Samuel Bruce Perkins (born June 14, 1961) is an American former 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 and executive. Perkins was a three-time college All-American, was a member of the 1982 national champion

North Carolina Tar Heels The North Carolina Tar Heels are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to individuals from the state of North Carolina, the ''Tar Heel ...

, and won a gold medal with the

1984 United States men's Olympic basketball team The 1984 United States men's Olympic basketball team competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, representing the United States. The USA's senior men's team, was led by coach Bob Knight, who was also the head coach of the Indiana Hoosi ...

. Perkins played professionally 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) for 17 seasons.

High school career

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Perkins attended

Samuel J. Tilden High School Samuel J. Tilden High School is a New York City public high school in the East Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York City. It was named for Samuel J. Tilden, the former governor of New York State and presidential candidate who, although carryin ...

. He later attended and graduated from

Shaker High School Shaker High School, is a public high school in Latham, Albany County, New York, United States, and is the only high school operated by the North Colonie Central School District. The school's Science Bowl team finished first in their regional co ...

Latham, New York Latham is a hamlet (and census-designated place) in Albany County, New York, United States. It is located along U.S. Route 9 in the town of Colonie, a dense suburb north of Albany. As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,736. Latham was ...

. He was named large-school player of the year (high school) by the

New York State Sportswriters Association The New York State Sportswriters Association (NYSSWA), founded in 1967, is a source of reference information and statistics about scholastic athletics in the state. Begun by sportswriters Larry Serrell of the Schenectady Daily Gazette and Chuck Ko ...

in 1980 and was also named to the 35 Greatest Boys McDonald's All Americans team.

College career

Perkins attended college at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

and played basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels from 1980 to 1984. He was named ACC Rookie of the Year in 1981 and starred alongside future NBA Hall of Famers

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 ...

and

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

on the Tar Heels' 1982 NCAA championship team. A three-time All-American, Perkins was the 1984

USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year The USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year is an annual award issued by USA Basketball USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States ...

. Perkins finished his collegiate basketball career as the Tar Heels' all-time leader in rebounds and blocked shots and as the second-highest scorer in team history. He graduated from UNC in 1984. Perkins was a co-captain of the gold medal-winning

. He was named first-team All-

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

three times in his Tar Heel career.

Professional career

Chosen by the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conferenc ...

as the fourth overall pick 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 ...

, Perkins went on to play as a power forward and center in the NBA from 1984 to 2001. He was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1985. Perkins played for 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 ...

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

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 ...

, respectively. He scored a career-high 45 points on April 12, 1990. Perkins tied an NBA record on January 15, 1997, by making eight three-pointers without a miss. He appeared in three NBA Finals: The

1991 NBA Finals The 1991 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1990–91 National Basketball Association (NBA) season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. It was also the first NBA Finals broadcast by NBC after 17 years with CBS. The Eastern ...

(with the Lakers), the

1996 NBA Finals The 1996 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1995–96 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics (64–18) played the Eastern Con ...

(with the SuperSonics), and the

2000 NBA Finals The 2000 NBA Finals was the championship round of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1999–2000 season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Eastern Conference ...

(with the Pacers). In game one of the 1991 NBA Finals, Perkins made a game-winning three-point shot to defeat 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 1 ...

. He was known by the nicknames "Sleepy Sam", "Big Smooth", and "The Big Easy".

Post-retirement activities

In 2002, Perkins was named to the

ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team During the 2002–03 school year, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) celebrated its 50th anniversary by selecting the top players in its respective sports. Fifty players were selected for the men's basketball team, which was voted on by a 120-mem ...

as one of the fifty greatest players in

history. In 2008, Perkins was named vice president of player relations for the

. That September, he was inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame.Mallozzi, Vincent M
"City's Basketball Hall Welcomes 98-Year-Old Inductee"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', September 17, 2008. Accessed September 14, 2009. Perkins held his position with the Pacers until 2010. In 2011, Perkins traveled to

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...

as a

SportsUnited Formerly known as SportsUnited, Sports Diplomacy is the U.S. Department of State's sports diplomacy division. Sports Diplomacy uses sport to help youth around the world develop important off-the-court skills, including leadership, mutual understan ...

