 King playing with theFort Hamilton High School varsity team in 1974–75 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1959-12-17)December 17, 1959 (age 66) Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Fort Hamilton (Brooklyn, New York) |
| College | Maryland (1977–1981) |
| NBA draft | 1981: 1st round, 10th overall pick |
| Drafted by | New Jersey Nets |
| Playing career | 1981–1991 |
| Position | Small forward /shooting guard |
| Number | 55, 17, 15 |
| Career history | |
| 1981–1987 | New Jersey Nets |
| 1987–1988 | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 1988–1989 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 1989 | Olimpia Milano |
| 1990 | Hapoel Holon |
| 1990–1991 | Albany Patroons |
| 1991 | Washington Bullets |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 6,470 (12.1 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 2,262 (4.2 rpg) |
| Assists | 1,171 (2.2 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Albert King (born December 17, 1959) is an American former professionalbasketball player. The younger brother of former NBA scoring champion andHall of FamerBernard King, Albert played atFort Hamilton High School in Brooklyn and is regarded as one of the nation's greatest high school players of all time. He was rated the top prep player in the nation overMagic Johnson andGene Banks during his senior year. A 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) guard-forward from theUniversity of Maryland, King was selected by theNew Jersey Nets in the first round (10th overall) of the1981 NBA draft. King played in nine NBA seasons for four teams.[1][2]
King attendedFort Hamilton High School inBrooklyn, New York.[3] He was named to the inauguralMcDonald's All-American team, which played in the 1977Capital Classic.[4][5]
In the 1979–80 college season, King was named theACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year. He appeared on the cover ofSports Illustrated twice during the 1980 season.[6] One of the highlights of his ACC career was a thundering dunk over Duke centerMike Gminski during a Maryland home game atCole Field House.Duke was the first-seeded team in the nation at the time, and King went on to lead the Terrapins in scoring that night and helped defeat the Blue Devils 101–82.[7] His no. 55 jersey was honored by theMaryland basketball program. In 2002, King was named to theACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team as one of the fifty greatest players inAtlantic Coast Conference history.
King played in nine NBA seasons for four teams. He played for theNew Jersey Nets,Philadelphia 76ers,San Antonio Spurs andWashington Bullets. King's best years as a professional came during his playing days with the Nets from 1981 to 1987. During the1982–83 season, he appeared in 79 games and averaged 17.0 points per game and 3.7 assists per game. In his NBA career, he played in 534 games and scored a total of 6,470 points.
At the end of the 1988–89 season, he was signed byOlimpia Milano of theItalian Basketball League[8] to replaceBilly Martin. InMilan he played the last two games of the regular season and the following 12 of the postseason. Alongside experienced players such asBob McAdoo,Mike D'Antoni andDino Meneghin, he gave an essential contribution for winning the title in a very contested last game of the finals, scoring a season-high 22 points.
During the second half of the 1989–90 season, King played forHapoel Holon of theIsraeli Basketball League.[8] In just 11 games he scored an average of 22.8 points per game including a 23-point game against Israeli powerhouseMaccabi Tel Aviv. The team finished the season in the seventh place and King left.
King spent the 1990–1991 season playing in theContinental Basketball Association with theAlbany Patroons, coached byGeorge Karl,[9][10] where he was named theCBA Newcomer of the Year.
He returned to the NBA again in September 1991, when he signed with theWashington Bullets.[11] He was waived by the Bullets in November after appearing in six games where he averaged 5.2 points per game.
He is the younger brother of former NBA scoring champion,Bernard King.[12][13] They grew up in theFort Greene neighborhood ofBrooklyn.[14] Two of his older brothers also played college basketball, Thomas for West Virginia Wesleyan and Ronald for Miami Dade Junior College.[15]
He is also one of the central personalities in Rick Telander's acclaimed bookHeaven is a Playground.[6]
In the 1990s, he hostedNets Slammin' Planet withEvan Roberts,Brandon Scoop B Robinson andChris Carrino.[16]
Following his basketball career, King opened severalWendy's restaurants.[17]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
Source[18]
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981–82 | New Jersey | 76 | 52 | 22.3 | .482 | .231 | .778 | 4.1 | 1.9 | .8 | .5 | 12.1 |
| 1982–83 | New Jersey | 79 | 75 | 31.0 | .475 | .261 | .775 | 5.8 | 3.7 | 1.2 | .5 | 17.0 |
| 1983–84 | New Jersey | 79 | 53 | 26.6 | .492 | .136 | .786 | 4.9 | 2.6 | 1.2 | .4 | 14.7 |
| 1984–85 | New Jersey | 42 | 7 | 20.5 | .491 | .000 | .817 | 3.8 | 1.4 | 1.0 | .2 | 12.8 |
| 1985–86 | New Jersey | 73 | 69 | 27.4 | .456 | .174 | .823 | 5.0 | 2.5 | .8 | .3 | 14.3 |
| 1986–87 | New Jersey | 61 | 15 | 21.2 | .426 | .406 | .810 | 3.5 | 1.7 | .6 | .5 | 9.5 |
| 1987–88 | Philadelphia | 72 | 44 | 22.1 | .391 | .347 | .757 | 3.0 | 1.5 | .5 | .3 | 7.2 |
| 1988–89 | San Antonio | 46 | 11 | 17.2 | .431 | .250 | .771 | 3.0 | 1.7 | .6 | .2 | 7.1 |
| 1991–92 | Washington | 6 | 0 | 9.8 | .367 | .286 | .875 | 1.8 | .8 | .5 | .0 | 5.2 |
| Career | 534 | 326 | 24.0 | .461 | .268 | .791 | 4.2 | 2.2 | .8 | .4 | 12.1 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | New Jersey | 2 | 29.0 | .545 | – | .800 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 2.5 | .5 | 20.0 | |
| 1983 | New Jersey | 2 | 34.0 | .474 | .500 | .833 | 4.0 | 1.5 | 1.0 | .0 | 21.0 | |
| 1984 | New Jersey | 11 | 26.8 | .414 | .000 | .696 | 5.3 | 2.3 | .9 | .4 | 12.5 | |
| 1985 | New Jersey | 3 | 3 | 35.0 | .491 | 1.000 | .692 | 7.7 | 1.7 | 2.3 | .7 | 22.0 |
| 1986 | New Jersey | 3 | 3 | 32.7 | .429 | .250 | 1.000 | 4.3 | 3.3 | .7 | .3 | 13.7 |
| Career | 21 | 6 | 29.7 | .453 | .333 | .730 | 5.2 | 2.3 | 1.2 | .4 | 15.6 | |
I grew up in an area called Fort Greene, New York. I mean, Fort Greene, Brooklyn.