Richard "Pee Wee" Kirkland (born May 6, 1945) is a former American

streetball Streetball (or street basketball) is a variation of basketball, typically played on outdoor courts and featuring significantly less formal structure and enforcement of the game's rules. As such, its format is more conducive to allowing players ...

player and drug kingpin.

Career

Basketball

Born in

Manhattan, New York Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, Kirkland played varsity basketball at

Charles Evans Hughes High School The Bayard Rustin Educational Complex – also known as the Humanities Educational Complex – at West 18th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, is a "vertical campus" of the N ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, New York, and was made an All-City guard. He was awarded a scholarship and attended

Kittrell College Kittrell College was a two-year historically black college located in Kittrell, North Carolina from 1886 until 1975. It was associated with the African Methodist Episcopal Church. After the college closed, many of its facilities became the Kitt ...

, a community college in North Carolina, and was on the basketball team averaging 41 points per game. He then attended

Norfolk State University Norfolk State University (NSU) is a public historically black university in Norfolk, Virginia. It is a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and Virginia High-Tech Partnership. History The institution was founded on September 18, 193 ...

and played on the basketball team, teaming up with future NBA star Bob Dandridge. The Spartans won the CIAA title in 1968 with a 25–2 record; they lost in the second round of the NCAA Division II Men's Tournament. The next year their record was 21–4 and they lost in the first round of the D-II tournament. In 1969 he was drafted by the

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 ...

with the fourth pick in the thirteenth round. It is speculated that he turned the offer down because he was making more money in current ventures, including being a drug dealer, than he would in professional basketball. At the time, the opportunities offered to him outside of the NBA were far more lucrative, in terms of financial gain and public recognition. Kirkland was imprisoned for committing crimes, first in 1971 in

Lewisburg, Pennsylvania Lewisburg is a borough in Union County, Pennsylvania, United States, south by southeast of Williamsport and north of Harrisburg. In the past, it was the commercial center for a fertile grain and general farming region. The population was 5,1 ...

. He also played in prison from 1981 to 1988 at Federal Correctional Institution, La Tuna in Texas. In the Anthracite Basketball League of central Pennsylvania he scored 100 and 135 points in two different games.

Motivational speaker

Kirkland travels the country speaking to youth about decision-making and pathways to success, in addition to self-esteem and other various issues plaguing the inner-cities of America. He presents his messages in the "School of Skillz"—a basketball and life skills campaign that is co-sponsored by

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

. The camps began in the 1990s on Saturdays in Harlem and has since become a nationwide endeavor. He has won championships as a high school coach at The Dwight School, a prestigious private school on the Upper West Side, in New York City. One of his early breakthroughs involved reaching out to youth such as Hanif "Camel" Warren. As an educator and social worker, Kirkland utilizes the respect he receives from young people because of his gangster past to reach at-risk youth and break down their misconceptions about "keepin' it real" on the streets. Kirkland earned a master's degree in human services from Lincoln University.

Media

In the basketball film ''

Above the Rim ''Above the Rim'' is a 1994 American sports drama film co-written and directed by Jeff Pollack in his directorial debut. The screenplay was written by Barry Michael Cooper, adapted from a story by Benny Medina. The film stars Duane Martin, Tu ...

'', Kirkland appeared as Georgetown recruiter Phil Redd. Kirkland was mentioned and appeared in the music video for the song " Grindin" by the rap group

Clipse Clipse, also known as The Clipse, is an American hip hop duo, chiefly active from 1994 to 2010. It consists of brothers Gene "No Malice" and Terrence "Pusha T" Thornton. Pusha T was known as Terrar during the group's early years, while No Mal ...

. He is also mentioned in Terror Squad's "

Lean Back "Lean Back" is a song by American hip hop group Terror Squad. It was released as the second single from their second studio album, '' True Story'', on June 1, 2004. An uptempo hip hop song built for the club environment, it features Fat Joe wit ...

", " Always on Time" by

Ja Rule Jeffrey Bruce Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule (), is an American rapper and actor. Born and raised in New York City, he debuted in 1999 with '' Venni Vetti Vecci'' and its lead single " Holla Holla". Dur ...

, "Zoom" by

Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that current ...

, and "All Work" by

Curren$y Shante Scott Franklin (born April 4, 1981), better known by his stage name Currensy (often stylized as Curren$y), is an American rapper. In 2011, he founded the label Jet Life Recordings. Music career 2002–2008: No Limit and Young Money ...

and

Young Dolph Adolph Robert Thornton Jr. (July 27, 1985 – November 17, 2021), better known by his stage name Young Dolph, was an American rapper. In 2016, he released his debut studio album, '' King of Memphis'', which peaked at number 49 on the ''Billboar ...

. He also appears in the documentary ''Sneaker Stories'', filmed in 2008. Most recently, he appeared in the documentary ''Doin' It in the Park'' filmed in 2012 about the New York outdoor courts and players who lived on them.Doin' It in the Park, a film about pick up basketball
/ref> He is also mentioned by South Memphis rapper Young Dolph as a featured artist in the song 'All Work' by well known rapper Curren$y where Dolph describes himself as a legend just as Pee Wee Kirkland. Kirkland also makes an appearance as himself in the 2018 basketball comedy

Uncle Drew ''Uncle Drew'' is a 2018 American sports comedy film directed by Charles Stone III and written by Jay Longino. It stars Kyrie Irving as the title character from his Pepsi Max advertisements that began airing in 2012, along with former NBA player ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkland, Pee Wee 1945 births Living people African-American basketball players American drug traffickers American men's basketball players American motivational speakers Basketball players from New York City Chicago Bulls draft picks Kittrell College alumni Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) alumni Norfolk State Spartans men's basketball players Shooting guards Sportspeople from Brooklyn Street basketball players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople