Remembering Darryl Dawkins

The one-of-a-kind stars, they’re the hardest to lose.

That was Darryl Dawkins. One of a kind. Gone at 58.

The first player to go directly from high school to the NBA, Dawkins played 14 years and made as much of an impact on the culture as he did on the game (and probably more). As the fifth pick in the 1975 draft, he went on to score 8,733 and grabbed 4,432 rebounds. He shot 57.2 percent for his career, seventh all-time in NBA history.

The 6-11 center played in the NBA Finals three times with the Philadelphia 76ers during a 15-year NBA career. He always put up decent numbers, but it was the way the player nicknamed Chocolate Thunder (by Stevie Wonder, no less) did it.

He shattered backboards with his dunks. Then he named the dunks. The second backboard smasher in 1979 he dubbed “The Chocolate-Thunder-Flying, Robinzine-Crying, Teeth-Shaking, Glass-Breaking, Rump-Roasting, Bun-Toasting, Wham-Bam, Glass-Breaker-I-Am-Jam.” The self-proclaimed resident of the planet Lovetron also executed dunks known as “The Candyslam” and “In Your Face Disgrace.”

The NBA then passed a rule against breaking backboards, later adding spring-loaded rims so that the glass wouldn’t shatter.

After his playing days ended – he toured with the Harlem Globetrotters – he coached in minor leagues in colleges. He did a lot of work with kids, once working at 85 camps in a single summer. He died Thursday in Pennsylvania of a heart attack but the memories live on.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .