Adrian Delano Dantley (born February 28, 1955) 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 (appro ...

player and coach who played 15 seasons in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). Dantley is a six-time

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Traditionally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...

, a two-time All-NBA selection and a two-time NBA scoring champion. Dantley finished ninth on the all-time NBA scoring list at the time of his retirement and was inducted into the

Naismith Memorial Basketball 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 pre ...

in 2008. He served as an assistant coach for the

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 Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

of the NBA from 2003 to 2011. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Notre Dame Fighting Irish The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are the athletic teams that represent the University of Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish participate in 26 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I intercollegiate sports and in the NCAA's Division ...

Early years

Dantley attended DeMatha Catholic High School in

Hyattsville, Maryland Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. It is an urban suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 21,187 at the 2020 United States census. History Before Europeans reached the area, the upper Anacostia ...

, where he played under Hall of Fame coach Morgan Wootten and assistant Terry Truax.

College career

Dantley accepted a basketball scholarship from the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

. He was a consensus first-team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

in 1974–75 and 1975–76. He ranks second on Notre Dame's career scoring list with 2,223 points and holds the school record for free throws made (615) and free throws attempted (769). Dantley had a stellar collegiate career for the Fighting Irish. As a

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...

, he played an important role in one of the biggest games in college basketball history, Notre Dame's 1974 upset to end

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

's record 88-game winning streak. That UCLA team, coached by

John Wooden John Robert Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was an American basketball coach and player. Nicknamed "the Wizard of Westwood", he won ten National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, nati ...

, featured

Bill Walton William Theodore Walton III (November 5, 1952 – May 27, 2024) was an American basketball player and television Sports commentator, sportscaster. He played college basketball, collegiately for the UCLA Bruins men's basketball, UCLA Bruins an ...

, Jamaal Wilkes (then known as Keith Wilkes), and Dave Meyers. Dantley led Notre Dame in scoring in 1974–75 (30.4 points per game) and 1975–76 (28.6 points per game), while also leading the team in rebounding those two seasons with marks of 10.2 and 10.1 rebounds per game, respectively. He was also the leading scorer on the 1976 US Olympic team that captured the gold medal in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. Dantley declared for the 1976 NBA draft after his junior season at Notre Dame. He eventually graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in economics in August 1978.

Professional career

Buffalo Braves

Dantley was selected by the

Buffalo Braves The Buffalo Braves were an American professional basketball team based in Buffalo, New York. The Braves competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference ...

sixth overall of the 1976 NBA draft. He was named a starter at

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three, is one of the five Basketball position, positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than Power forward (basketball), power forwards and Cent ...

, averaging 20.3 points per game and became the third Buffalo player in five years to receive the

NBA Rookie of the Year Award The National Basketball Association's Rookie of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given to the top rookie(s) of the regular season. Initiated following the 1952–53 NBA season, it confers the Eddie Gottlieb Tr ...

when he won it after the

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

season. On September 1, 1977, he was traded to the

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 Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

along with forward Mike Bantom, in exchange for

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...

Billy Knight William R. Knight (born June 9, 1952) is an American former professional basketball player and executive. Playing with the Indiana Pacers in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and later the National Basketball Association (NBA), he ...

, who was the league's second-best scorer during the

1976–77 NBA season The 1976–77 NBA season was the 31st season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Portland Trail Blazers winning their first NBA Championship in franchise history, beating the Philadelphia 76ers in six games in the 1 ...

. Dantley was the first NBA Rookie of the Year to be traded following his rookie season.

Indiana Pacers

In the 1977–78 NBA season, he appeared in 23 games and ranked third in the league in scoring with a 26.6 average. On December 13, 1977, with the Pacers needing a bigger presence at center, he was traded along with undersized center

Dave Robisch David George Robisch (born December 22, 1949) is a retired American professional basketball player in the ABA and NBA. Robisch played at the University of Kansas, where he was initiated into the Sigma Nu fraternity. He was positioned at center a ...

to 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 Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

, in exchange for center James Edwards,

Earl Tatum and cash considerations.

