Stats, Game Logs, Bests, Awards - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com.
- Reynolds, Dave. "Reynolds: 'Sheriff' is back in town in St. Louis". Journal Star.
- Smith, Sam. "THIRDKILL FINALLY FINDS HOME WITH CELTICS". chicagotribune.com.
- "Golden State Warriors at Boston Celtics Box Score, January 24, 1986". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
- "David Thirdkill Stats". Basketball-Reference.com.
- "David Thirdkill - Men's Basketball". Bradley University Athletics.
- "David Thirdkill Stats".
- ^ Cuna, Charlie (March 23, 2020). "Norman Black, Billy Ray Bates and other PBA imports who made an impact in the '80s". ESPN. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
External links
- Basketball-Reference.com: David Thirdkill
- NBA page
- Virtus Roma 88-89
- David Thirdkill European stats in 1992-1996
- 1960 births
- Living people
- American expatriate basketball people in France
- American expatriate basketball people in Israel
- American expatriate basketball people in Italy
- American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines
- American men's basketball players
- Basketball players from St. Louis
- Bnei Herzliya basketball players
- Boston Celtics players
- Bradley Braves men's basketball players
- Chorale Roanne Basket players
- Continental Basketball Association coaches
- Detroit Pistons players
- Hapoel Tel Aviv B.C. players
- Hapoel Holon players
- Israeli Basketball Premier League players
- Magnolia Hotshots players
- Milwaukee Bucks players
- Virtus Roma players
- Philippine Basketball Association imports
- Phoenix Suns draft picks
- Phoenix Suns players
- Rochester Flyers players
- San Antonio Spurs players
- Small forwards
- Southern Idaho Golden Eagles men's basketball players
- Tanduay Rhum Masters players
- NBA championship–winning players
- 21st-century African-American sportsmen
- 20th-century African-American sportsmen