Buck Williams

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Williams arrived at the University of Maryland after leading Rocky Mount High School to a 1978 North Carolina 4A state title as MVP. He captured ACC Rookie of the Year honors in 1979, led the conference in rebounding twice (1979 and 1981), and earned All-ACC nods in 1980 and 1981. Selected for the 1980 USA Olympic team alongside Isiah Thomas and Mark Aguirre, he never played in Moscow due to the US boycott. In his NBA debut season with the Nets, he averaged 15.5 points and 12.3 rebounds, helping New Jersey improve by 20 games to a 44–38 record. Over his first eight seasons, he ranked among the league's top three rebounders six times, never averaging fewer than twelve boards per game.

In Their Own Story

The Nets reached their first playoff second-round appearance since the 1976 ABA–NBA merger in 1983–84, falling to Milwaukee. Williams led New Jersey through the 1980s until a trade on June 24, 1989, sent him to Portland for Sam Bowie and a draft pick. In Portland, he joined guards Clyde Drexler and Terry Porter, making three Western Conference Finals appearances and two NBA Finals trips. The Blazers lost to Detroit in five games in 1990 and Chicago in six games in 1992. He started the first six of his seven seasons with the team before moving to the New York Knicks in 1996. There, he played behind Patrick Ewing and Charles Oakley, missing 41 games in 1997–98 due to knee surgery. He retired on January 27, 1999.

Reader's Guide

Williams served as NBA Players Association president from 1994 to 1997. His career totals include over 16,000 points and 13,000 rebounds, making him the seventh player to reach both marks with averages of 12.8 points, ten rebounds, and a 54.9% field goal percentage. He earned three All-Star selections, one All-NBA second team nod, and four NBA All-Defensive team selections (first and second teams). In 2001, he joined the University of Maryland's Athletic Hall of Fame, followed by the ACC 50th Anniversary team in 2002. He was named to the Rocky Mount Twin County Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Maryland State Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018. In July 2010, he returned to basketball as an assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers under Nate McMillan.

Did You Know?

• Williams was selected third overall in the 1981 NBA draft, behind Olympic teammates Mark Aguirre and Isiah Thomas.
• He holds the New Jersey Nets franchise record for total rebounds (7,576) as of early 2017.
• Williams led the league in rebounding twice during his college career at Maryland (1979 and 1981).
• He was part of the 1980 USA Olympic team but never competed due to the US boycott of the Moscow games.
• The Nets retired his #52 jersey in April 1999, shortly after he announced his retirement on January 27, 1999.