Personal information | |
---|---|
Born | Birmingham, Alabama | July 9, 1938
Died | July 12, 2000 | (aged 62)
Nationality | American |
Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | East (Rochester, New York) |
College | Niagara (1958–1961) |
NBA draft | 1961: 2nd round, 17th overall pick |
Selected by the Boston Celtics | |
Playing career | 1961–1970 |
Position | Point guard |
Number | 22, 3, 20 |
Career history | |
1961 | Boston Celtics |
1961– 1964 | New York Knicks |
1964–1965 | Baltimore Bullets |
1965–1966 | Trenton Colonials |
1966–1967 | Harrisburg Patriots |
1967–1970 | Wilkes-Barre Barons |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Career NBA statistics | |
Points | 2,282 (9.8 ppg) |
Rebounds | 696 (3.0 rpg) |
Assists | 530 (2.3 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com | |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Elbert J. "Al" Butler (July 9, 1938 – July 12, 2000) was an American basketball player who played four seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Born in Birmingham, Alabama, [1] he played basketball for East High School in Rochester, New York, before playing collegiately for Niagara University. [2] He was named to the 1961 National Invitation Tournament All-Star team by the Associated Press, despite Niagara losing its only game, 68–71 against Providence. [3] [4]
He was selected by the Boston Celtics in the second round (17th pick overall) of the 1961 NBA draft. [5] He played for the Celtics (1961), New York Knicks (1962–64) and Baltimore Bullets (1964–65) in the NBA for a total of 234 games. [1] He started for the Knicks for Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game, scoring 8 points. [6]
Butler was the last player to ever wear the number 22 for the Celtics, as they would retire it in honor of Ed Macauley in 1963. [7] [8]
Butler died of cancer on July 12, 2000. [6] After his death, a scholarship was established in his name at Monroe Community College, where he had worked as a guidance counselor. [2]
GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
Source [1]
Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1961–62 | Boston | 5 | 9.4 | .448 | .833 | 2.6 | .8 | 6.2 |
1961–62 | New York | 54 | 36.5 | .463 | .705 | 6.0 | 3.7 | 14.7 |
1962–63 | New York | 74 | 20.1 | .439 | .770 | 2.3 | 2.1 | 10.0 |
1963–64 | New York | 76 | 18.1 | .422 | .738 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 8.7 |
1964–65 | Baltimore | 25 | 6.9 | .329 | .733 | .8 | .5 | 2.4 |
Career | 234 | 21.6 | .439 | .739 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 9.8 |
Joining with them on the team were ... Al Butler of Niagara, who gave a brilliant individual performance though his team lost its only tournament game.