James Arthur Bradley (March 16, 1952 – February 20, 1982) was an American
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.
Early life and education
Bradley was born and raised in
East Chicago, Indiana
East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,698 at the 2010 census. The city is home of the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, an artificial freshwater harbor characterized by industrial and manufacturing ac ...
. He was a star athlete at
Roosevelt High School. In 1970, he led the East Chicago Roosevelt Roughriders to the Indiana Boys State Basketball title; in 1972, he was named the
MVP of the Midwestern Conference. He played collegiately for nearby
Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois. It was founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895, by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld as part of an expansion of the state's system ...
.
Career
Bradley was selected by 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 ...
in the third round (48th pick overall) of the
1974 NBA draft. He played for the
Kentucky Colonels
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of ...
(1973–75) and
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 ...
(1975–76) in the
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major men's professional basketball league from 1967 to 1976. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger, American Basketball Association–National Basketball Association merger in 1976, ...
(ABA) for 98 games. Bradley finished his career with the
Rochester Zeniths of the
Continental Basketball Association
The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) (originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association) was a men's professional basketball m ...
(CBA) from 1978 to 1981.
Death
In 1982, Bradley was found dead at age 29 in an alley in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
. The police later determined that he was shot in the back in a drug-related deal.
See also
*
References
External links
College statistics@ sports-reference.com
1952 births
1982 deaths
1982 murders in the United States
American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines
American men's basketball players
American murder victims
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel players
Basketball players from Indiana
Deaths by firearm in Oregon
Denver Nuggets players
Forwards (basketball)
Kentucky Colonels players
Los Angeles Lakers draft picks
Male murder victims
Northern Illinois Huskies men's basketball players
Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball)
People murdered in Oregon
Philippine Basketball Association imports
Rochester Zeniths players
Sportspeople from East Chicago, Indiana
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