Jerome McKinley "Gerald" Henderson Sr. (born January 16, 1956) is an American retired

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. He was a

combo guard A combo guard is a basketball player who combines the attributes of a point guard (1) and shooting guard (2), but does not necessarily fit the standard description of either position. In men's basketball, such guards are usually within the 6' 3" ...

who had a 13-year career 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 ...

(NBA) from 1979 until 1992. He played for the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

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 ...

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

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 ...

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

, and

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

. Henderson was born in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

and attended

Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a public research university in Richmond, Virginia. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virginia in 1854. In 1968, the Virgini ...

. Henderson is best known for his steal of a

James Worthy James Ager Worthy (born February 27, 1961) is an American sports commentator, television host, analyst, and former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Big Game James", he played his entire professional career with the Los Angeles Lakers ...

pass to score a game-tying layup in Game 2 of the

1984 NBA Finals The 1984 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1983–84 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs. The Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeated the Weste ...

between the Boston Celtics and the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

. The Celtics eventually prevailed in overtime. In a post-game interview, Henderson said that "For a minute I could hear

Johnny Most John M. Most (June 15, 1923 – January 3, 1993) was an American sports announcer, known primarily as the raspy radio voice of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association from 1953 to 1990. Most's radio call during the final moment ...

going, 'Henderson steals the ball!'", in reference to Most's famous call of

John Havlicek John Joseph Havlicek ( ; April 8, 1940 – April 25, 2019) was an American professional basketball player who spent his entire career with the Boston Celtics, winning List of NBA players with most championships, eight NBA championships, four of ...

's steal in the 1965 Eastern Conference finals. Most's actual words were "It goes quickly in now to

Magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

, back over to Worthy, and it's picked off! Goes to Henderson, he lays it up and in! It's all tied up! A great play by Henderson!" In the fall of 1984, Henderson was traded to Seattle for the Sonics' first-round pick in 1986, which the Celtics would use to draft

Len Bias Leonard Kevin Bias (November 18, 1963June 19, 1986) was an American college basketball player who attended the University of Maryland. During his four years playing for Maryland, he was named a first-team All-American. Two days after being selec ...

. In 1990, while a member of the

, Henderson scored at the last second of Game 4 of the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

, sealing the victory for the Pistons. As of 2006, he and his wife run a real estate business in

Blue Bell, Pennsylvania Blue Bell is a census-designated place (CDP) in Whitpain Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 6,067. Blue Bell was originally known as Pigeontown, after the large flocks of the n ...

. Their son,

Gerald Henderson Jr. Jerome McKinley "Gerald" Henderson Jr. (born December 9, 1987) is an American former professional basketball player who played eight seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils. Hen ...

was selected by the

Charlotte Bobcats Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populous ...

of the

in the

2009 NBA draft The 2009 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2009, at the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City. In this draft, the National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eli ...

. Gerald Jr. played eight NBA seasons for the Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets,

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...

, and

. In 2012, Henderson was inducted into the

Virginia Sports Hall of Fame The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame honors athletes, coaches, administrators, journalists and other contributors to athletics. Many of the more than 350 inductees since 1972 were born in Virginia or enjoyed success in college, professional, amateur or ...

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , align="left" , 1979–80 , align="left" ,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, 76 , , 2 , , 14.0 , , .500 , , .333 , , .690 , , 1.1 , , 1.9 , , 0.6 , , 0.2 , , 6.2 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" , 1980–81† , align="left" ,

, 82 , , 10 , , 19.6 , , .451 , , .063 , , .720 , , 1.6 , , 2.6 , , 1.0 , , 0.1 , , 7.8 , - , align="left" , 1981–82 , align="left" ,

, 82 , , 31 , , 22.5 , , .501 , , .167 , , .727 , , 1.9 , , 3.1 , , 1.0 , , 0.1 , , 10.2 , - , align="left" , 1982–83 , align="left" ,

, 82 , , 9 , , 18.9 , , .463 , , .188 , , .722 , , 1.5 , , 2.4 , , 1.2 , , 0.0 , , 8.2 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" , 1983–84† , align="left" ,

, 78 , , 78 , , 26.8 , , .524 , , .351 , , .768 , , 1.9 , , 3.8 , , 1.5 , , 0.2 , , 11.6 , - , align="left" , 1984–85 , align="left" ,

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, 79 , , 78 , , 33.5 , , .479 , , .237 , , .780 , , 2.4 , , 7.1 , , 1.8 , , 0.1 , , 13.4 , - , align="left" , 1985–86 , align="left" ,

, 82 , , 82 , , 31.3 , , .482 , , .346 , , .830 , , 2.3 , , 5.9 , , 1.7 , , 0.1 , , 13.1 , - , align="left" , 1986–87 , align="left" ,

, 6 , , 6 , , 25.8 , , .500 , , .000 , , .944 , , 1.5 , , 5.3 , , 1.0 , , 0.0 , , 11.2 , - , align="left" , 1986–87 , align="left" ,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, 68 , , 53 , , 27.8 , , .438 , , .257 , , .816 , , 2.4 , , 6.5 , , 1.4 , , 0.2 , , 10.9 , - , align="left" , 1987–88 , align="left" ,

, 6 , , 2 , , 11.5 , , .357 , , .500 , , 1.000 , , 1.7 , , 2.2 , , 0.3 , , 0.0 , , 2.3 , - , align="left" , 1987–88 , align="left" ,

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, 69 , , 3 , , 20.8 , , .431 , , .421 , , .810 , , 1.4 , , 3.2 , , 1.0 , , 0.1 , , 8.4 , - , align="left" , 1988–89 , align="left" ,

, 65 , , 0 , , 15.2 , , .414 , , .308 , , .819 , , 1.0 , , 2.2 , , 0.6 , , 0.0 , , 6.5 , - , align="left" , 1989–90 , align="left" ,

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

, 11 , , 0 , , 11.7 , , .423 , , .429 , , 1.000 , , 1.1 , , 1.2 , , 0.7 , , 0.0 , , 2.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" , 1989–90† , align="left" ,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

, 46 , , 0 , , 7.3 , , .506 , , .452 , , .769 , , 0.7 , , 1.3 , , 0.2 , , 0.0 , , 2.3 , - , align="left" , 1990–91 , align="left" ,

, 23 , , 10 , , 17.0 , , .427 , , .333 , , .762 , , 1.6 , , 2.7 , , 0.5 , , 0.1 , , 5.3 , - , align="left" , 1991–92 , align="left" ,

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, 8 , , 0 , , 4.3 , , .364 , , .000 , , .667 , , 0.3 , , 0.6 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 1.5 , - , align="left" , 1991–92 , align="left" ,

, 8 , , 0 , , 7.8 , , .381 , , .600 , , 1.000 , , 0.8 , , 0.6 , , 0.4 , , 0.0 , , 3.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 871 , , 364 , , 21.6 , , .472 , , .332 , , .776 , , 1.7 , , 3.6 , , 1.1 , , 0.1 , , 8.9

Playoffs

, - , align="left" , 1979–80 , align="left" ,

, 9 , , - , , 11.2 , , .405 , , .000 , , .600 , , 1.1 , , 1.3 , , 0.4 , , 0.0 , , 4.7 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" , 1980–81† , align="left" ,

, 16 , , - , , 14.3 , , .477 , , .000 , , .833 , , 1.6 , , 1.6 , , 0.6 , , 0.2 , , 5.8 , - , align="left" , 1981–82 , align="left" ,

, 12 , , - , , 25.8 , , .409 , , .000 , , .686 , , 2.1 , , 4.0 , , 1.2 , , 0.2 , , 8.3 , - , align="left" , 1982–83 , align="left" ,

, 7 , , - , , 26.7 , , .412 , , .000 , , .857 , , 2.0 , , 4.4 , , 1.6 , , 0.1 , , 10.9 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" , 1983–84† , align="left" ,

, style="background:#cfecec;", 23* , , - , , 26.8 , , .485 , , .273 , , .720 , , 2.3 , , 4.2 , , 1.5 , , 0.0 , , 12.5 , - , align="left" , 1988–89 , align="left" ,

, 3 , , 0 , , 23.0 , , .400 , , .286 , , .333 , , 2.3 , , 1.7 , , 0.7 , , 0.0 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" , 1989–90† , align="left" ,

, 8 , , 0 , , 2.4 , , .200 , , .000 , , .000 , , 0.4 , , 0.5 , , 0.3 , , 0.0 , , 0.3 , - , align="left" , 1990–91 , align="left" ,

, 10 , , 1 , , 4.0 , , .250 , , .000 , , .000 , , 0.1 , , 0.6 , , 0.1 , , 0.0 , , 0.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 88 , , 1 , , 17.8 , , .443 , , .156 , , .697 , , 1.6 , , 2.6 , , 0.9 , , 0.1 , , 7.2

References

External links

Where Are They Now?: Gerald Henderson
@ basketball-reference.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Gerald 1956 births Living people African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Richmond, Virginia Boston Celtics players Detroit Pistons players Houston Rockets players Milwaukee Bucks players New York Knicks players People from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Philadelphia 76ers players Point guards San Antonio Spurs draft picks Seattle SuperSonics players Shooting guards VCU Rams men's basketball players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople Western Basketball Association players