Artis Gilmore (born September 21, 1949) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major men's professional basketball league from 1967 to 1976. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger, American Basketball Association–National Basketball Association merger in 1976, ...

(ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA). Gilmore was inducted into the

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...

on August 12, 2011. A star center during his two collegiate years at Jacksonville University, Gilmore led the Dolphins to the NCAA Division I championship game in 1970, where his team was beaten 80–69 by the UCLA Bruins. Gilmore remains the top player in rebounds per game in the history of NCAA Division I basketball. Gilmore followed five All-Star seasons with the

Kentucky Colonels The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of ...

of the ABA by becoming the first overall pick in the 1976 ABA Dispersal draft, which dispersed the players in the ABA clubs, such as the Colonels, that did not join the NBA. During his career, Gilmore was an 11-time All-Star, the ABA Rookie of the Year, and an ABA MVP. Nicknamed "The A-Train", the Gilmore once played in 670 consecutive games.

Early years

Gilmore was born in

Chipley, Florida Chipley is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Florida, Washington County, Florida, United States, located between Tallahassee, Florida, Tallahassee and Pensacola, Florida, Pensacola. Its population was 3,605 in the 2010 U.S. Census ...

, one of 10 children. He was raised there, and attended

Roulhac High School T. J. Roulhac High School was a public secondary school in Chipley, Florida. It served as the high school for black students until the public schools were integrated in 1968. History Chipley Colored School was founded in 1938. It was for a short ...

. Gilmore was 6'5" at age 15. Initially most interested in playing

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, Gilmore could not play because his father, who was a fisherman, could not afford the required insurance for him to participate. When public schools were integrated, he attended Chipley High School for one week before leaving home to attend Carver High School in Dothan, Alabama, a larger community 35 miles to the north. He graduated from Dothan's Carver High School in 1967, at 6'10" as a Third Team All-American.

College career

Gilmore played college basketball beginning at Gardner–Webb Junior College in Boiling Springs, North Carolina from 1967 to 1969. Under coach Eddie Holbrook, Gilmore led Gardner-Webb to the NJCAA tournament in 1968 and 1969, playing alongside George Adams. Gilmore averaged 22.5 points and 16.0 rebounds in his two seasons, with career totals of 1,530 points and 1,150 rebounds at Gardner-Webb. Reflected Coach Holbrook, “Bringing in a player like Artis who was 7-foot-2 and could do so many things drew a lot of attention. But Artis showed that he was deserving of that attention. I would say Artis and George Adams were two of the hardest-working players I ever coached. They were relentless. Anything you asked them to do or pushed them to do, they did it — or tried to do it anyway.” In 1969–1970, Gilmore transferred to Jacksonville University. He led the Jacksonville Dolphins team to a 27–2 record under coach Joe Williams. In the 1970 NCAA tournament Gilmore led the team to the NCAA Championship game, where they lost 80–69 to coach

John Wooden John Robert Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was an American basketball coach and player. Nicknamed the Wizard of Westwood, he won ten National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) national championships in a 12-year period as head ...

and the UCLA Bruins; Gilmore scored 19 points with 16 rebounds. They defeated Western Kentucky 109–96 (30/19), the University of Iowa 104–103 (30/17) and the University of Kentucky 106–100 (24/20) to reach the Final Four. The Dolphins defeated St. Bonaventure 91–83 (29/21) in the Semi-Final. For the season, Gilmore averaged 26.5 and 22.2 rebounds per game. At Jacksonville college, Gilmore became one of five college basketball players ever to average at least 20 points and 20 rebounds over his career at 24.3 and 22.7. Gilmore led the NCAA in rebounding both years at Jacksonville, and his career average of 22.7 rebounds per game is still the highest in NCAA Division I history.