Sports Envoy for the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

. In this capacity, he worked with

Dikembe Mutombo Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo (born June 25, 1966) is a Congolese-American former professional basketball player. Mutombo played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Outside basketball, he has becom ...

to lead a series of basketball clinics and team-building exercises with 50 youth and 36 coaches. This helped contribute to the State Department's mission to remove barriers and create a world in which individuals with disabilities enjoy dignity and full inclusion in society. Perkins was named to the

National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame The National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Kansas City, Missouri, is a hall of fame and museum dedicated to men's college basketball. The museum is an integral portion of the College Basketball Experience created by the National ...

in 2018. Perkins runs a summer camp for

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census, making Chapel Hill the 17th-largest municipality in the state. Chapel Hill, Durham, and the state ca ...

youth that focuses on developing the basic skills of basketball.

Personal life

Perkins was raised a

Jehovah's Witness Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ev ...

. During his professional career, he did not stand for the national anthem due to his faith. McCallum, Jack
"Oh Say Should We Sing?"
''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'', March 25, 1996, accessed October 21, 2016.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

, 82 , , 42 , , 28.3 , , .471 , , .250 , , .820 , , 7.4 , , 1.6 , , .8 , , .8 , , 11.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 80 , , 79 , , 32.8 , , .503 , , .333 , , .814 , , 8.6 , , 1.9 , , .9 , , 1.2 , , 15.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 80 , , 80 , , 33.6 , , .482 , , .352 , , .828 , , 7.7 , , 1.8 , , 1.4 , , 1.0 , , 14.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 75 , , 75 , , 33.3 , , .450 , , .167 , , .822 , , 8.0 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , .7 , , 14.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 78 , , 77 , , 36.7 , , .464 , , .184 , , .833 , , 8.8 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , 1.2 , , 15.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 76 , , 70 , , 35.1 , , .493 , , .214 , , .778 , , 7.5 , , 2.3 , , 1.2 , , .8 , , 15.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

L.A. 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 ...

, 76 , , 66 , , 34.3 , , .495 , , .281 , , .821 , , 7.4 , , 1.5 , , .9 , , 1.1 , , 13.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 63 , , 63 , , 37.0 , , .450 , , .217 , , .817 , , 8.8 , , 2.2 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 16.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 49 , , 49 , , 32.4 , , .459 , , .172 , , .829 , , 7.7 , , 2.6 , , .8 , , 1.0 , , 13.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-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 ...

, 30 , , 13 , , 25.4 , , .511 , , .452 , , .795 , , 4.8 , , .9 , , .7 , , 1.0 , , 12.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 41 , , 26.8 , , .438 , , .367 , , .801 , , 4.5 , , 1.4 , , .8 , , 4 , , 12.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , 37 , , 28.7 , , .466 , , .397 , , .799 , , 4.9 , , 1.6 , , .9 , , .5 , , 12.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , 20 , , 26.5 , , .408 , , .355 , , .793 , , 4.5 , , 1.5 , , 1.0 , , .6 , , 11.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 4 , , 24.4 , , .439 , , .395 , , .817 , , 3.7 , , 1.3 , , .9 , , .6 , , 11.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 0 , , 20.7 , , .416 , , .392 , , .789 , , 3.1 , , 1.4 , , .8 , , .4 , , 7.2 , - , 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 ...

