Calbert Nathaniel Cheaney (born July 17, 1971) is an American

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 ...

coach and former player who serves as Director of player development for the

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

men's basketball of the

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

. He starred as a player for the

Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball The Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team represents Indiana University Bloomington in NCAA Division I college basketball and competes in the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers play at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on the Branch McCracken Court in Bl ...

from 1989 to 1993 under coach

Bob Knight Robert Montgomery Knight (October 25, 1940 – November 1, 2023) was an American men's college basketball coach (basketball), coach. Nicknamed "the General", he won 902 NCAA Division I men's basketball games, a record at the time of his retire ...

. Cheaney ended his career as a three-time

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 ...

and remains the Big Ten's all-time leading scorer with 2,613 career points. He led Indiana to a 105–27 record and the NCAA Tournament all four years, including a Final Four appearance in 1992. At the conclusion of his collegiate basketball career Cheaney captured virtually every post-season honor available, including National Player of the Year (winning both the Wooden and Naismith award), a unanimous

, and Big Ten Player of the Year. Cheaney spent 13 years in the NBA playing for five different teams.

Early life

Born in

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 118,414 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is Indiana's List of cities in Indiana, third-most populous city after India ...

, Cheaney played high school ball at William Henry Harrison High School in Evansville and was selected to the 1989 Indiana All-Star team. Cheaney was a high school stand-out, but a season-ending injury midway through his senior year pushed him off the national radar and left him as a virtual unknown in Indiana University's #1 ranked recruiting class of 1989.

College career

Cheaney played

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 ...

for the Indiana University Hoosiers for head coach

. He was Knight's first left-handed player. Cheaney was known as a smooth leader all four years at Indiana. During the last three of his years at Indiana, the team spent all but two of the 53 poll weeks in the top 10, and 38 of them in the top 5. The Hoosiers were 87–16 (.845) those years and a 46–8 (.852) mark in the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

. Of the four years Cheaney played the Hoosiers went 105-27 and captured two

crowns ('91 and '93). The 105 games won during Cheaney's four years was the most of any Hoosier to that point.

Freshman year

Cheaney began his career with a flash, scoring 20 points in the season opener of his freshman year (the only Indiana freshman to ever do so). However, the 1989–90 team ran into tougher competition in January after winning all 10 of their pre-conference games. Taken aback by the intensity of play within the Big Ten, the young Hoosier squad went 8–10 in conference play and were upset by California in their NCAA Tournament opening game. Cheaney averaged 17 points a game as a freshman. "Our freshman year was very, very subpar," Cheaney said. "We started out excellent and when we got into the Big Ten we were in for a rude awakening. I knew once that season was over and we started working out over the summer, we were going to become a pretty good team. I knew we were going to be a team to be reckoned with the next three years."

Sophomore year

Cheaney averaged 21.6 points per game as a sophomore, with the Hoosiers ending the 1990–91 regular season with an overall record of 29–5 and a conference record of 15–3, finishing 1st in the Big Ten Conference. As conference champions, the Hoosiers were invited to participate in the 1991 NCAA Tournament as a 2-seed, where they advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. Cheaney noted, "I had a very good sophomore year, but I played a lot of international ball. I played on the Tournament of America team and the World University team. I think I wore myself out a little bit, and when my junior year rolled around, I wasn't up to par."

Junior year

As a junior during the 1991–92 season, Cheaney felt he struggled from being worn down by substantial play over the summer. Moreover, with the addition of other talent from players like Alan Henderson, Cheaney "didn't have to score as much." He regressed to an average of 17.6 points per game and his three-point shooting percentage dropped significantly. The Hoosiers finished the regular season with an overall record of 27–7 and a conference record of 14–4, finishing 2nd in the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers were invited to participate in the 1992 NCAA Tournament as a 2-seed, where they advanced to the Final Four, but fell to

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

in a foul-plagued game in

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

. In the West Regional final while preparing to face UCLA in Albuquerque, just before practice ended, head coach Bob Knight ran the whip across Cheaney's backside as Cheaney, the team's leading scorer, was bent over, with his shorts pulled down slightly. On Thursday, both Albuquerque newspapers published photographs of the incident. Cheaney appeared to be laughing in one of the photos.

Senior year

As a senior during the 1992–93 season, Cheaney averaged 22.4 points per game and 6.2 rebounds per game. The Hoosiers finished the regular season with an overall record of 31–4 and a conference record of 17–1, finishing 1st in the Big Ten Conference. As the Big Ten Conference Champions, the Hoosiers were invited to participate in the 1993 NCAA Tournament as a 1-seed, where they advanced to the Elite Eight for the second year in a row, but were defeated by

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

. Over the course of his career at Indiana, Cheaney scored 30 or more points thirteen times and averaged 19.8 points per game, with a high of 22.4 as senior. With 2,613 career points, he is the all-time leading scorer of both Indiana and the Big Ten. At the conclusion of his collegiate career, Cheaney had captured virtually every post-season honor available. He was the National Player of the Year (winning both the Wooden and Naismith award), a unanimous

All-America 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 ...

, and Big Ten Player of the Year.

College statistics

, +College statistics , - , style="text-align:left;", 1989–90 , 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 ...

, 29 , , 29 , , 32.0 , , .572 , , .490 , , .750 , , 4.6 , , 1.7 , , .8 , , .6 , , 17.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1990–91 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 34 , , 30.3 , , .596 , , .473 , , .801 , , 5.5 , , 1.4 , , .7 , , .4 , , 21.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1991–92 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 32 , , 29.1 , , .522 , , .384 , , .800 , , 4.9 , , 1.4 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , 17.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1992–93 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 35 , , 33.7 , , .549 , , .427 , , .795 , , 6.4 , , 2.4 , , .9, , .3 , , 22.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 132 , , 130 , , 31.3 , , .559 , , .438 , , .790 , , 5.4 , , 1.7 , , .9 , , .3 , , 19.8

Professional career

NBA career

Cheaney was selected 6th overall by the

Washington Bullets The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

in the

1993 NBA draft The 1993–94 NBA season, 1993 NBA draft took place on June 30, 1993, at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Chris Webber, Pen ...

. His strongest showing as pro came in 1994–1995 when he averaged a career-high 16.6 points for Washington. He spent six years playing for the Bullets/Wizards (including a playoff appearance in 1997). He would go on to play for the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

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 ...

, and

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 closing his career out with three years with 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 Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

, retiring after the 2005–06 season. During his thirteen-year NBA career, Cheaney played for five different teams, averaging 9.5 points and 3.2 rebounds. Cheaney appeared along with many of his 1997 Bullet teammates ( Juwan Howard, Ben Wallace, and Ashraf Amaya) in singer

Crystal Waters Crystal Waters (born November 19, 1961) is an American house music, house and dance music singer and songwriter, best known for her 1990s dance hits "Gypsy Woman (Crystal Waters song), Gypsy Woman", "100% Pure Love", and 2007's "Destination Cal ...

' 1996 video " Say... If You Feel Alright". He also appeared in the 1994 film Blue Chips as a player for the Indiana University Hoosiers.

Post-NBA

Following his retirement as a player, Cheaney spent two seasons on the staff for the Golden State Warriors. He was a special assistant in the front office in 2009–10, and in 2010–11 he was an assistant coach under fellow Indiana alumnus Keith Smart. He then returned to Indiana in 2011 and served as Director of Basketball Operations under coach Tom Crean. The following year he added the title of Director of Internal and External Player Development. On August 21, 2013, Cheaney announced that he had accepted an assistant coach position at

Saint Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, it is the oldest university west of the Missi ...

