Tommy Burleson

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Tommy Burleson
Kansas City Kings
1980–1981Atlanta Hawks
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points
4,190 (9.4 ppg)
Rebounds2,794 (6.3 rpg)
Blocks591 (1.3 bpg)
Stats at NBA.com 
Basketball Reference
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1972 Munich Team

Tom Loren Burleson (born February 24, 1952) is an American former professional

1974 NCAA national championship
team.

Early life

Burleson is a native of Avery County, North Carolina. He was an All-American at Newland High School and Avery County High School, as well as North Carolina State University.[1]

College

As a collegian, Burleson teamed with

UCLA and win the 1974 NCAA Championship. Burleson was the MVP of the 1973 and 1974 ACC Tournaments and was All-Final Four in 1974. Burleson's defense of UCLA superstar Bill Walton
was key to the Wolfpack's semifinal win. He was a member of the 1973 World University Games Gold Medal basketball team.

When Burleson was recruited he was officially measured at 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) tall, but the coaching staff at North Carolina State decided to list him at 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m). Burleson wanted to be listed at his actual height but the coaching staff said he would officially be the tallest player in American basketball and it would bring a lot of good exposure to him and the school. The ploy worked and Burleson was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated in 1974.[3]

Olympic team

During the 1972 Olympics held in Munich, Burleson unwittingly walked into a parking lot where the Israeli hostages were brought before they were removed by helicopter from the Olympic village and later massacred. Burleson was held at gunpoint against a wall by one of the terrorists, and told not to move or look at the hostages as they came through the parking lot. He is the last athlete who had any contact with the Israeli Olympians 45 minutes before they died.[4]

Burleson was also a member of the 1972 U.S. Olympic Basketball Team that lost a

Hank Iba
for bringing his fiancé' to the Olympic village, a violation of team rules.

Pro career

Before the 1974 NBA draft, it appeared almost certain that Burleson would be taken by the Phoenix Suns. But because Seattle traded Dick Snyder to the Cleveland Cavaliers at the last minute, the Sonics gained the right to pick before the Suns, so the two teams vied for a contract with Burleson. After considering both offers, Burleson chose Seattle.[5]

Drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics as the third overall player in the 1974 NBA draft, Burleson entered the league tied with Artis Gilmore and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the tallest active NBA player at 7 feet 2 inches. He was named to the 1974–75 NBA All-Rookie Team. Playing under coach Bill Russell, Burleson recorded strong playoff performances in both 1974-75 and 1975-76 for Seattle. For his playoff career, Burleson averaged 20.7 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game in 15 career playoff games. His second season as a professional proved to be his best, as he averaged 15.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game. Just as he began to come into his own in the NBA, he was injured when Maurice Cheeks crashed into his knee while trying to stop Phil Ford from scoring.[6] The injury was instrumental in his steady decline over the next several years.[7]

Burleson was known throughout his amateur and pro career as a good shot blocker. He played seven seasons in the

Kansas City Kings and the Atlanta Hawks.[8]

Personal life

Burleson lives in Avery County, North Carolina with his wife Denise. In 2022 he retired after 28 years as the county's Planning and Inspections/Building and Code Department Director. He previously served as an Avery County commissioner. He also operates Tommy Burleson and Sons Christmas Trees farm.

He is credited with having rescued a woman from an apartment fire in Newland in 1985 and suffered smoke inhalation injury.

He and his wife have three sons: Robert, David, and Quentin.[9] He is an avid supporter of North Carolina State University. He has served for several years as a Special Ambassador to the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games.[3]

Honors

In 2002, Burleson was named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team honoring the fifty greatest players in Atlantic Coast Conference history.

Basketball camp

In 1983 Burleson founded the Tommy Burleson Basketball Camp, which is held in collaboration with the Avery County Parks and Recreation Department in North Carolina.[1]

Career statistics

Legend
  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

NBA

Source[10]

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1974–75 Seattle 82 23.0 .417 .687 7.0 1.4 .8 1.9 10.1
1975–76 Seattle 82 82 32.3 .481 .750 9.0 2.2 .9 1.8 15.6
1976–77 Seattle 82 82 22.0 .442 .731 6.7 1.1 .9 1.4 9.7
1977–78 Kansas City 76 20.1 .434 .794 6.3 1.7 .8 1.1 8.6
1978–79 Kansas City 56 16.6 .459 .716 5.0 .9 .5 1.0 7.8
1979–80 Kansas City 37 7.4 .346 .000 .575 1.9 .5 .2 .4 2.6
1980–81 Atlanta 31 11.7 .414 – .488 3.0 .4 .3 .6 3.3
Career 446 164 21.1 .445 .000 .726 6.3 1.3 .7 1.3 9.4

Playoffs

Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1975 Seattle 9 40.4 .513 .750 10.7 1.4 .8 2.0 20.7
1976 Seattle 6 34.7 .600 .761 9.5 1.7 1.0 1.3 20.8
Career 15 38.1 .542 .756 10.2 1.5 .9 1.7 20.7

References

  1. ^ a b "37th Tommy Burleson Basketball Camp Another Major Success". High Country Press. July 25, 2019. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  2. ^ "Tommy Burleson, Monte Towe, and David Thompson, N.C. State University basketball - 0008569 - NC State University Libraries' Rare and Unique Digital Collections | NC State University Libraries' Rare and Unique Digital Collections". d.lib.ncsu.edu. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  3. ^ a b WRAL (July 30, 2018). "Bill Leslie: A tall tale from the mountains :: Out and About at WRAL.com". WRAL.com. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  4. ^ TheStrengthoftheWolf (August 24, 2012). "Tom Burleson and the 1972 Munich Olympics". Backing The Pack. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  5. ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  6. ^ Cathie Burnes (February 15, 1979). "Kings show 'character' in erasing 76ers' hold - Burleson suffers ligament damage". The Kansas City Star. p. 15. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  7. ^ Bob Terrell (December 1, 2008). "The Newland Needle". Smoky Mountain Living Magazine. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  8. ^ "Tommy Burleson – National Basketball Retired Players Association". February 8, 2012. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  9. ^ "Tom Burleson, Towering Center". Sports Illustrated. November 13, 2000. Archived from the original on December 2, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2008.
  10. Basketball Reference
    . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 13, 2025.
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