Daniel E. Sparks (born April 17, 1944) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player and college coach. He played in the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

for the

Miami Floridians The Miami Floridians, later in their history known simply as The Floridians, were a professional basketball franchise in the original, now-defunct American Basketball Association. The Miami Floridians played in the ABA from 1968 through 1970 when ...

during the 1968–69 and 1969–70 seasons after a split collegiate career at

Vincennes University Vincennes University (VU) is a public college with its main campus in Vincennes, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1801 as Jefferson Academy, VU is the oldest public institution of higher learning in Indiana. VU was chartered in 1806 as the In ...

and

Weber State University Weber State University (pronounced ) is a public university in Ogden, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1889 as Weber Stake Academy and earned its current name in 1991. As of fall 2023, the student population reached 30,536 students, cons ...

. Sparks was selected in both the 1968 ABA and NBA drafts by the Miami Floridians and

Cincinnati Royals The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The Kings are the ...

, respectively. In 2015, Sparks was inducted into the

Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame is a sports museum and hall of fame in New Castle, Indiana. While it honors men and women associated with high school, college, and professional basketball in Indiana, an emphasis is placed on the athlete's high ...

. Although he garnered success as a player, having won the

NJCAA The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, State college (disambiguation), state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 sepa ...

national championship at Vincennes in 1965 and having served as Weber State's team MVP during their NCAA Tournament season in 1967–68, he is best known for his coaching career. He coached at the junior college level for 33 seasons, primarily at his ''alma mater'' Vincennes, and amassed 869 wins (versus only 247 losses) during his hall of fame career. Sparks coached 25 NJCAA All-Americans and 33 future professional players in his career, including

Eric Williams Eric Eustace Williams (25 September 1911 – 29 March 1981) was a Trinidad and Tobago politician. He has been dubbed as the " Father of the Nation", having led the then-British Colony of Trinidad and Tobago to majority rule on 28 October 1956, ...

Shawn Marion Shawn Dwayne Marion (born May 7, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player who played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Marion finished his career as a four-time NBA All-Star, a two-time member of the All- ...

Tyrone Nesby Tyrone Lamont Nesby (born January 31, 1976) is an American retired professional basketball player and coach. During his pro club career, he spent four seasons playing in the NBA. He also played professionally in Europe. High school career Nesby ...

, and

Carl Landry Carl Christopher Landry (born September 19, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. The , all-conference power forward played college basketball for the Purdue Boilermakers from 2004 to 2007. He is the older brother of Marcus ...

. He is the state of Indiana's all-time winningest coach (706 victories) and was the national coach of the year in 1985–86.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sparks, Dan 1945 births Living people American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Indiana Basketball players from Bloomington, Indiana Cincinnati Royals draft picks Indiana State University alumni Kansas City Kings assistant coaches Miami Floridians draft picks Miami Floridians players Minnesota Muskies draft picks Northern Colorado Bears men's basketball coaches Power forwards Vincennes Trailblazers men's basketball coaches Vincennes Trailblazers men's basketball players Wabash Valley Warriors men's basketball coaches Weber State Wildcats men's basketball players