Rickey Green (born August 18, 1954) is an American retired 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 who 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 ...

(NBA). Green, a and

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...

, led

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

's Hirsch High School to the 1973 IHSA Class AA State championship. He then played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

Vincennes University Vincennes University (VU) is a public college with its main campus in Vincennes, Indiana. Founded in 1801 as Jefferson Academy, VU is the oldest public institution of higher learning in Indiana. VU was chartered in 1806 as the Indiana Terri ...

and the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

; at the latter school, his team lost to the undefeated

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

rival

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the Nationa ...

in the championship game of the 1976 NCAA tournament. He then led the 1976–77 Wolverines to the Big Ten regular season championship, earning 1977 All-American recognition. Green was selected with the 16th pick in the 1977 NBA draft, and competed in 14 seasons, playing for the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

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 ...

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), ...

, Charlotte Hornets,

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 ...

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...

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 ...

, and Boston Celtics. He was known for his speed, nicknamed "The Fastest of Them All" by announcer

Hot Rod Hundley Rodney Clark "Hot Rod" Hundley (October 26, 1934 – March 27, 2015) was an American professional basketball player and television broadcaster. Hundley was the number 1 pick of the 1957 NBA draft by the Cincinnati Royals out of West Virginia Uni ...

. In 1988, as a member of the Jazz, Green scored the five millionth point in NBA history, hitting a 3-pointer at the buzzer to end the third quarter in a game against the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. He autographed the ball after the game and it was taken to the

NBA Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and prese ...

Professional career

Green spent his rookie year with the Warriors as a backup, and was traded to the Pistons just prior to the 1978–79 season. He played in 27 games for coach

Dick Vitale Richard John Vitale (; born June 9, 1939), also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well known for his 41-year tenure as a college basketball broadcaster f ...

in Detroit before being released in December 1978. Out of the NBA, Green ultimately found himself playing for the Hawaii Volcanos in 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 ...

. There, he was able to transform his game, from being a shoot-first point guard to more of a distributor and floor general on offense. He returned to the NBA in 1980, having caught the eye of Jazz coach and general manager

Frank Layden Francis Layden (born January 5, 1932) is an American former basketball coach and executive of the National Basketball Association's Utah Jazz as well as former head coach of the Women's National Basketball Association's Utah Starzz. Coaching car ...

. Green played significant minutes at the point guard position in his first year, teaming with high-scoring small forward Adrian Dantley and rookie shooting guard

Darrell Griffith Darrell Steven Griffith (born June 16, 1958), also known by his nickname Dr. Dunkenstein, 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 ...

. He established himself as undisputed full-time starter in the 1981–82 season, averaging a career-high 14.8 points per game, and ranking among league leaders in assists (7.8) and steals (2.3) per game. He continued his strong scoring the following year, averaging 14.3 points per game, and improved in assists (8.9) and steals (2.8), ranking third and second, respectively, among league leaders in those categories. The following season (1983–84) was probably Green's best as a professional. He continued his strong play on offense, averaging 13.2 points and a career-high 9.2 assists per game. In addition, he led the NBA in steals per game (2.7) and total steals (215); of note, he had also led the league in total steals the year previous year (with 220). For his efforts, he was named to the

1984 NBA All-Star Game The 34th National Basketball Association All-Star Game was played on January 29, 1984, at McNichols Sports Arena in Denver. The East All-Stars defeated the West All-Stars. 154–145. Isiah Thomas of the Detroit Pistons was named the MVP of the ...

, the only All-Star appearance of his career. Even more importantly, after a decade of struggling as a franchise, the Jazz won the Midwest Division title and earned their first-ever appearance in the NBA playoffs, advancing to the conference semifinals before losing to the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

. Green remained the starting point guard for Utah for most of the next three seasons, leading the team into the playoffs each year, but was increasing challenged for playing time by a young new arrival named

John Stockton John Houston Stockton (born March 26, 1962) is an American former professional basketball player. Regarded as one of the greatest point guards, players and passers of all time, he spent his entire NBA career (1984–2003) with the Utah Jazz, a ...

, whom the Jazz had selected in the

1984 NBA Draft The 1984 NBA draft was the 37th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held at the Felt Forum at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, on June 19, 1984, before the 1984–85 season. The draft is generally c ...

. Stockton ultimately overtook Green as starter in 1987, and went on to a Hall of Fame career that totaled 19 seasons in the league, all with the Jazz franchise. Green was chosen by the Charlotte Hornets in the expansion draft in 1988, and ended up playing for five different teams in the last four years of his career, mostly as a backup. He experienced a brief resurgence with the 76ers in 1990–91 after

Johnny Dawkins Johnny Earl Dawkins Jr. (born September 28, 1963) is an American basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the UCF men's basketball team. From 2008 to 2016, he was the head coach of Stanford. He was a two-time All-American ...

suffered a season-ending injury; Green started 75 games in his place that year, averaging 10.0 points and 5.2 assists per game. He retired in 1992 after a brief stint with the Celtics.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 76 , , – , , 14.4 , , .381 , , – , , .600 , , 1.5 , , 2.0 , , 0.8 , , 0.0 , , 4.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-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 ...