Los Angeles Lakers

In the 1977–78 season, he appeared in 56 games at

, finishing second in team scoring behind

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ( ; born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. , April 16, 1947) is an American former basketball player. He played professionally for 20 seasons for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Associatio ...

with an average of 19.4 points, to go along with 7.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per contest. In the 1978–79 season, he was hampered by injuries, allowing

Jamaal Wilkes to showcase his skills. Dantley still managed to play in 60 games, averaging 17.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists. He also displayed an uncanny knack for drawing fouls, leading the league in free throws made with 541 out of 680 attempts. On September 13, 1979, the team gambled on the talents of the 26-year-old Wilkes, trading the 23-year-old Dantley to the

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 Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

before the start of the Lakers' championship season, in exchange for the 31-year-old

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers and are typi ...

Spencer Haywood.

Utah Jazz

In Utah, Dantley reached his peak establishing his reputation as a prolific scorer, twice leading the league in scoring (in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

and

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

). He averaged over 30 points per game each season between 1981 and 1984, during which he achieved his single game scoring record: 57 points in a 131–124 win over the Bulls on December 4, 1982. Dantley missed 60 games in

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

after tearing ligaments in his right wrist. In 1984, Dantley recorded his postseason career high in single game scoring, 46 points in a Western Conference Semifinals Game 5 win over the Suns. However, the Jazz would go on to lose the series. That offseason, he was named the

NBA Comeback Player of the Year The NBA Comeback Player of the Year was an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award presented to a player who recovered from a subpar season after achieving success in the past. It was awarded from 1981 though 1986. Along with several o ...

. In his seven years with the Jazz, Dantley picked up all six of his All-Star appearances and two All-NBA second-team honors. During the 1980 NBA All-Star Game, Dantley was the first Utah Jazz player (since the team moved from New Orleans) to play in an All-Star game, and led the West in scoring with 23 points during a 144–136 loss. The total would also be the highest amount Dantley would score in his six All-Star games. Dantley's 1980–1984 seasons include two of the top three and four of the top seven spots in true shooting percentage for players averaging at least 30 points per game. Dantley's relationship with head coach Frank Layden began to deteriorate when he had held out the first six games of the 1984-85 season and it grew worse from there. He was sent home for a game after defending rookie

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 ...

in an argument with Layden (after Malone missed free throws late in a game) and was symbolically fined "30 dimes". Dantley would be forced to miss the entire first round of the

1986 NBA Playoffs The 1986 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1985–86 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Conference champion Houston Roc ...

due to muscle spasms in his lower back to Layden's dismay, causing him to look for trade destinations for Dantley. In his absence, the Jazz would lose in 4 games to 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 Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

. On August 21, 1986, after dispute over his contract negotiations with Layden, he was traded with second-round draft choices in 1987 (#38- Norris Coleman) and 1990 (#49- Phil Henderson) to the

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 Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

in exchange for

Kelly Tripucka Peter Kelly Tripucka (born February 16, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1981 to 1991. He was a two-time NBA All Star and averaged over twenty points a game i ...

and center Kent Benson. Team president Dave Checketts stated at the time of the trade: "We knew we had to get rid of him and we were never so happy to get rid of a guy in the history of the franchise.” As it turned out, Tripucka and Benson would play a combined three seasons for Utah.

Detroit Pistons

In the 1986–87 season, Dantley was still an effective scorer but did not get as many shots with

Isiah Thomas Isiah Lord Thomas III ( ; born April 30, 1961), also known as "Zeke", is an American former professional basketball player who is head coach of the Saginaw Soul of the Basketball Super League, and also an analyst for NBA TV and Fox Sports. H ...

Joe Dumars Joe Dumars III ( ; born May 24, 1963) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is the head of basketball operations for the New Orleans Pelicans. He could play either shooting guard or point guard on offense and was ...

, Vinnie Johnson, and Bill Laimbeer all averaging at least 10 points per game. Dantley was knocked unconscious while diving for a loose ball in Game 7 of the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals. On February 15, 1989, midway through the

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

he was traded to the

along with a 1991 first round draft pick (#19- LaBradford Smith), in exchange for

Mark Aguirre Mark Anthony Aguirre ( ; born December 10, 1959) is a Mexican-American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Aguirre was chosen as the List of first overall NBA draft picks, first overall pick of th ...

