William Rodney "Bird" Averitt (July 22, 1952December 12, 2020) was an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and 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 St ...

(NBA). He won an ABA championship with the Kentucky Colonels in 1975. Born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, he played

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for the

Pepperdine Waves The Pepperdine Waves are the athletics teams of Pepperdine University, located outside the city of Malibu, California. They compete at the Division I level of the NCAA. The school is a member of the West Coast Conference for the majority of its ...

and was named the conference player of the year in the West Coast Conference. He was selected in the fourth round of the

1973 NBA draft The 1973 NBA draft was the 27th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 24 and May 5, 1973, before the 1973–74 season. In this draft, 17 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college baske ...

by the

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 the second round of the 1973 ABA Draft by the

San Diego Conquistadors The San Diego Conquistadors (known as the San Diego Sails in their final, partial season), were an American Basketball Association (ABA) team based in San Diego. The "Q's", as they were popularly known, played from 1972 to 1975. As the Sails, the ...

. He played for the

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

(1973–74) and Kentucky Colonels (1974–76) in the ABA for 236 games, winning the 1975 ABA championship with the Colonels. After the Colonels were disbanded as part of the

ABA–NBA merger The ABA-NBA merger was a major pro sports business maneuver in 1976 when the American Basketball Association (ABA) combined with the National Basketball Association (NBA), after multiple attempts over several years. The NBA and ABA had entered ...

, Averitt joined the

Buffalo Braves The Buffalo Braves were an American professional basketball franchise based in Buffalo, New York. The Braves competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division from 1970 ...

through the 1976 ABA dispersal draft, playing with that team for the 1976–77 season until joining the

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

for the 1977–78 season, playing 130 games in the NBA with those two teams. Averitt died at age 68 on December 12, 2020.

ABA/NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", San Antonio (ABA) , 74 , , – , , 22.1 , , .376 , , .180 , , .696 , , 1.6 , , 1.8 , , 0.9 , , 0.1 , , 11.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6fa;", † , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 84 , , – , , 24.2 , , .416 , , .149 , , .778 , , 2.2 , , 3.8 , , 1.0 , , 0.2 , , 13.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 78 , , – , , 29.1 , , .429 , , .313 , , .769 , , 2.7 , , 3.8 , , 1.4 , , 0.3 , , 17.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Buffalo , 75 , , – , , 15.1 , , .378 , , – , , .716 , , 1.0 , , 1.8 , , 0.4 , , 0.1 , , 7.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, 21 , , – , , 19.5 , , .367 , , – , , .800 , , 1.6 , , 3.2 , , 0.8 , , 0.0 , , 8.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Buffalo , 34 , , – , , 19.9 , , .436 , , – , , .667 , , 1.5 , , 3.8 , , 0.6 , , 0.2 , , 9.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 366 , , – , , 22.3 , , .405 , , .249 , , .743 , , 1.9 , , 2.9 , , 0.9 , , 0.2 , , 12.1

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;", 1974 , style="text-align:left;”, San Antonio (ABA) , 6, , –, , 17.3, , .373, , .000, , .789, , 1.8, , 0.3, , 0.2, , 0.7, , 8.8 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6fa;",

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

† , style="text-align:left;”, Kentucky (ABA) , 14, , –, , 18.9, , .364, , .200, , .806, , 1.6, , 2.1, , 0.5, , 0.0, , 9.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

, style="text-align:left;”, Kentucky (ABA) , 10, , –, , 35.8, , .404, , .154, , .881, , 2.2, , 6.1, , 1.2, , 0.2, , 19.9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 30 , , – , , 24.2 , , .385 , , .143 , , .837 , , 1.8 , , 3.1 , , 0.7 , , 0.2 , , 13.0

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Averitt, Bird 1952 births 2020 deaths 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Kentucky Buffalo Braves players Kentucky Colonels players New Jersey Nets players Pepperdine Waves men's basketball players Portland Trail Blazers draft picks San Antonio Spurs players San Diego Conquistadors draft picks Shooting guards Sportspeople from Hopkinsville, Kentucky

ABA/NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

See also

References

External links