Professional career

ABA

Kentucky Colonels (1971–1976)

Gilmore was drafted by the

in the 1971

draft, and by the Chicago Bulls in the 1971 NBA draft. ABA teams were interested in keeping Gilmore in the ABA and wanted to ensure he was signed by a team that could afford him. Therefore, he went to Kentucky with the 7th pick and signed a 10-year, $2.5 million contract. NBA teams knew Gilmore would not sign, so the Bulls strategically used a 7th round pick to secure any possible future rights to Gilmore. He was so immediately dominant that he earned the rare distinction of being selected for both the ABA Rookie of the Year Award and the ABA Most Valuable Player Award in 1971–1972, both over Virginia Squires rookie Julius Erving. Kentucky finished 68–16 after being 44–40 the season before. The following season Gilmore's strong play continued, as he and Dan Issel led the Colonels to a 56–28 record and the

1973 ABA Playoffs The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, fo ...

. Eventually, after beating the

Carolina Cougars The Carolina Cougars were a basketball franchise in the American Basketball Association that existed from 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Ca ...

in a seven-game division finals series, Gilmore and the Colonels made it to the ABA Finals, but lost to the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...

in another hard-fought seven-game series, despite Gilmore averaging 22.1 points, 17.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 4 blocks per game. Over his five-year ABA career, Gilmore led the ABA four times in rebounding average, twice in both field goal percentage and blocks per game, and once in personal fouls. He was named to the All-ABA First team five straight seasons, and the All-Defense team four times. He played in the ABA All-Star Game all five years he was in the league, earning the 1974 game's MVP. In 1974–75, Gilmore, alongside teammate Dan Issel led 1974–75 Kentucky Colonels to the 1975 ABA championship, as Gilmore was dominant, being named the ABA Playoffs Most Valuable Player. In the final game of the series against the

, Gilmore scored 28 points and grabbed 31 rebounds in front of 16, 000 fans at Freedom Hall. During his days as an ABA dominator, Gilmore established league records for career blocked shots (1431), blocked shots in a season (422 in the 1971–72 season), and rebounds in a game (40). He averaged 22.3 points and 17.7 rebounds, 58.5% shooting, 3.4 blocks and 3.0 assists per game in his 5 seasons and 440 ABA games"

NBA

Chicago Bulls (1976–1982)

The ABA disbanded after the 1976 season. Four of its teams (

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

, New York Nets, and San Antonio Spurs) were absorbed into the NBA in the ABA–NBA merger, and the remainder, including the Kentucky Colonels, folded. As a result, Gilmore went into the special 1976 ABA dispersal draft, and was chosen first overall by the Chicago Bulls. He signed with them for $1.1 million over three years. During his first season with the Bulls, Gilmore led the team in scoring, rebounds, and blocks, while also helping the Bulls hold their opponents to a league-best 98 points per game. On March 18, 1977, Gilmore scored an NBA-career-high 42 points, along with grabbing 15 rebounds and recording 9 assists, in a 114–112 win over the Kansas City Kings. However, in the

1977 NBA Playoffs The 1977 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1976–77 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Portland Trail Blazers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Phila ...

, the Bulls lost to the eventual champion Trail Blazers 2–1 in the first round. Artis Gilmore 1977

In total Gilmore received four All-Star selections in five solid basketball seasons in Chicago (19.3 points per game and 11.1 rebounds per game).

San Antonio Spurs (1982–1987)

Gilmore was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in July 1982 for Dave Corzine,

Mark Olberding Mark Allen Olberding (born April 21, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player born in Melrose, Minnesota. A 6'8" forward from the University of Minnesota, Olberding played 12 seasons (1975–1987) in the American Basketba ...

, and cash considerations. There, coached by Stan Albeck, he teamed with spidery 6’8”

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...

George “The Iceman” Gervin to provide the Spurs with a potent inside-out game. During the

1982-83 San Antonio Spurs season __NOTOC__ Year 198 (CXCVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sergius and Gallus (or, less frequently, year 951 ''Ab u ...