, 48 , , 0 , , 16.4 , , .400 , , .389 , , .717 , , 2.9 , , .5 , , .3 , , .3 , , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 0 , , 20.0 , , .417 , , .408 , , .825 , , 3.6 , , .8 , , .4 , , .4 , , 6.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 64 , , 41 , , 15.6 , , .381 , , .345 , , .842 , , 2.6 , , .6 , , .5 , , .3 , , 3.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 1,286 , , 757 , , 28.5 , , .459 , , .362 , , .811 , , 6.0 , , 1.5 , , .9 , , .7 , , 11.9

Playoffs

Perkins has the distinction of having the third-most playoff games appeared in without having been on a team that won the

NBA Championship 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 ...

. The only players with more playoff appearances and zero rings, as of the 2020 season, are Hall of Famers and longtime

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), ...

players

Karl Malone Karl Anthony Malone (born July 24, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Mailman", he is considered one of the greatest power forwards in NBA history. Malone spen ...

and

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, ...

. , - , style="text-align:left;",

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

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

, 4 , , 4 , , 42.3 , , .490 , , .250 , , .765 , , 12.8 , , 2.8 , , .5 , , .3 , , 18.8 , - , 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;",

, 10 , , 10 , , 34.7 , , .429 , , .250 , , .767 , , 8.3 , , 2.4 , , .9 , , 1.4 , , 14.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

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

, 4 , , 4 , , 17.0 , , .500 , , .000 , , .696 , , 8.5 , , 1.3 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 17.0 , - , 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;",

, 17 , , 17 , , 33.6 , , .451 , , .143 , , .803 , , 6.6 , , 1.8 , , 1.5 , , 1.0 , , 13.5 , - , 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 , , 3 , , 39.3 , , .444 , , .000 , , .765 , , 7.3 , , 2.7 , , 1.0 , , .7 , , 15.0 , - , 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;",

, 19 , , 19 , , 39.6 , , .548 , , .367 , , .761 , , 8.3 , , 1.7 , , .8 , , 1.4 , , 17.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

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

, 19 , , 17 , , 32.9 , , .436 , , .380 , , .873 , , 7.0 , , 1.9 , , 1.0 , , 1.3 , , 14.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...

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

, 5 , , 0 , , 28.2 , , .333 , , .429 , , .882 , , 7.2 , , .8 , , .8 , , .4 , , 9.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

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

, 4 , , 1 , , 35.3 , , .438 , , .455 , , 1.000 , , 7.8 , , 3.3 , , .8 , , 1.3 , , 13.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

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

, 21 , , 1 , , 31.1 , , .459 , , .368 , , .754 , , 4.3 , , 1.7 , , .7 , , .3 , , 12.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

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

, 12 , , 6 , , 28.3 , , .337 , , .311 , , .862 , , 4.4 , , 1.3 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 8.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

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

, 10 , , 1 , , 21.0 , , .381 , , .417 , , .600 , , 3.2 , , 1.4 , , .3 , , .5 , , 5.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

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

, 13 , , 0 , , 11.2 , , .514 , , .458 , , .667 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .0 , , .2 , , 4.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

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

, 23 , , 0 , , 18.1 , , .324 , , .348 , , .905 , , 3.2 , , .4 , , .2 , , .3 , , 4.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

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

, 3 , , 0 , , 6.3 , , .250 , , .250 , , – , , 1.3 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 167 , , 83 , , 28.7 , , .444 , , .363 , , .785 , , 5.6 , , 1.5 , , .7 , , .8 , , 11.1

References

External links

NBA.com Player File

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perkins, Sam 1961 births Living people African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American Jehovah's Witnesses American men's basketball players Basketball players at the 1983 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 1984 Summer Olympics Basketball players from New York City Centers (basketball) Dallas Mavericks draft picks Dallas Mavericks players Indiana Pacers players Los Angeles Lakers players McDonald's High School All-Americans Medalists at the 1983 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in basketball Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Power forwards (basketball) Samuel J. Tilden High School alumni Seattle SuperSonics players Sportspeople from Brooklyn United States men's national basketball team players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople

High school career

College career

Professional career

Post-retirement activities

Personal life

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

See also

References

External links