Kenneth R. Battle (born October 10, 1964) 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.

High school career

In 1984, Battle led Aurora West High School to third place in the

Illinois High School Association The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is an association that regulates competition of interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level for the state of Illinois. It is a charter member of the National F ...

Class AA state basketball tournament. Battle led the tournament with 86 points in four games for third-place finisher Aurora West. In 2007, the

named Battle one of the 100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament.

College career

Battle played collegiately at

Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois, United States. It was founded as "Northern Illinois State Normal School" in 1895 by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld, initially to provide the state with c ...

from 1984 to 1986 before transferring to the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

. He was known as "King of the 360s" while playing at Northern Illinois. He was the captain of the 1989 Illinois team nicknamed the Flyin' Illini. The team reached the Final Four before being topped by Michigan. Battle was a fan favorite due to his hustle and spectacular slam dunks. The Illini awards the Kenny Battle Inspirational Award to the player who shows the most hustle during the season.

Professional career

Battle was selected by the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

in the 1st round (27th overall) of the 1989 NBA draft and then traded on draft day to the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

along with Micheal Williams in exchange for the Suns' first round draft choice (24th overall pick), Anthony Cook. Battle played in 4 NBA seasons for the

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 Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

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 Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

and

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

. His best year as a pro came during the 1991-92 NBA season when he split time with the Suns and Nuggets, appearing in 56 games and averaging 6.1 ppg. However, Battle's best game as a pro came on November 10, 1990, when he scored 23 points on 8/14 shooting in a Suns 173 – 143 victory over the Nuggets. Prior to that, he competed in the 1990

NBA Slam Dunk Contest The NBA Slam Dunk Contest (officially known as the AT&T Slam Dunk) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) competition held during the NBA All-Star Weekend. The contest was conceived of and started by the American Basketball Associat ...

, where he finished in last place (8th). Battle won a Continental Basketball Association (CBA) championship with the La Crosse Catbirds in 1992. Battle briefly joined the Fargo-Moorhead Beez of the International Basketball Association in 2000. Currently Kenny is the director of basketball at Camp Judaea in Hendersonville, North Carolina.

Honors

Basketball

* 1985–96 – NABC National Dunker of the Year * 1985 – 2nd Team All-Mid-American Conference * 1985 –

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region (North America), Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members co ...

Freshman of the Year * 1985 – Honorable Mention All American * 1986 – Youngest player in MAC History to Reach 1,000 Career Points. * 1986 – 1st Team All-Mid-American Conference * 1986 – Honorable Mention All American * 1987 – Illini Co-MVP * 1988 – 3rd Team All-

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

* 1988 – Honorable Mention All American * 1989 – Team Co-Captain * 1989 – Preseason Wooden Award Nominee * 1989 – 2nd Team All-Big Ten * 1989 – Honorable Mention All American * 1989 – NCAA All-Regional Team * 1989 – Kenny Battle Leadership Award * 1996 – Inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame as a player. * 2000 – Named to the Northern Illinois University All-Century Team. * 2004 – Elected to the " Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team". * 2008 – Honored as one of the thirty-three honored jerseys which hang in the

State Farm Center The State Farm Center is a large dome-shaped 15,544-seat indoor arena located in Champaign, Illinois, owned and operated by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The arena hosts games for the Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball, ...

to show regard for being the most decorated basketball players in the University of Illinois' history.

College statistics

Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois, United States. It was founded as "Northern Illinois State Normal School" in 1895 by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld, initially to provide the state with c ...

* All-time Single Season Record in Northern Illinois University history

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

* All-time Single Season Record in University of Illinois history

Combined college statistics

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

Kenny Battle profile
''basketball-reference.com'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Battle, Kenny 1964 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen Alaska Aces (PBA) players American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines American men's basketball players Boston Celtics players Case Western Reserve University School of Law alumni Denver Nuggets players Detroit Pistons draft picks Golden State Warriors players Harlem Globetrotters players Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball players La Crosse Catbirds players Northern Illinois Huskies men's basketball players Philippine Basketball Association imports Phoenix Suns players Quad City Thunder players Small forwards Basketball players from Aurora, Illinois