Jerry Chambers
Personal information
Born (1943-07-18) July 18, 1943 (age 80)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High schoolEastern (Washington, D.C.)
College
NBA draft1966: 1st round, 7th overall pick
Selected by the Los Angeles Lakers
Playing career1966–1974
PositionSmall forward
Number40, 44, 33
Career history
1966–1967Los Angeles Lakers
1969–1970Phoenix Suns
1970–1971Atlanta Hawks
1971–1972Buffalo Braves
1972–1973San Diego Conquistadors
1973–1974San Antonio Spurs
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA and ABA statistics
Points2,667 (8.3 ppg)
Rebounds1,032 (3.2 rpg)
Assists270 (0.8 apg)
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Jerome Purcell "Jerry" Chambers (born July 18, 1943) is a retired American professional basketball player. At 6'5" and 185 pounds, he played as a forward.

Early life

Chambers attended Spingarn High School in Washington, D.C., transferring to Eastern High School after being cut from the basketball team.[1]

College career

Chambers as a member of the Utah Utes, circa 1964–66

Chambers then attended the University of Utah from 1963–1966, winning the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player award in 1966, despite his Runnin' Utes finishing fourth at the 1966 Final Four.[2]

Chambers is the only player to ever earn MOP for a fourth-place team (the 3rd place game was eliminated in 1981). His 143 points in four games remains an NCAA Tournament record, with 70 of them coming in the Final Four—38 against eventual national champion Texas-Western, and 32 more in the third-place game against the Duke Blue Devils.[3]

For his career at Utah Chambers averaged a double-double, 24.6 points and 11.2 rebounds. As a senior in 1965–1966, he averaged 28.8 points and 11.6 rebounds.[4] His 892 points in 1965–1966 remains second all time at Utah.[5]

Professional career

He played four professional seasons in the National Basketball Association as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers (1966–1967), Phoenix Suns (1969–1970), Atlanta Hawks (1970–1971) and Buffalo Braves (1971–1972). Chambers then played two seasons in the American Basketball Association as a member of the San Diego Conquistadors (1972–1973) and the San Antonio Spurs (1973–1974).

His best season was with San Diego under Coach K.C. Jones, when he averaged 11.9 points and 4.4 rebounds.[6]

He missed the 1967–1968 and 1968–1969 seasons due to military service.[6]

In 1968, he was involved in one of the most significant transactions in NBA history when he was traded by the Lakers, along with Archie Clark and Darrall Imhoff to the Philadelphia 76ers for Hall-of-Famer Wilt Chamberlain. Chambers never played for the 76ers, as they subsequently traded him to Phoenix.[7]

Chambers retired with 2,667 combined NBA/ABA career points, averaging 8.3 points and 3.2 rebounds.[8]

Honors/Personal

Chambers and the 1966 Final Four Utah team were honored on March 4, 2017 at halftime of the Utah game against Stanford.[9]

Chambers worked for the Los Angeles City Parks and Recreation department for many years.[10]

Notes

  1. ^ McKenna, Dave (March 5, 1999). "The Next Wave". Washington City Paper.
  2. ^ Chambers sets record at 1966 Final Four[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ "Moment No. 16 – Jerry Chambers Magnificent March, 1966". University of Utah Athletics. 7 November 2007.
  4. ^ "Jerry Chambers College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  5. ^ "Utah Men's Basketball – Ute Legends". www.runninutes.com.
  6. ^ a b "1972–73 San Diego Conquistadors Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.com.
  7. ^ "Say It Ain't So: Philadelphia 76ers.
  8. ^ https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/chambje01.html Career statistics
  9. ^ "Utah basketball: 1966 Runnin' Utes receive long-awaited recognition". The Salt Lake Tribune.
  10. ^ "Blasts From the Past: What Did Basketball Stars Do in "Real World"?". www.collegehoopedia.com.
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