William Mervin McKinney III (born June 5, 1955) is a retired American professional
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
player, former radio broadcaster, and the current mayor of
Zion, Illinois
Zion is a city in Lake County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 24,655.
History
The city was founded in July 1901 by John Alexander Dowie (1847-1907), a Scots-Australian evangelical minister and faith healer who ...
. Due to his quickness he was nicknamed "The Crazed Hummingbird".
A 6'0"
guard
Guard or guards may refer to:
Professional occupations
* Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault
* Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street
* Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning
* Prison ...
, McKinney attended
Zion-Benton High School
Zion-Benton Township High School, or ZBTHS, is a public high school located at the corner of Kenosha Road and 21st Street in Zion, Illinois, a northern suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Zion-Benton Township High S ...
where he played for Mo Tharp (long time
Fremd
William Fremd High School, or Fremd (initially Palatine High School South), is a public four-year high school located in Palatine, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Township High School District ...
coach), and
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
; he earned a degree in education. He was the
Wildcats
The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...
' all-time leading scorer for 35 years until
John Shurna
John William Shurna (born April 30, 1990) is an American–Lithuanian professional basketball player for Herbalife Gran Canaria of the Liga ACB. He is the 2012 Big Ten scoring champion. He played in the 2012 NBA Summer League with the Atlanta ...
surpassed him in February 2012.
Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. Northwestern Wildcats - Recap - February 18, 2012 - ESPN
/ref> From 1978 to 1986 McKinney played in the National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
as a member of the Kansas City Kings
The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...
, Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...
, Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...
, San Diego Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...
, and Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...
. He averaged 8.0 points per game
Points per game, often abbreviated PPG, is the average number of points scored by a player per game played in a sport, over the course of a series of games, a whole season, or a career. It is calculated by dividing the total number of points by nu ...
and 3.5 assists per game
In basketball, an assist is attributed to a player who passes the ball to a teammate in a way that leads directly to a score by field goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the basket. An assist is also credited when a basket is awarded due ...
in his NBA career.
McKinney later served as Assistant Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Bulls, Director of Player Personnel for the Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...
, Vice President of Basketball Operations (Detroit Pistons), and Executive Vice President of the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...
and the same position for the WNBA's Seattle Storm
The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The Storm competes in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded by Ginger Ackerl ...
. In his previous position he was the radio color analyst for the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves. In June 2008, McKinney was hired by fellow Zion-Benton alumnus John Hammond as the Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...
' Director of Scouting. In 2015, he was named Vice-President of Scouting.
McKinney was elected as Zion's mayor in April 2019.
Notes
External links
Billy-McKinney.com
McKinney's official website
*
at NBA.com
Election Results
Mayor McKinney's about page - City of Zion, Illinois
1955 births
Living people
African-American basketball players
African-American sports executives and administrators
American men's basketball players
American sports executives and administrators
Basketball players from Illinois
Chicago Bulls players
Dallas Mavericks expansion draft picks
Denver Nuggets players
Kansas City Kings players
Minnesota Timberwolves announcers
National Basketball Association executives
Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy alumni
Northwestern Wildcats men's basketball players
Phoenix Suns draft picks
Point guards
San Diego Clippers players
Sportspeople from Waukegan, Illinois
Utah Jazz players
21st-century African-American people
20th-century African-American sportspeople
African-American mayors in Illinois
Women's National Basketball Association general managers
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