Dale Ellis

Personal information
Born	(1960-08-06)August 6, 1960 (age 65) Marietta, Georgia, U.S.
Listed height	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight	205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school	Marietta (Marietta, Georgia)
College	Tennessee (1979–1983)
NBA draft	1983: 1st round, 9th overall pick
Drafted by	Dallas Mavericks
Playing career	1983–2000
Position	Small forward /shooting guard
Number	14, 3, 9, 2
Career history
1983–1986	Dallas Mavericks
1986–1991	Seattle SuperSonics
1991–1992	Milwaukee Bucks
1992–1994	San Antonio Spurs
1994–1997	Denver Nuggets
1997–1999	Seattle SuperSonics
1999–2000	Milwaukee Bucks
2000	Charlotte Hornets
Career highlights
NBA All-Star (1989) All-NBA Third Team (1989) NBA Most Improved Player (1987) NBA Three-Point Contest champion (1989) Consensus first-teamAll-American (1983) Consensus second-team All-American (1982) 2×SEC Player of the Year (1982, 1983) No. 14retired by Tennessee Volunteers Fourth-teamParade All-American (1979)
Career NBA statistics
Points	19,004 (15.7 ppg)
Rebounds	4,201 (3.5 rpg)
Assists	1,746 (1.4 apg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats atBasketball Reference

Dale Ellis (born August 6, 1960) is an American former professionalbasketball player who played in theNational Basketball Association (NBA). At various points in his career, Ellis held the record for the mostcareer 3-point field goals made, untilReggie Miller surpassed him. His 1,719 career made three-pointers ranked 2nd in NBA history at the time of his retirement, and rank 34th in NBA history as of January 2025.^[1][2]

After his time at theUniversity of Tennessee, Ellis was selected ninth overall in the1983 NBA draft by theDallas Mavericks. His time as ashooting guard with the Mavericks was rather unremarkable as he played scant minutes and was often relegated to sitting on the bench.

Ellis' fortunes changed dramatically after he found himself traded to theSeattle SuperSonics forAl Wood on July 23, 1986. His playing time increased significantly, and his regular season scoring average reflected this as it jumped from 7.1 points per game with the Mavericks to 24.9 points per game with the SuperSonics.^[3] In his Seattle debut, Ellis scored 23 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in a 127–110 win over the Trail Blazers.^[4] Ellis' rise with the SuperSonics was recognized around the league, which awarded him theNBA Most Improved Player Award in 1987.

Ellis continued to star for the SuperSonics in the late 1980s. He became the first player in NBA history to complete twofour-point plays in one game in a win against theSacramento Kings on January 26, 1988.^[5] His scoring average peaked at 27.5 points per game during the 1988–89 season, which would be a career high. That season, on January 5, Ellis scored 49 points in a 120–106 victory over the Kings.^[6] The 2,253 points he scored that season brokeSpencer Haywood's franchise record of 2,251. Ellis was selected to theNBA All-Star Game during the same season, and scored 27 points for the West. Despite success in Seattle, Ellis' tenure was tumultuous, and included a drunk driving incident in which he was hospitalized, a fist fight with teammateXavier McDaniel, and a bizarre fight between Ellis' wife, Monique Ellis, andAlton Lister's wife.^[7][8]In all, Ellis spent four and a half seasons with the SuperSonics before once again being traded, this time to theMilwaukee Bucks forRicky Pierce. While he was again a bench player with the Bucks, his minutes still remained relatively high and Ellis still made large contributions to the team with his scoring ability. Following the conclusion of the 91–92 season, he found himself traded to theSan Antonio Spurs forTracy Murray. As a member of the Spurs, Ellis once again found himself in the starting lineup playing slightly more minutes than he did as a Buck. Although his production largely remained the same, he was doing it more efficiently, shooting nearly 50% from the field as opposed to 46% with Milwaukee.

After signing with theDenver Nuggets, and then later in his career traded to the SuperSonics once again, theOrlando Magic (for whom he never played), again to the Bucks, and theCharlotte Hornets, he saw a more reduced playing role. The Hornets traded him to theMiami Heat after the1999–2000 season;^[9] but was waived prior to the start of the next season.^[10]

Ellis played in 1,209 games and had career averages of 15.7 points per game, 3.5 rebounds per game, a .479 field goal percentage, and a .403 three point field goal percentage. He set the NBA record for most minutes played in a single game when he scored 53 points in 69 minutes (out of a possible 73) for the SuperSonics in a 155–154 quintuple-overtime loss to the Bucks on November 9, 1989. His 1,719 careermade three-pointers ranked second in NBA history at the time of his retirement.

• List of NBA career 3-point scoring leaders
• List of NBA career 3-point field goal percentage leaders
• List of NBA career games played leaders

• Media related toDale Ellis at Wikimedia Commons

• 1960 births
• Living people
• 20th-century African-American sportsmen
• 20th-century American sportsmen
• 21st-century African-American sportsmen
• 21st-century American sportsmen
• All-American college men's basketball players
• American men's basketball players
• Basketball players from Marietta, Georgia
• Charlotte Hornets players
• Dallas Mavericks draft picks
• Dallas Mavericks players
• Denver Nuggets players
• Miami Heat personnel
• Milwaukee Bucks players
• NBA All-Stars
• Orlando Magic personnel
• Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball)
• San Antonio Spurs players
• Seattle SuperSonics players
• Shooting guards
• Small forwards
• Tennessee Volunteers basketball players

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from January 2019
• Commons category link from Wikidata