Armon Gilliam
Gilliam with the Phoenix Suns in 1987
Personal information
Born(1964-05-28)May 28, 1964
Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedJuly 5, 2011(2011-07-05) (aged 47)
Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight230 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High schoolBethel Park
(Bethel Park, Pennsylvania)
College
NBA draft1987: 1st round, 2nd overall pick
Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Playing career1987–2000, 2005–2006
PositionPower forward
Number35, 45, 43, 10, 5
Coaching career2000–2005
Career history
As player:
1987–1989Phoenix Suns
1989–1991Charlotte Hornets
1991–1993Philadelphia 76ers
1993–1996New Jersey Nets
1996–1999Milwaukee Bucks
2000Utah Jazz
2005–2006Pittsburgh Xplosion
As coach:
2000–2001Mt. Lebanon HS (assistant)
2001–2002Penn State McKeesport
2002–2005Penn State Altoona
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points12,700 (13.7 ppg)
Rebounds6,401 (6.9 rpg)
Assists1,088 (1.2 apg)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  United States
FIBA World Championship
Gold medal – first place 1986 Spain National team

Armen Louis Gilliam (born Armon Louis Gilliam; May 28, 1964 – July 5, 2011)[1] was an American professional basketball player who played 13 years in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1987 to 2000. He also played one season for the Pittsburgh Xplosion of the American Basketball Association. Gilliam returned to the court after retirement as the head basketball coach for the (NCAA) Division III Penn State Altoona Lions from 2002 to 2005.

College career

Gilliam began his college basketball career in 1982–83 at Independence Junior College in Independence, Kansas. That year, Gilliam was a standout player on the basketball team that reached the Junior College Finals and finished sixth in the nation. Gilliam averaged 24.9 points and 14 rebounds in five tournament games and was named to the National Junior college finals all-tournament team.

Gilliam continued his college basketball career with UNLV. Gilliam played for UNLV from 1984 to 1987 and was an integral part of a team that was 93–11 in the three years he played for the Rebels. The UNLV team was ranked number one in the country for most of the three years Gilliam competed and the team made it to the NCAA tournament every year during his stay. In 1987, the team reached the Final Four and Gilliam was named to the NCAA Final Four all-tournament team. Gilliam scored 998 points in his senior year, which remains a school record for the most points scored in a season by a UNLV player. Gilliam also played on the UNLV team that won 38 games in a season, which is still an NCAA Division 1 record for most wins in a season. In 1987, Gilliam was selected for a number of All-American Teams and voted the top contender for the John Wooden award. While at UNLV, teammate Frank James gave him the nickname "The Hammer" after seeing Gilliam's biceps combined with his pounding action under the basket. Gilliam said, "He knew I was from a steel town, too. I think that was a factor." The Los Angeles Times dismissed the notion that he got the name from a baking powder, Arm & Hammer.[2]

Gilliam was selected to play in the 1986 World Championships. The team fielded college standouts such as David Robinson, Kenny Smith, Tommy Amaker, Tom Hammonds, Charles D. Smith and Derrick McKey and coached by Lute Olson of Arizona, proceeded to shock the world with its play. The international community did not consider the team a medal-contender, but they advanced to the championship game and competed against the heavily favored Russians for the gold medal; overcoming great odds, they won the tournament.

Professional career

After graduating from UNLV with a degree in communications, Gilliam was the second pick in the first round of the 1987 NBA draft.[3] Gilliam was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1988 while playing for the Phoenix Suns. He went on to play 13 years in the NBA. Gilliam averaged 20 points and 9 rebounds for the Charlotte Hornets, played three years with the Philadelphia 76ers, and played three years with the New Jersey Nets, where he averaged between 12 and 18 points and 6 to 9 rebounds a game. He later played for the Milwaukee Bucks and finally the Utah Jazz.

