Dennis Van Zant (born June 1, 1952) is an American former basketball player. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Azusa Pacific Cougars The Azusa Pacific Cougars are the athletic teams that represent Azusa Pacific University, located in Azusa, California, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primar ...

for four years before embarking on a short professional career, including 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 ...

(ABA) with the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

College career

After playing basketball for just one season in high school, Van Zant played collegiately for Azusa Pacific for four years. In 1973, he averaged 20.8 points per game and was a NAIA All-American honorable mention selection. He was a First-team NCCAA All-American in 1973 and 1974. In 1994, he was inducted into the schools hall of fame.

Professional career

Van Zant was drafted by 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 Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

in the seventh round (120th overall) of the

1974 NBA draft The 1974 NBA draft was the 28th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA), and was held on May 28, 1974, before the 1974–75 season. In this draft, 18 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and ot ...

but never appeared in a game for them. His first professional stint was with the

Swiss Alpines The European Professional Basketball League (EPBL) was a professional basketball league held in Europe in 1975. Despite being played in five European countries (Belgium, Israel, Spain, Switzerland and West Germany) it was for the most part owned ...

European Professional Basketball League The European Professional Basketball League (EPBL) was a professional basketball league held in Europe in 1975. Despite being played in five European countries (Belgium, Israel, Spain, Switzerland and West Germany) it was for the most part owned ...

during the league's only season in early 1975. In July 1975, he was signed by the

ABA ABA may refer to: Aviation * AB Aerotransport, former Scandinavian airline * IATA airport code for Abakan International Airport in Republic of Khakassia, Russia Businesses and organizations Broadcasting * Alabama Broadcasters Association, Uni ...

after impressing coach

Bob Bass Robert Eugene Bass (January 28, 1929 – August 17, 2018) was an American basketball coach and executive who worked in college basketball, the American Basketball Association (ABA), and the National Basketball Association (NBA). Early life Bass ...

with his ball-handling ability during the rookie camp. He was released by the Spurs in November, having played only two minutes in one game, scoring as many points. In December, he signed with the Santa Rosa Oilers in the Western Basketball Association. He played one season for the Oilers, where he finished fifth in the league in scoring (23.2 ppg) and second in rebounds (12.7 rpg).

Personal life

Dennis' brother, Larry Vanzant, played college basketball for Azusa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Zant, Dennis 1952 births Living people American men's basketball players Azusa Pacific Cougars men's basketball players Basketball players from California Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Power forwards San Antonio Spurs players