Donnie Freeman (basketball, born 1944)
Donnie Freeman | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 18, 1944 |
| Occupation | Professional basketball player (retired) |
| Years active | 1967–1976 |
| Known for | Playing eight seasons in the ABA and one season in the NBA |
Donald E. Freeman (born July 18, 1944) is a retired American professional basketball athlete who played eight seasons in the American Basketball Association (ABA) from 1967 to 1975 and one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) during 1975–1976. He was the youngest among four siblings.
High school and college career
Standing 6'3" tall and playing as a guard, Freeman attended Madison High School before enrolling at the University of Illinois. Over three varsity seasons, he amassed 1,449 points, averaging 20.1 points and 10.3 rebounds per contest. At that time, he held the record as Illinois' leading scorer and currently ranks twelfth in all-time scoring for the university. During the 1965–66 season, Freeman set a single-season scoring record with 668 points and averaged 27.8 points per game, earning him first-team All-Big Ten and first-team All-American distinctions. In 2004, he was selected for the University of Illinois' All-Century Team.
Playing career
Although Freeman was chosen in the third round of the 1966 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, he never played for them. Instead, he competed for eight seasons in the ABA with teams including the Minnesota Muskies, Miami Floridians, Texas/Dallas Chaparrals, Utah Stars, Indiana Pacers, and San Antonio Spurs. During his ABA tenure, Freeman scored a total of 11,544 points, ranking seventh on the league’s all-time scoring list, and was selected to participate in five ABA All-Star Games. In 1975, he transitioned to the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers, where he averaged 10.8 points per game across one season before retiring in 1976.
Following his basketball career, Freeman returned to Champaign, Illinois, to pursue a career in banking. His son Don, born in 1967 and sharing his name, later earned a tennis scholarship to attend Rice University. Freeman moved to Texas in 1981 and eventually made his home in Omaha, Nebraska.
Basketball
- 1965 – Third Team All-Big Ten
- 1966 – Captain of the team
- 1966 – Most Valuable Player (MVP)
- 1966 – First Team All-Big Ten
- 1966 – First Team All-American
- 1973 – Inducted into Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame
- 2004 – Included on the "Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team"
- 2008 – Jersey honored at the State Farm Center as recognition for being one of University of Illinois’ most distinguished players
- 2019 – Enshrined in Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame
College
| Season | Games | Points | PPG | Field Goals | Attempts | FG % | Free Throws | Attempts | FT % | Rebounds | Avg | Big Ten Record |
Overall Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963–64 | 24 | 341 | 14.2 | 130 | 316 | .411 | 81 | 122 | .664 | 231 | 9.6 | 6–8 | 13–11 |
| 1964–65 | 24 | 440 | 18.3 | 178 | 365 | .488 | 84 | 122 | .689 | 226 | 9.4 | 10–4 | 18–6 |
| 1965–66 | 24 | 668 | 27.8 | 258 | 595 | .434 | 152 | 197 | .772 | 285 | 11.9 | 8–6 | 12–12 |
| Totals | 72 | 1449 | 20.1 | 566 | 1276 | .444 | 317 | 441 | .719 | 742 | 10.3 | 24–18 | 43–29 |
ABA/NBA career statistics
| Key | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Number of games played | MPG | Average minutes per contest | ||
| FG% | Field goal shooting percentage | FT% | Percentage of free throws made | ||
| RPG | Average rebounds per game | APG | Average assists per game | ||
| PPG | Average points scored per game | Bold | Highest career mark | ||
| † | Indicates the season when Freeman secured an ABA title |
| * | Led the league in the respective category |
Regular season
| Season | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967–68 | Minnesota | 69 | 35.2 | .409 | .715 | 4.7 | 2.8 | 16.3 |
| 1968–69 | Miami | 78 | 36.8 | .484 | .787 | 3.7 | 6.4 | 22.1 |
| 1969–70 | Miami | 79 | 40.1 | .456 | .822 | 5.1 | 3.7 | 27.4 |
| 1970–71 | Utah | 24 | 33.4 | .479 | .831 | 5.7 | 4.9 | 23.6 |
| Texas | 42 | 38.4 | .485 | .778 | 4.5 | 5.1 | 23.6 | |
| 1971–72 | Dallas | 72 | 33.0 | .471 | .825 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 24.1 |
| 1972–73 | Indiana | 77 | 28.2 | .443 | .808 | 2.8 | 2.5 | 14.3 |
| 1973–74 | Indiana | 66 | 26.3 | .456 | .797 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 14.3 |
| 1974–75 | San Antonio | 77 | 30.9 | .448 | .821 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 15.5 |
| 1975–76 | Los Angeles | 64 | 23.1 | .434 | .819 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 10.8 |
| Total | 648 | 32.4 | .457 | .800 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 18.9 | |
Playoff Performance
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Minnesota | 10 | 36.5 | .418 | .730 | 5.0 | 5.6 | 15.8 |
| 1969 | Miami | 12 | 36.2 | .458 | .813 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 21.4 |
| 1971 | Texas | 4 | 36.0 | .452 | .813 | 6.0 | 1.3 | 22.3 |
| 1972 | Dallas | 4 | 36.0 | .437 | .630 | 6.0 | 2.5 | 26.8 |
| 1973 | Indiana | 18 | 30.9 | .443 | .798 | 2.7 | 2.8 | 15.6 |
| 1974 | Indiana | 6 | 26.3 | .435 | .700 | 1.7 | 1.3 | 12.3 |
| 1975 | San Antonio | 6 | 27.7 | .458 | .800 | 2.3 | 3.2 | 12.3 |
| Career Totals | 60 | 32.8 | .444 | .767 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 17.3 | |
All-Star Appearances
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Minnesota | 1 | 24.0 | .615 | .667 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 20.0 |
| 1969 | Miami | 1 | 27.0 | .538 | 1.000 | 6.0 | 7.0 | 21.0 |
| 1970 | Miami | 1 | 24.0 | .250 | .667 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 10.0 |
| 1971 | Texas | 1 | 27.0 | .500 | .625 | 7.0 | 3.0 | 17 |
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References
External links
- Career statistics at basketball-reference.com
- Donnie Freeman profile at Remember the ABA
- [1] at The Scout
- [2] at fightingillini.com
- [3] at The Telegraph