, his first with the team, Gilmore helped the team finish in first place in their division with a record of 53–29. During the playoffs, Gilmore and the Spurs advanced by Gilmore's former Kentucky Colonel co-star Dan Issel and the

in the second round, before facing the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

in the Western Conference Finals. In Game 2 of the series, Gilmore led the Spurs to a 122–113 win with 27 points, 20 rebounds, and 5 blocks. However, the Spurs would ultimately lose to the Lakers in six games. While the Spurs would continue to make the postseason in subsequent years, they would not again advance out of the first round during Gilmore's tenure. He was twice named an All-Star in San Antonio through

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

Chicago Bulls (1987–88)

Gilmore rejoined the Bulls for part of the 1988 season before being released.

Boston Celtics (1988)

Gilmore finished his NBA career with the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

in 1988. Gilmore and the Celtics would advance to the conference finals, though he played just over 6 minutes per postseason game as a reserve.

Italian League

Gilmore played the 1988–89 season with Arimo Bologna of the Italian league, where he averaged 12.3 points and 11.0 rebounds and made the European All-Star Team.

NBA achievements

Gilmore played in a total of six NBA All-Star Games. He led the NBA in field goal percentage in four consecutive seasons, including a career-best 67% during the 1980–81 season — at the time, the third-highest percentage in NBA history. At the time of his retirement in 1989, Gilmore was the NBA's career leader in field goal percentage (minimum 2,000 shots made) with 59.9%.

Personal life

In 1972, Gilmore married his college sweetheart Enola Gay. They have had five children. In 2007, Gilmore took a position as Special Assistant to the President at Jacksonville University, his alma mater, serving in various public relations capacities. Gilmore provides radio color commentary for Jacksonville University on the school's flagship station, WJXL. Gilmore was also a frequent guest on the basketball call-in show ''Ballin' with Al Edwards'', also on WJXL.

Honors

In 1993, Gilmore was inducted into the Stars Hollow University Hall of Fame. Gilmore was inducted into the Gardner-Webb Athletics Hall of Fame in 1995. Despite retiring among all time pro basketball leaders in several statistical categories, Gilmore was not elected to the

until April 2011,, ''The Florida Times-Union'', Jacksonville.com, Tania Ganguli, August 12, 2011 at 10:58 PM. The

Bio of Gilmore reads: In May 2012, Gilmore was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.

ABA and NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , bgcolor="CFECEC", 84* , , – , , 43.6 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .598* , , – , , .646 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 17.8* , , 2.7 , , – , , 5.0 , , 23.8 , - , style="text-align:left", , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , bgcolor="CFECEC", 84* , , – , , 41.7 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .559* , , .500 , , .643 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 17.6* , , 3.5 , , – , , 3.1 , , 20.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 84 , , – , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 41.7* , , .493 , , .000 , , .667 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 18.3* , , 3.9 , , 0.7 , , 3.4 , , 18.7 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6fa;", † , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 84 , , – , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 41.6* , , .580 , , .500 , , .696, , 16.2 , , 2.5 , , 0.8 , , 3.1 , , 23.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 84 , , – , , 39.1 , , .552 , , – , , .682 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 15.5* , , 2.5 , , 0.7 , , 2.4 , , 24.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 82 , , – , , 35.1 , , .522 , , – , , .660 , , 13.0 , , 2.4 , , 0.5 , , 2.5 , , 18.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 82 , , – , , 37.4 , , .559 , , – , , .704 , , 13.1 , , 3.2 , , 0.5 , , 2.2 , , 22.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , bgcolor="CFECEC", 82* , , – , , 39.8 , , .575 , , – , , .739 , , 12.7 , , 3.3 , , 0.6 , , 1.9 , , 23.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 48 , , – , , 32.7 , , .595 , , – , , .712 , , 9.0 , , 2.8 , , 0.6 , , 1.2 , , 17.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 82 , , – , , 34.5 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .670* , , – , , .705 , , 10.1 , , 2.1 , , 0.6 , , 2.4 , , 17.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 82 , , 82 , , 34.1 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .652* , , 1.000 , , .768 , , 10.2 , , 1.7 , , 0.6 , , 2.7 , , 18.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , 82 , , 82 , , 34.1 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .626* , , .000 , , .740 , , 12.0 , , 1.5 , , 0.5 , , 2.3 , , 18.0 , - , style="text-align:left;, , style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , 64 , , 59 , , 31.8 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .631* , , .000 , , .718 , , 10.3 , , 1.1 , , 0.6 , , 2.1 , , 15.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , 81 , , 81 , , 34.0 , , .623 , , .000, , .749 , , 10.4 , , 1.6 , , 0.5 , , 2.1 , , 19.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , 71 , , 71 , , 33.7 , , .618 , , .000 , , .701 , , 8.5 , , 1.4 , , 0.5 , , 1.5 , , 16.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , bgcolor="CFECEC", 82* , , 74 , , 29.3 , , .597 , , – , , .680 , , 7.1 , , 1.8 , , 0.5 , , 1.2 , , 11.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 24 , , 23 , , 15.5 , , .513 , , – , , .514 , , 2.6 , , 0.4 , , 0.2 , , 0.5 , , 4.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Boston , 47, , 4 , , 11.1 , , .574 , , – , , .527 , , 3.1 , , 0.3 , , 0.2 , , 0.4 , , 3.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 1329 , , 476 , , 35.5 , , .582 , , .150 , , .698 , , 12.3 , , 2.3 , , 0.6 , , 2.4 , , 18.8

