Otis Birdsong

Otis Lee Birdsong (born December 9, 1955) is an American former professional basketball player. He spent twelve seasons (1977–1989) in the NBA and appeared in four NBA All-Star Games.[1]

Otis Birdsong

Birdsong in 1978
Personal information
Born	December 9, 1955 Winter Haven, Florida
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school	Winter Haven (Winter Haven, Florida)
College	Houston (1973–1977)
NBA draft	1977 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall
Selected by the Kansas City Kings
Playing career	1977–1989
Position	Shooting guard / Point guard
Number	10, 12
Career history
1977–1981	Kansas City Kings
1981–1988	New Jersey Nets
1988–1989	Boston Celtics
Career highlights and awards
4× NBA All-Star (1979–1981, 1984) All-NBA Second Team (1981) Consensus first-team All-American (1977) No. 10 retired by Houston Cougars
Career NBA statistics
Points	12,544 (18.0 ppg)
Rebounds	2,072 (3.0 rpg)
Assists	2,260 (3.2 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2018
Medals Representing  United States Men's basketball Pan American Games 1975 Mexico City Team competition

A 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) guard who attended Winter Haven High School and the University of Houston,[2] Birdsong was selected by the Kansas City Kings with the second pick of the 1977 NBA draft. He would spend four seasons with the Kings, averaging a career high 24.6 points per game during the 1980–81 season. He also played seven seasons with the New Jersey Nets and one with the Boston Celtics, and then ended his career at the end of the 1988–89 season.[3]

Collegiate playing career

One of only five numbers retired by the University of Houston men's basketball team, Birdsong's no. 10 hangs in Hofheinz Pavilion.

As a college freshman, Birdsong finished third among the team's scoring leaders with 14.3 points per game. The following year, Birdsong etched his name in the University of Houston's record books by becoming the first sophomore in the school's history to register 1,000 career points. When the Cougars began playing in the Southwest Conference, Birdsong soon established himself as the dominant scorer in the league's history. In his first year as an SWC player, Birdsong led the league in scoring, finishing eighth nationally with a 26.1 average. Birdsong was named a 1977 Consensus All-American and Southwest Conference Player of the Year after leading the Houston Cougars to a 29-8 record and the National Invitational Tournament championship game against St. Bonaventure. Birdsong scored 38 points and made 18 free throws against the Bonnies, but Houston lost. He ranked fourth nationally in scoring and set an SWC record with 30.3 points per game.[4] His accomplishments resulted in Birdsong being named SWC Player of the Decade.

Birdsong at Houston.

In addition to receiving All-American honors, Birdsong was named to the All-Southwest Conference team in 1976 and 1977. Additionally, he was named District VI Player of the Year (encompassing Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas) by the United States Basketball Writers Association. He was a member of the USBWA's All-District VI Team in 1975, 1976 and 1977, and he was team captain both his junior and senior years. During his four seasons with the Cougars, the team complied 79-38 record. He left the University of Houston as the school's second leading all-time scorer with 2,832 total college career points.

Birdsong also ranks second on Houston's career charts in field goals, third in all-time steals, sixth in assists and ninth in field goal percentages. He continues to hold the school record for free throws with a total of 480.

Professional career

After completing his eligibility at the University of Houston, Birdsong was the second player chosen in the 1977 NBA draft when he was taken by the Kansas City Kings. He scored over 12,000 career points, averaging 18 points per game, in 12 seasons with the Kings, New Jersey Nets and Boston Celtics. Birdsong played in four NBA All-Star Games. He was a member of the All-NBA Second Team in 1981.

Birdsong returned to Houston following his career and served as a member of the Cougars' radio broadcast team for several seasons before moving to Dallas.

In 2000, Birdsong was inducted in the University of Houston's Hall of Honor as well as the Polk County, Florida Hall of Fame. In 2006, he was inducted into the Florida High School Hall of fame.[5]

On October 20, 2014, in Fort Worth, Texas, Birdsong was inducted into the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame (presented by the Texas Sports Hall of Fame).

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

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1977–78	Kansas City	73	—	25.7	.492	—	.697	2.4	2.4	1.0	.2	15.8
1978–79	Kansas City	82	—	34.6	.509	—	.725	4.3	3.4	1.5	.2	21.7
1979–80	Kansas City	82	—	35.2	.505	.278	.694	4.0	2.5	1.7	.3	22.7
1980–81	Kansas City	71	—	36.5	.544	.286	.697	3.6	3.3	1.3	.3	24.6
1981–82	New Jersey	37	22	27.7	.469	.000	.583	2.6	3.4	.8	.1	14.2
1982–83	New Jersey	62	54	30.4	.511	.333	.566	2.4	3.9	1.4	.3	15.1
1983–84	New Jersey	69	57	31.4	.508	.250	.608	2.5	3.9	1.2	.2	19.8
1984–85	New Jersey	56	45	32.9	.511	.190	.622	2.6	4.1	1.5	.1	20.6
1985–86	New Jersey	77	74	31.1	.513	.364	.581	2.6	3.4	1.1	.2	15.8
1986–87	New Jersey	7	6	18.1	.452	.000	.667	1.0	2.4	.4	.0	6.3
1987–88	New Jersey	67	59	28.1	.458	.360	.511	2.5	3.3	.8	.2	10.9
1988–89	Boston	13	0	8.3	.500	.333	.000	1.0	.7	.2	.1	2.8
Career		696	317	31.1	.506	.274	.655	3.0	3.2	1.2	.2	18.0
All-Star		4	0	13.0	.375	—	.500	1.5	.5	.8	.0	3.5

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1979	Kansas City	5	—	33.6	.513	—	.711	3.6	1.8	2.0	.0	21.0
1980	Kansas City	3	—	37.6	.484	.000	.429	7.7	2.3	1.3	.0	22.0
1981	Kansas City	8	—	29.3	.571	1.000	.611	2.6	3.4	1.5	.0	15.5
1983	New Jersey	2	—	18.5	.375	.000	.500	1.0	4.5	1.5	.0	6.5
1984	New Jersey	11	—	35.2	.415	.000	.521	2.4	3.7	1.8	.1	15.2
1986	New Jersey	3	3	44.0	.527	.000	.579	4.0	3.3	2.0	1.0	23.0
1989	Boston	3	1	6.7	.200	.000	—	.7	.3	.3	.3	.7
Career		35	4	31.1	.480	.091	.583	3.0	3.0	1.6	.1	15.6

References

1. "OTIS BIRDSONG". Retrieved March 24, 2017.
2. Young, Matt (March 5, 2017). "Great moments in the history of Hofheinz Pavilion". Retrieved March 24, 2017.
3. "Otis Birdsong Otis Lee Birdsong". Retrieved March 24, 2017.
4. "Polk State MLK Speaker and NBA All-Star Otis Birdsong: "There Is Always Hope"". Retrieved March 24, 2017.
5. "Otis Birdsong". Retrieved March 24, 2017.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from NBA.com or Basketball-Reference.com