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Darrell Griffith

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Darrell Griffith
Griffith in 2007
Personal information
Born (1958-06-16) June 16, 1958 (age 66)
Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High schoolLouisville Male (Louisville, Kentucky)
CollegeLouisville (1976–1980)
NBA draft1980: 1st round, 2nd overall pick
Selected by the Utah Jazz
Playing career1980–1991
PositionShooting guard
Number35
Career history
1980–1991Utah Jazz
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points12,391 (16.2 ppg)
Rebounds2,519 (3.3 rpg)
Assists1,627 (2.1 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference
Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame

Darrell Steven Griffith (born June 16, 1958), also known by his nickname Dr. Dunkenstein,[1] is an American former basketball player who spent his entire professional career with the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association from 1980 to 1991.[2] He played collegiately at the University of Louisville.

Early life and college

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Griffith starred at Louisville Male High School and was heavily recruited by colleges all across the country.[3] Male defeated Lexington Henry Clay 74–59 in the 1975 Kentucky State Championship game.[4] In fact, Griffith reportedly turned down an offer to forego college and sign with the ABA's Kentucky Colonels.[5] He decided to attend his hometown school, the University of Louisville, much to the delight of local fans.

He did not disappoint, delivering the school's first-ever NCAA men's basketball championship in 1980. He scored 23 points in the Cardinals' 59–54 victory over UCLA in the championship game.[6] Due to his strong performance, he was named Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. Griffith totaled 825 points in his senior season, setting a school record. For his efforts, he was named First Team All-American by the Associated Press and was given the Wooden Award as the best college basketball player in the nation. He left college as Louisville's all-time leading scorer with 2,333 points in his career.[7] His jersey number, 35, was retired during ceremonies after the 1980 season.[8]

In November 2014, Griffith was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame.[9]

Professional career

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Utah selected Griffith with the second overall pick in the 1980 NBA draft. The Jazz had recently moved to Salt Lake City from New Orleans, and the team needed a star to replace legendary shooting guard Pete Maravich. Griffith accepted the challenge, averaging 20.6 points per game in his first season and earning the NBA's Rookie of the Year award.[10]

For the next four seasons, Griffith teamed with small forward Adrian Dantley to form one of the highest-scoring duos in the league. With defensive support from center Mark Eaton and point guard Rickey Green, the Jazz improved dramatically, winning the Midwest Division title in 1983–84 and qualifying for the NBA playoffs for the first time ever. Individually, Griffith transformed his offensive game, adding long-distance shooting skills to his aerial acrobatics. He led the league in three-point shooting (36.1 percent) and set an NBA record for most three-pointers made in a single season (91). His new abilities earned him a new nickname: Utah's play-by-play announcer Hot Rod Hundley began calling him "The Golden Griff".

The following season (1984–85) was the best of Griffith's career. He averaged a career-high 22.6 points per game,[11] and broke his own league record by sinking 92 three-point shots. During the year, he passed Joey Hassett as the all-time NBA leader for most career three-pointers.[12] He also continued his high-flying ways, representing the Jazz in the 1984 and 1985 NBA Slam Dunk Contests.[13]

However, the team changed dramatically in the mid-1980s with the emergence of Karl Malone and John Stockton as Utah's top offensive weapons. Dantley was traded away and Griffith suffered from injuries. ("Dr. Dunkenstein was paying his toll", he once said in an interview.[14]) He missed the entire 1985–86 season due to a stress fracture in his foot,[15] and would lose his starting position when he returned. Griffith would need an operation on his left knee in March 1988, causing him to miss the remainder of that season.[16] He managed to reclaim his starting spot for most of the 1988–89 season, but lost it permanently the following year. His playing time gradually decreased until his retirement in 1991. He scored 12,391 total points over the course of his 10-year professional career – all with the Jazz. The franchise recognized his contributions by retiring his jersey number 35 on December 4, 1993.[11]

Post-basketball career

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In the 2010s and 20s, Griffith returned to his alma mater as a special assistant to President James R. Ramsey and later as a university ambassador under President Neeli Bendapudi.[9][17]

