Reggie Theus
Reggie Theus ( born October 13, 1957 in Inglewood, California ) is a former American professional basketball player and current basketball coach.
In his college days Reggie Theus played three years for UNLV. He then volunteered for the 1978 NBA Draft, where he was selected by the Chicago Bulls as the ninth player in the first round. In the first year he used his season average of 33.6 minutes for 16.3 points and was elected to the All- Rookie Team NBA. In his first five years for the Bulls, he played all 82 games each. In the years 1981 and 1983 he was invited to the All-Star Game. The 23.8 points per game in the 1982/83 season remained until the end of the career best value for Theus. The only playoff participation of Reggie Theus with the Bulls in the 1980/81 season ended with a 0-4 defeat against the Boston Celtics in the Conference Semifinals. On February 15, 1984, he left the Bulls in exchange for Steve Johnson and three second-round draft picks and went to the Kansas City Kings.
In the 4 1/2 years Theus was almost always on the grid at the Kings. Prior to the 1985/86 season, the franchise moved to Sacramento Kings and called himself now. In the first year in Sacramento, the team qualified with 45% of games won for the playoffs. There is difference in the first round without a win against the Houston Rockets. In the following years, the playoffs were definitely missed. Prior to the 1988/89 season Theus was transferred with a third-round draft pick in exchange for Randy Wittman and a first round draft pick to the Atlanta Hawks.
In Atlanta, he was again in all 82 matches from the start on the field. With 52 wins, the Hawks qualified as the fourth- best team in the East for the playoffs. There they lost to the fifth-placed Milwaukee Bucks with 2:3. Theus came in his last playoff participation only 7.4 points per game. In the 1989/90 season, the NBA has been extended to the two franchises Orlando Magic and Minnesota Timberwolves. Both teams could be selected in the expansion draft players of the old franchises. These had the opportunity to protect eight players who wanted to lose under any circumstances. The Hawks did not protect Reggie Theus and he was selected in the draft third of the Orlando Magic.
In Orlando, he was among the top performers, the newly formed team came but only to 18 wins. After the season he moved for two second-round draft picks to the New Jersey Nets.
In his last year in the NBA, he was the most successful shooter for the Nets, but were far from playing for a place in the playoffs. Theus played 81 games and was always in the starting lineup. His last game he made on April 21, 1991 against his former team from Orlando.
In his career, he played 1,026 games and scored 19,015 points here. He remains one of the 50 most successful shooters in NBA history. With 6,453 assists, he is ranked 23 of the all-time best list.