Billy Eugene Owens (born May 1, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player who played for several teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Syracuse. Born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Owens played for Carlisle High School.
_-_Billy_Owens.jpg) Owens (left) pictured with a fan in 2002 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | May 1, 1969 Carlisle, Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | American | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High school | Carlisle (Carlisle, Pennsylvania) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College | Syracuse (1988–1991) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 1991: 1st round, 3rd overall pick | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selected by the Sacramento Kings | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1991–2001 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Small forward / Shooting guard | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 30, 32, 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1994 | Golden State Warriors | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1994–1996 | Miami Heat | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996–1998 | Sacramento Kings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999 | Seattle SuperSonics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2000 | Philadelphia 76ers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 | Golden State Warriors | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Detroit Pistons | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Career NBA statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Points | 7,026 (11.7 ppg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 4,016 (6.7 rpg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assists | 1,704 (2.8 apg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at NBA.com | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
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Amateur career
As a high school senior, Owens averaged 34 points per game, and helped lead Carlisle High School (Pennsylvania) to four consecutive state titles. He was considered to be the second best prep player of 1988, behind Alonzo Mourning. Owens and Mourning were co-MVP's in the McDonald's' Game. Throughout his career, Owens drew some comparisons to Magic Johnson due to his great versatility, ball handling and passing skills for his height.[1]
In his three seasons with Syracuse he averaged 17.9 points, 8.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.1 steals per game out of 103 games.[2] In his junior season he was named Big East Player of the Year.[3]
Professional career
As a 6'8" small forward/shooting guard from Syracuse University, he was selected by the Sacramento Kings in the 1991 NBA draft. However, after Owens remained a holdout beyond the start of the regular season, he was traded to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for high-scoring guard Mitch Richmond.[4] The trade broke up the popular "Run TMC" trio of Mitch Richmond, Tim Hardaway, and Chris Mullin; Owens' additional height compared to Richmond was the size that coach and general manager Don Nelson believed would complete the team.[5][6][7] Nelson said he "was under pressure to get [the team] bigger" to improve the Warriors from a good team to a great one.[8]
Owens averaged over 15 points and nearly eight rebounds during his tenure with the Warriors, including an NBA All-Rookie First Team selection in 1992. The Warriors improved from 44 to 55 games won in his first season. However, he never provided his expected impact and played only three seasons with Golden State.[5][6] Owens spent ten seasons with the Warriors, Miami Heat, Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Philadelphia 76ers, and Detroit Pistons before a string of injuries finally took its toll; his career ended in 2001.[9]
International career
He played for the US national team in the 1990 FIBA World Championship, winning the bronze medal.[10]
NBA player statistics
| 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 |
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991–92 | Golden State | 80 | 77 | 31.4 | .525 | .111 | .654 | 8.0 | 2.4 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 14.3 |
| 1992–93 | Golden State | 37 | 37 | 32.5 | .501 | .091 | .639 | 7.1 | 3.9 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 16.5 |
| 1993–94 | Golden State | 79 | 72 | 34.7 | .507 | .200 | .610 | 8.1 | 4.1 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 15.0 |
| 1994–95 | Miami | 70 | 60 | 32.8 | .491 | .091 | .620 | 7.2 | 3.5 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 14.3 |
| 1995–96 | Miami | 40 | 40 | 34.7 | .505 | .000 | .633 | 7.2 | 3.4 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 14.8 |
| 1995–96 | Sacramento | 22 | 11 | 27.0 | .420 | .417 | .643 | 5.7 | 3.2 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 9.9 |
| 1996–97 | Sacramento | 66 | 56 | 30.2 | .467 | .347 | .697 | 5.9 | 2.8 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 11.0 |
| 1997–98 | Sacramento | 78 | 78 | 30.1 | .464 | .371 | .589 | 7.5 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 10.5 |
| 1998–99 | Seattle | 21 | 19 | 21.5 | .394 | .455 | .800 | 3.8 | 1.8 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 7.8 |
| 1999–00 | Philadelphia | 46 | 7 | 20.0 | .434 | .333 | .594 | 4.2 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 5.9 |
| 1999–00 | Golden State | 16 | 4 | 24.1 | .380 | .286 | .595 | 6.8 | 2.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 6.4 |
| 2000–01 | Detroit | 45 | 14 | 17.6 | .383 | .150 | .475 | 4.6 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 4.4 |
| Career | 600 | 475 | 29.4 | .481 | .291 | .629 | 6.7 | 2.8 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 11.7 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Golden State | 4 | 4 | 39.3 | .526 | – | .630 | 8.3 | 3.3 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 19.3 |
| 1994 | Golden State | 3 | 3 | 42.3 | .500 | .000 | .750 | 10.0 | 4.3 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 19.7 |
| 1996 | Sacramento | 4 | 4 | 32.8 | .441 | .000 | .500 | 6.5 | 3.5 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 8.3 |
| Career | 11 | 11 | 37.7 | .496 | .000 | .644 | 8.1 | 3.6 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 15.4 | |
References
- ^ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1142560/index.htm Head Of The Class
- ^ "Billy Owens Stats". Sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- ^ "#30 Billy Owens". orangehoops.org. Archived from the original on February 19, 2015. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- ^ Sports Illustrated
- ^ a b Howard-Cooper, Scott (August 23, 2011). "Time can't fade indelible mark Run TMC left on Warriors, NBA". NBA.com. Archived from the original on February 28, 2013.
- ^ a b Hoffman, Benjamin (February 16, 2013). "Fascination Lingers for Three Stars of Warriors' Brief Run". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 28, 2013.
- ^ Wolff, Alexander (December 2, 1991). "The Golden West". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on February 28, 2013.
- ^ Osborne, Ben (January 3, 2011). "Original Old School: Run & Shoot & Shoot…". SlamOnline.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2013.
- ^ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG101141/index.htm Note From The Underground
- ^ 1990 USA Basketball Archived 2007-04-28 at the Wayback Machine
External links
- Career statistics from NBA.com and Basketball Reference
- NBA Draft Busts #13