Gilliam came out of retirement in 2005 to play for the Pittsburgh Xplosion of the American Basketball Association (ABA). He averaged 23 points and 9 rebounds per game during the 2005–06 season. Gilliam was selected as the Most Valuable Player of the 2006 ABA All-Star Game and named to the All-ABA Second Team.[4]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  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
 *  Led the league

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1987–88 Phoenix 555332.9.475.000.6797.91.31.10.514.8
1988–89 Phoenix 746028.6.503.000.7437.30.70.70.415.9
1989–90 Phoenix 16716.7.430.000.6964.40.50.40.38.9
1989–90 Charlotte 605936.0.527.000.7278.81.51.10.818.8
1990–91 Charlotte 252538.0.513.000.8139.41.11.40.819.8
1990–91 Philadelphia 505033.9.470.000.8167.31.60.70.615.0
1991–92 Philadelphia 818134.2.511.000.8078.11.50.61.016.9
1992–93 Philadelphia 802621.8.464.000.8435.91.50.50.712.4
1993–94 New Jersey 82*524.0.510.000.7596.10.80.50.711.8
1994–95 New Jersey 82*3030.1.503.000.7707.51.20.81.114.8
1995–96 New Jersey 787636.6.474.000.7919.11.80.90.718.3
1996–97 Milwaukee 802525.6.471.000.7686.20.70.80.58.6
1997–98 Milwaukee 82*2525.8.484.000.8025.41.30.80.511.2
1998–99 Milwaukee 34519.6.453.000.7823.70.60.60.48.3
1999–00 Utah 50015.6.436.000.7794.20.80.20.36.7
Career 92952728.4.489.000.7766.91.20.70.713.7

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1988–89 Phoenix 9014.0.529.000.8645.00.20.10.28.1
1990–91 Philadelphia 8835.9.462.000.8486.51.30.60.816.9
1993–94 New Jersey 4028.0.441.000.7506.30.30.51.810.5
1998–99 Milwaukee 3011.7.400.0001.0001.70.30.70.35.7
1999–00 Utah 10013.2.326.000.3852.90.40.40.43.5
Career 34820.4.444.000.7844.60.50.40.68.9

Coaching career

Gilliam began his coaching career in 2000 as a volunteer assistant at Mt. Lebanon High School.[4] In 2001, Gilliam was named head coach of Penn State McKeesport's men's basketball team, which played at the junior college level.[5] In his first year as a head coach, he helped lead the team to a regular season record of 12–7. The team played well in the playoffs and reached the conference finals. The next year Gilliam accepted the Head Men's coaching position at Penn State Altoona, where he coached from 2002 to 2005.[6] He had a couple of unsuccessful seasons as their head coach.

Awards and achievements

Among other awards Gilliam was inducted into the Bethel Park Hall of Fame for the Sport of Basketball in 1997 and the UNLV Hall of Fame in 1998. He was selected to the Division 1 All- American Team in 1987 and was a finalist for the John Wooden award the same year. He was honored in 1996 for scoring 10,000 points during his NBA career. In November 2007, his college jersey (#35) was retired at half-time of the UNLV vs. Washburn University game in Las Vegas.

Name spelling

Towards the end of his NBA career he altered the spelling of his first name from "Armon" to "Armen" because he was tired of it continually being mispronounced. At the time, he was quoted as saying: "Most people pronounced it Ar-MON. I've been correcting people so long that I got tired of it. I just thought that if I put the 'e' in there, it would make it a lot easier to pronounce. I'm not Muslim. It's not religious or anything like that."[7]

Death

Gilliam collapsed during a basketball game at the LA Fitness gym in the Pittsburgh suburb of Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, on the evening of July 5, 2011.[6] He was rushed to St. Clair Hospital in nearby Mt. Lebanon, where he was pronounced dead of a heart attack.[8] He is survived by his three children, Jeremiah Gilliam, Joshua Gilliam, and Cheryl Gilliam.[9][10]

References

  1. ↑ "Armen Gilliam Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
  2. ↑ Downey, Mike (March 28, 1987). "The Hammer Can Deliver a Pounding". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 7, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Armon Gilliam bio". NBA. Archived from the original on June 30, 2002.
  4. 1 2 "Xplosion re-sign Armon Gilliam". Our Sports Central. September 5, 2006. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  5. ↑ "Men's Basketball Looking Up". Penn State Altoona. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011.
  6. 1 2 ESPN.com news services (July 6, 2011). "Armen Gilliam dies after collapsing during pickup game". ESPN. Associated Press. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  7. ↑ Change of name
  8. ↑ Fittipaldo, Ray (July 6, 2011). "Former NBA star Armon Gilliam dies". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  9. ↑ "NBA, college basketball player Armen Gilliam dies". San Mateo Daily Journal. Associated Press. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Armen Gilliam, a Star at U.N.L.V., Dies at 47 (Published 2011)". The New York Times. Associated Press. July 6, 2011. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
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