, 27 , , – , , 16.0 , , .379 , , – , , .672 , , 1.5 , , 2.3 , , 0.9 , , 0.0 , , 6.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, 47 , , – , , 27.8 , , .481 , , .000 , , .722 , , 2.5 , , 5.0 , , 1.6 , , 0.0 , , 9.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 73 , , 34.8 , , .493 , , .000 , , .765 , , 3.0 , , 7.8 , , 2.3 , , 0.1 , , 14.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 78 , , 78 , , 35.7 , , .493 , , .154 , , .797 , , 2.9 , , 8.9 , , 2.8 , , 0.1 , , 14.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 81 , , 34.2 , , .486 , , .118 , , .821 , , 2.8 , , 9.2 , , style="background:#cfecec;", 2.7* , , 0.2 , , 13.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 77 , , 77 , , 31.6 , , .477 , , .300 , , .869 , , 2.5 , , 7.8 , , 1.7 , , 0.0 , , 13.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 80 , , 44 , , 25.2 , , .471 , , .172 , , .852 , , 1.7 , , 5.1 , , 1.3 , , 0.1 , , 11.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 80 , , 25.8 , , .467 , , .368 , , .827 , , 2.0 , , 6.7 , , 1.4 , , 0.0 , , 9.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 3 , , 13.8 , , .424 , , .211 , , .904 , , 1.0 , , 3.7 , , 0.7 , , 0.0 , , 4.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Charlotte 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 populo ...

, 33 , , 2 , , 11.2 , , .432 , , .200 , , .929 , , 0.7 , , 2.5 , , 0.5 , , 0.0 , , 3.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-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 ...

, 30 , , 0 , , 16.7 , , .545 , , .333 , , .895 , , 1.5 , , 3.5 , , 0.7 , , 0.1 , , 5.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, 69 , , 0 , , 13.4 , , .433 , , .091 , , .843 , , 0.8 , , 2.6 , , 0.7 , , 0.0 , , 3.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-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 ...

, 79 , , 75 , , 28.5 , , .463 , , .222 , , .830 , , 1.7 , , 5.2 , , 0.7 , , 0.1 , , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-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 ...

, 26 , , 0 , , 14.1 , , .447 , , .250 , , .722 , , 0.9 , , 2.6 , , 0.7 , , 0.0 , , 4.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 946 , , 513 , , 24.6 , , .469 , , .207 , , .807 , , 1.9 , , 5.5 , , 1.4 , , 0.1 , , 9.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", All-Star , 1 , , 0 , , 19.0 , , .375 , , – , , – , , 0.0 , , 11.0 , , 1.0 , , 0.0 , , 6.0

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;", 1984 , style="text-align:left;”,

, 11, , –, , 36.7, , .424, , .250, , .744, , 3.1, , 9.5, , 1.7, , 0.4, , 14.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1985 , style="text-align:left;”,

, 10, , 10, , 30.2, , .538, , .143, , .921, , 3.0, , 7.5, , 1.2, , 0.0, , 15.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, style="text-align:left;”,

, 4, , 4, , 29.8, , .488, , .500, , .909, , 2.3, , 9.5, , 0.5, , 0.0, , 13.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1987 , style="text-align:left;”,

, 4, , 3, , 18.0, , .478, , .000, , .833, , 2.0, , 6.3, , 0.5, , 0.0, , 6.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

, style="text-align:left;”,

, 7, , 0, , 5.4, , .250, , –, , –, , 0.1, , 1.3, , 0.3, , 0.0, , 0.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1989 , style="text-align:left;”,

, 8, , 0, , 13.8, , .414, , .500, , 1.000, , 1.6, , 2.3, , 0.6, , 0.0, , 3.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

, style="text-align:left;”,

, 3, , 0, , 10.3, , .143, , –, , –, , 0.3, , 1.0, , 0.3, , 0.0, , 0.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

, style="text-align:left;”,

, 8, , 8, , 24.9, , .436, , .750, , .889, , 1.1, , 2.8, , 0.9, , 0.0, , 7.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 55 , , 25 , , 23.2 , , .455 , , .350 , , .847 , , 1.9 , , 5.3 , , 0.9 , , 0.1 , , 8.8

Notes

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Rickey 1954 births Living people African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Chicago Billings Volcanos players Boston Celtics players Charlotte Hornets expansion draft picks Charlotte Hornets players Detroit Pistons players Golden State Warriors draft picks Golden State Warriors players Hawaii Volcanos players Indiana Pacers players Michigan Wolverines men's basketball players Milwaukee Bucks players National Basketball Association All-Stars Philadelphia 76ers players Point guards Utah Jazz players Vincennes Trailblazers men's basketball players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople

Professional career

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

See also

Notes

External links