Prior to the 1978–79 season, Philadelphia traded McGinnis to the Denver Nuggets, clearing the way for Dawkins to be a permanent frontcourt starter. For the second straight year, the Sixers earned the top seed in the Eastern Division and advanced to the conference finals, but they were defeated by the Washington Bullets in six games. At 20 years old, Dawkins averaged 11.7 points and 7.9 rebounds in nearly 25 minutes per game, while ranked second in the league in field goal percentage at. Dawkins took his anger out on the 76ers locker room by tearing a toilet out of the wall and dislodging a locker stall and barricading the door with it.ĭawkins' role in helping the Sixers win the Eastern Conference championship established him as one of Philadelphia's top players, on a team that included Julius Erving, George McGinnis, Lloyd Free, and Doug Collins. In the second game of the series, Dawkins got into a fight with Maurice Lucas, resulting in both players being ejected. Matched up against Portland's Bill Walton, Dawkins helped the Sixers take the first two games before the Trail Blazers won the next four to win the series in six games. The Sixers won both playoff series and advanced to the NBA Finals. In his second season, after playing limited minutes during the regular season, Dawkins was called upon to help the Sixers in their playoff run, to battle Dave Cowens of the Celtics and Moses Malone of the Rockets. He signed a seven-year contract worth $1 million.ĭawkins languished on the Sixers' bench for his first two seasons. He was drafted behind David Thompson, David Meyers, Marvin Webster, and Alvan Adams. With the fifth overall pick in the 1975 NBA draft, the Philadelphia 76ers selected Dawkins. He was the first player to enter the NBA immediately after high school. He made this decision because he wanted to make enough money to help his grandmother, mother and siblings to escape poverty. In a surprise move, Dawkins opted to directly enter the NBA draft out of high school instead of attending college. He was heavily recruited by Division I colleges across the country, and he narrowed his choices to Florida State, Kansas, and Kentucky. NBA career Īs a 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) senior at Maynard Evans High School in Orlando, Florida, Dawkins averaged 32 points and 21 rebounds to lead his team to the state championship. His grandmother Amanda Celestine Jones was fond of the young Darryl and personally raised him. Dawkins set an NBA record for fouls in a season (386 in 1983–84).ĭawkins was born in 1957 to Harriet James and Frank Dawkins in Orlando, Florida. He also played in the NBA Finals three times as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers in the late 1970s and early 1980s. ĭawkins averaged double figures in scoring nine times in his 14 years in the NBA, often ranking among the league leaders in field-goal percentage. He was known for his powerful dunks, which led to the NBA adopting breakaway rims due to him shattering a backboard on two occasions in 1979. His nickname, "Chocolate Thunder", was bestowed upon him by Stevie Wonder. He was particularly known for his tenure with the National Basketball Association's Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Nets, although he also played briefly for the Detroit Pistons and Utah Jazz late in his career. Dawkins (Janu– August 27, 2015) was an American professional basketball player.
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