, due to what Dantley maintained were conflicts with Thomas, but also reflected Dantley's clashes with head coach Chuck Daly and general manager Jack McCloskey over his demand for a focal point role on offense and more minutes than

Dennis Rodman Dennis Keith Rodman (born May 13, 1961) is an American former professional basketball player. Renowned for his defensive and rebounding abilities, his biography on the official NBA website states that he is "arguably the best rebounding forw ...

Final years and retirement

In the 1989–90 season, he averaged 14.7 points in 45 games with the

, before missing the final two months with a broken leg. On April 2, 1990, he was released after playing in two seasons (76 games). On April 2,

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, after being out of basketball for most of the season, he signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

with the

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 Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, where he played 13 games (3 in the playoffs). On September 18, 1991, Dantley signed with Italian team Breeze Arese for the 1991–92 season. He averaged 26.7 points per game.

Player profile

Although listed as a small forward due to his size, Dantley played primarily in the low post, similar to a power forward. Dantley finished his NBA career with an average of 24.3 points per game. He scored his points with a mix of flat-footed mid-range jump shots, high-percentage opportunities close to the basket, and frequent trips to the

free throw In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points by shooting from behind the free-throw line (informally known as the foul line or the charity stripe), a line situated at the end of the restricted area. Free throws ...

line. For his career, he shot .540 from the floor—16th in NBA history—and .818 from the free throw line. He led the league in free throws six times and ranks ninth all-time in that category. He shares the record with

Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman Chamberlain ( ; August21, 1936 – October12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player. Standing tall, he played Center (basketball), center in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 seasons. He was enshrin ...

for most free throws made in a regular-season NBA game with 28. One of the all-time great free throw shooters, he had a set routine of four two-handed dribbles and two spins of the ball before every free throw. In addition, "prior to each free throw, he would recite his mantra from junior high that adept lip readers couldn't mistake: "Over the front rim, backspin, follow through." Fundamentals were not lip service but a way of life for Dantley. His ability to score in the low post was even more remarkable considering one of his legs is significantly shorter than the other. To compensate for the nearly 2 inch difference in leg length, he wore custom-made inserts in his shoes.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , , style="text-align:left;", Buffalo , 77 , , – , , 36.6 , , .520 , , – , , .818 , , 7.6 , , 1.9 , , 1.2 , , 0.2 , , 20.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, 23 , , – , , 41.2 , , .499 , , – , , .787 , , 9.4 , , 2.8 , , 2.1 , , 0.7 , , 26.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 56 , , – , , 35.4 , , .520 , , – , , .801 , , 7.2 , , 3.4 , , 1.3 , , 0.1 , , 19.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 60 , , – , , 29.6 , , .510 , , – , , .854 , , 5.7 , , 2.3 , , 1.1 , , 0.2 , , 17.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, 68 , , – , , 39.3 , , .576 , , .000 , , .842 , , 7.6 , , 2.8 , , 1.4 , , 0.2 , , 28.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 80 , , – , , style="background:#cfecec;", 42.7* , , .559 , , .286 , , .806 , , 6.4 , , 4.0 , , 1.4 , , 0.2 , , style="background:#cfecec;", 30.7* , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 81 , , 39.8 , , .570 , , .333 , , .792 , , 6.3 , , 4.0 , , 1.2 , , 0.2 , , 30.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 22 , , 22 , , 40.3 , , .580 , , – , , .847 , , 6.4 , , 4.8 , , 0.9 , , 0.0 , , 30.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 79 , , 79 , , 37.8 , , .558 , , .250 , , .859 , , 5.7 , , 3.9 , , 0.8 , , 0.1 , , style="background:#cfecec;", 30.6* , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 55 , , 46 , , 35.8 , , .531 , , – , , .804 , , 5.9 , , 3.4 , , 1.0 , , 0.1 , , 26.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 76 , , 75 , , 36.1 , , .563 , , .091 , , .791 , , 5.2 , , 3.5 , , 0.8 , , 0.1 , , 29.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, 81 , , 81 , , 33.8 , , .534 , , .167 , , .812 , , 4.1 , , 2.0 , , 0.8 , , 0.1 , , 21.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 69 , , 50 , , 31.1 , , .514 , , .000 , , .860 , , 3.3 , , 2.5 , , 0.6 , , 0.1 , , 20.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 42 , , 42 , , 31.9 , , .521 , , – , , .839 , , 3.9 , , 2.2 , , 0.5 , , 0.1 , , 18.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 31 , , 25 , , 34.9 , , .462 , , .000 , , .776 , , 4.9 , , 2.5 , , 0.6 , , 0.2 , , 20.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 45 , , 45 , , 28.9 , , .477 , , .000 , , .787 , , 3.8 , , 1.8 , , 0.4 , , 0.2 , , 14.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, 10 , , 0 , , 12.6 , , .380 , , .333 , , .692 , , 1.3 , , 0.9 , , 0.5 , , 0.0 , , 5.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 955 , , 546 , , 35.8 , , .540 , , .171 , , .818 , , 5.7 , , 3.0 , , 1.0 , , 0.2 , , 24.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", All-Star , 6 , , 5 , , 21.7 , , .426 , , – , , .895 , , 3.8 , , 1.2 , , 1.0 , , 0.0 , , 10.5