under head coach Jim Crews, a fellow alumnus of Indiana University. During his first season with St. Louis in 2013–14 the Billikens finished with a 27–7 record and secured an

Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. The A-10's member schools are located most ...

regular-season title and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Cheaney left the St. Louis staff in 2016 with the departure of Crews as head coach. Cheaney is currently Director of Player Development at Indiana University, a position he started in 2023.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 65 , , 21 , , 24.7 , , .470 , , .043 , , .770 , , 2.9 , , 1.9 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 12.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 78 , , 71 , , 34.0 , , .453 , , .339 , , .812 , , 4.1 , , 2.3 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 16.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 70 , , 70 , , 33.2 , , .471 , , .338 , , .706 , , 3.4 , , 2.2 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 15.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 79 , , 79 , , 30.6 , , .505 , , .133 , , .693 , , 3.4 , , 1.4 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 10.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , style="background:#cfecec;", 82* , , style="background:#cfecec;", 82* , , 34.6 , , .457 , , .283 , , .647 , , 4.0 , , 2.1 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , 12.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , style="background:#cfecec;", 50* , , 18 , , 25.3 , , .414 , , .216 , , .493 , , 2.8 , , 1.5 , , .8 , , .3 , , 7.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, 67 , , 19 , , 19.5 , , .440 , , .333 , , .429 , , 2.1 , , 1.2 , , .7 , , .2 , , 4.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, 9 , , 5 , , 17.0 , , .333 , , , , .500 , , 2.2 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .2 , , 2.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 68 , , 47 , , 24.0 , , .481 , , .000 , , .687 , , 3.5 , , 1.6 , , .5 , , .3 , , 7.3 , - , 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 ...

, 81 , , 74 , , 29.0 , , .499 , , .400 , , .580 , , 3.5 , , 2.0 , , .8 , , .2 , , 8.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 79 , , 7 , , 26.2 , , .481 , , .000 , , .610 , , 3.3 , , 1.7 , , .8 , , .2 , , 7.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 55 , , 5 , , 17.3 , , .426 , , .000 , , .649 , , 2.3 , , 1.2 , , .3 , , .3 , , 4.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 42 , , 0 , , 10.7 , , .389 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 1.5 , , .5 , , .3 , , .0 , , 2.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 825 , , 498 , , 26.7 , , .466 , , .298 , , .691 , , 3.2 , , 1.7 , , .8 , , .2 , , 9.5 , -

Playoffs

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

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, style="text-align:left;", Washington , 3 , , 3 , , 40.0 , , .439 , , .000 , , .750 , , 3.7 , , 1.3 , , 1.0 , , .7 , , 15.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

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

, 5 , , 5 , , 20.4 , , .370 , , , , .500 , , 1.4 , , 1.6 , , .4 , , .2 , , 4.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 8 , , 8 , , 30.3 , , .412 , , .000 , , .688 , , 2.3 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , .4 , , 8.4 , -

Basketball honors

* 1993: Won all 12 NCAA National Player of the year awards. Unanimous First-Team All America * All-America 1991, 1992, 1993 * 1993

MVP * All-Big Ten 1991, 1992, 1993 * Big Ten's All Time Scoring Leader (2,613) * Indiana University's All-Time leading scorer * Four time IU team MVP * Selected to Indiana University's All-Century First Team * 1993 USBWA College Player of the Year

References

External links

NBA.com ProfileOscar Robertson Trophy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheaney, Calbert 1971 births Living people 20th-century American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Indiana Boston Celtics players College Park Skyhawks coaches Denver Nuggets players Erie BayHawks (2017–2019) coaches FISU World University Games gold medalists for the United States Golden State Warriors players Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball players Medalists at the 1991 Summer Universiade Saint Louis Billikens men's basketball coaches Shooting guards Small forwards Basketball players from Evansville, Indiana Summer World University Games medalists in basketball Utah Jazz players Washington Bullets draft picks Washington Bullets players Washington Wizards players