10 best Tennessee basketball NBA careers ever
By Joey Loose
Tennessee basketball best NBA career No. 1: Bernard King
The number #53 is retired at Tennessee because of the marvelous play of Bernard King and he certainly continued that excellence into the NBA. Originally from Brooklyn, he’s a 6’7 small forward who did great work in the mid-70s for the Volunteers.
It’s hard to quickly describe how dominant King was in college, so consider that he won SEC Player of the Year in all three of his collegiate seasons, earning some All-America consideration as well. He averaged greater than 25 points and 12 rebounds per game in each season and helped lead the Volunteers to two of their first three trips to the Big Dance.
After his collegiate dominance, King became the 7th pick of the 1977 NBA Draft by way of the New Jersey Nets. While his statistics weren’t quite as dominant, he was still a major force for the next 16 years at the professional level, playing long stints with the Knicks and Washington Bullets during that career.
King was selected to four All-Star games and was named First Team All-NBA in 1984 and 1985 with the Knicks. He averaged 32.9 points per game to lead the league in 1985 before missing the next season with a knee injury. For his career, he averaged greater than 22 points per game and was an impactful presence in the playoffs as well.
No former Volunteer has accomplished as much as King, either in Knoxville or under the brightest lights of the NBA. He’s a Basketball Hall of Famer who was a major weapon across his entire basketball career. He’s by far the top former Volunteer, standing alone with his 19,655 career points among other stats.
Do you agree with the players we selected for today’s list? Tennessee has been responsible for considerable basketball success and has produced some very potent NBA players over the years; who will be the next big NBA star from the Volunteers?