Playoffs

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

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 3, , –, , 34.7, , .571, , –, , .647, , 8.3, , 3.7, , 1.7, , 1.0, , 17.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 8, , –, , 29.5, , .562, , –, , .788, , 4.1, , 1.4, , 0.8, , 0.1, , 17.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 11, , –, , 41.3, , .504, , –, , .863, , 7.5, , 4.2, , 0.9, , 0.1, , 32.2 , - , 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 n ...

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

, 10, , 10, , 39.8, , .523, , .000, , .779, , 7.5, , 2.0, , 1.6, , 0.0, , 25.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

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

, 15, , 15, , 33.3, , .539, , –, , .775, , 4.5, , 2.3, , 0.9, , 0.0, , 20.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1988 , style="text-align:left;",

, 23, , 23, , 35.0, , .524, , .000, , .787, , 4.7, , 2.0, , 0.8, , 0.0, , 19.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 3, , 0, , 6.3, , .143, , –, , .750, , 1.3, , 0.0, , 0.0, , 0.0, , 1.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 73 , , 48 , , 34.5 , , .525 , , .000 , , .796 , , 5.4 , , 2.3 , , 0.9 , , 0.1 , , 21.3

Honors

Utah retired Dantley's uniform number (#4) on April 11, 2007. Dantley enjoyed outstanding success at every level of basketball, including high school, college, Olympics, and the NBA. On April 7, 2008, he was elected to the

Coaching

Dantley was an assistant basketball coach at then- Towson State from August 1993 to 1996. Dantley had played for Towson head coach Terry Truax in high school. Dantley later worked for the Denver Nuggets as an assistant coach for eight seasons. He briefly served as the team's head coach during the

2009–10 NBA season The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 1,230-game regular season (82 games for each of the 30 teams) began on October 27, 2009, and ended on April 14, 2010. The season ended with the Los Ang ...

, filling in for George Karl, who was fighting cancer. In addition to playing professionally, in his spare time, Dantley coaches basketball to aspiring players in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Personal life

Dantley's son, Cameron Dantley, was the starting quarterback for the

Syracuse Orange The Syracuse Orange are the college athletics in the United States, athletic teams that represent Syracuse University. The school is a member of NCAA Division I and the Atlantic Coast Conference. Until 2013, Syracuse was a member of the Big East ...

during the 2008 season. Dantley works as a referee for high school and recreational league games in the DC area. In 2013 it was reported that Dantley also worked as a crossing guard at Eastern Middle School in Silver Spring, Maryland. Dantley was quoted saying he 'got bored sitting around the house' and took the job helping school children safely cross the street.

References

External links

NBA.com bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dantley, Adrian 1955 births Living people African-American basketball coaches All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players at the 1976 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Washington, D.C. Buffalo Braves draft picks Buffalo Braves players Dallas Mavericks players DeMatha Catholic High School alumni Denver Nuggets assistant coaches Detroit Pistons players Indiana Pacers players Los Angeles Lakers players Medalists at the 1976 Summer Olympics Milwaukee Bucks players Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees NBA All-Stars NBA players with retired numbers Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball players Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Shooting guards Small forwards United States men's national basketball team players Utah Jazz players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen

Early years

College career

Professional career

Buffalo Braves

Indiana Pacers

Los Angeles Lakers

Utah Jazz

Detroit Pistons

Final years and retirement

Player profile

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Honors

Coaching

Personal life

See also

References

External links