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
 *  Led the league

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1980–81 Utah 81 — 35.4 .464 .192 .716 3.6 2.4 1.3 .5 20.6
1981–82 Utah 80 79 32.5 .482 .288 .697 3.8 2.3 1.2 .4 19.8
1982–83 Utah 77 76 36.2 .484 .288 .679 3.9 3.5 1.8 .4 22.2
1983–84 Utah 82 82 32.3 .490 .361* .696 4.1 3.5 1.4 .3 20.0
1984–85 Utah 78 78 35.6 .457 .358 .725 4.4 3.1 1.7 .4 22.6
1986–87 Utah 76 10 24.3 .446 .335 .703 3.0 1.7 1.3 .4 15.0
1987–88 Utah 52 11 20.2 .429 .275 .641 2.4 1.8 1.0 .1 11.3
1988–89 Utah 82 73 29.0 .446 .311 .780 4.0 1.6 1.0 .3 13.8
1989–90 Utah 82 1 17.6 .464 .372 .654 2.0 .8 .8 .2 8.9
1990–91 Utah 75 2 13.4 .391 .348 .756 1.2 .5 .6 .1 5.7
Career 765 412 28.0 .463 .332 .707 3.3 2.1 1.2 .3 16.2

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1984 Utah 11 — 37.9 .443 .356 .688 5.9 3.7 1.7 .2 19.2
1985 Utah 10 10 34.0 .456 .361 .720 2.9 2.5 1.2 .5 17.5
1987 Utah 5 0 20.8 .369 .400 .737 2.4 1.6 1.2 .4 13.6
1989 Utah 3 0 23.7 .408 .316 — 4.0 .0 1.3 .3 15.3
1990 Utah 5 0 19.4 .452 .556 .800 4.2 .6 1.2 .2 9.4
1991 Utah 3 0 3.0 .714 — — .7 .0 .0 .0 3.3
Career 37 10 28.1 .438 .371 .711 3.8 2.1 1.3 .3 15.1

See also

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References

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  1. ^ John Papanek. "A Rookie Gives The Jazz Pizzazz Archived October 26, 2012, at the Wayback Machine". Sports Illustrated. December 8, 1980. Retrieved on February 1, 2010.
  2. ^ Darrell Griffith NBA statistics Archived August 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. basketball-reference.com. Retrieved on February 1, 2010.
  3. ^ Hannon, Kent (February 23, 1976). "Bundles Of Mail For A Male Man". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  4. ^ "KHSAA Boys' Sweet 16® All-Time Winners" (PDF). Kentucky High School Athletic Association. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  5. ^ "A Rookie Gives The Jazz Pizzazz". Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  6. ^ "With 59–54 Victory Over UCLA, Griffith Leads Louisville to Title". Herald Journal. March 25, 1980. B2.
  7. ^ Phillip Lee. "Classic catches up with Dr. Dunkenstein ". ESPN Classic. November 19, 2003. Retrieved on February 1, 2010.
  8. ^ "Player Bio: Darrell Griffith – University of Louisville Archived 2012-09-17 at archive.today". uoflsports.com. Retrieved on July 1, 2011.
  9. ^ a b "'Dr. Dunkenstein' to be inducted in College Basketball Hall of Fame". WLKY. March 26, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  10. ^ "A Look at a Jazz Legend, Darrell Griffith". nba.com. Archived from the original on May 9, 2016. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  11. ^ a b Jazz: Retired Numbers Archived January 23, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. NBA.com. Retrieved on February 1, 2010.
  12. ^ "Hoops Analyst: Hail the Three-Point King". Archived from the original on March 23, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2011.
  13. ^ All-Star: Slam Dunk Year-by-Year Results Archived December 19, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. NBA.com. Retrieved on February 1, 2010.
  14. ^ "ESPN Classic – Classic catches up with Dr. Dunkenstein". Archived from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved February 1, 2010.
  15. ^ "Utah Jazz Re-signs Griffith To A Long-term Contract". philly.com. August 12, 1986. Archived from the original on April 27, 2016. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  16. ^ Archives, L. A. Times (March 23, 1988). "Names in the News – March 23, 1988". Los Angeles Times.
  17. ^ Shreve, Bryce (January 21, 2021). "Cards Legend Darrell Griffith Returns to UofL as an Ambassador". Spectrum News 1. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
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