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

, style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 6 , , – , , 47.5 , , .571 , , .000 , , .711 , , 17.7 , , 4.2 , , – , , – , , 21.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...

, style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , bgcolor="CFECEC", 19* , , – , , 41.1 , , .544 , , – , , .626 , , 13.7 , , 3.9 , , – , , – , , 19.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

, style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 8 , , – , , 43.0 , , .559 , , – , , .576 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 18.6* , , 3.5 , , 0.9 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 3.8* , , 22.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6fa;",

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

† , style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 15 , , – , , 45.3 , , .539 , , – , , .772 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 17.6* , , 2.5 , , 1.0 , , 2.1, , 24.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

, style="text-align:left;", Kentucky (ABA) , 10 , , – , , 39.0 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .608* , , – , , .757 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 15.2* , , 1.9 , , 1.1 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 3.6* , , 24.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

, style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 3 , , – , , 42.0 , , .475 , , – , , .783 , , 13.0 , , 2.0 , , 1.0 , , 2.7 , , 18.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

, style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 6 , , – , , 41.2 , , .583 , , – , , .691 , , 11.2 , , 2.0 , , 1.0 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", 2.8* , , 18.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

, style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , 11 , , – , , 36.5 , , .576 , , – , , .696 , , 12.9 , , 1.6 , , 0.8 , , 3.1 , , 16.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

, style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , 5, , 5 , , 37.0 , , .558 , , – , , .689 , , 10.0 , , 1.4 , , 0.4 , , 1.4 , , 17.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, style="text-align:left;", San Antonio , 3 , , 3 , , 35.7 , , .667 , , .000 , , .571 , , 6.0 , , 1.0 , , 2.3 , , 0.3 , , 13.3 , - , style="text-align:left",

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

, style="text-align:left;", Boston , 14 , , 0 , , 6.1 , , .500 , , – , , .500 , , 1.4 , , 0.1 , , 0.0 , , 0.3 , , 1.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 100 , , 8 , , 36.3 , , .561 , , .000 , , .688, , 12.7 , , 2.3 , , 0.8 , , 2.2 , , 17.7

References

External links

*
NBA.com: Artis Gilmore Summary

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilmore, Artis 1949 births Living people African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Italy American men's basketball players Basketball players from Alabama Basketball players from Florida Boston Celtics players Centers (basketball) Chicago Bulls draft picks Chicago Bulls players Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna players Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs men's basketball players Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball players Junior college men's basketball players in the United States Kentucky Colonels draft picks Kentucky Colonels players Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees National Basketball Association All-Stars Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) People from Chipley, Florida San Antonio Spurs players Sportspeople from Dothan, Alabama 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople