Mike Phillips (basketball) explained

Mike Phillips
Height Ft:6
Height In:10
Weight Lbs:235
Birth Date:24 March 1956
Birth Place:Akron, Ohio, U.S.
Death Place:Madisonville, Kentucky, U.S.
Highschool:Manchester (New Franklin, Ohio)
College:Kentucky (1974–1978)
Draft Year:1978
Draftround:3
Draftpick:45
Draft Team:New Jersey Nets
Career Start:1979
Career End:1990
Career Position:Center
Years1:1979–1980
Team1:CB Mollet
Years2:1980–1982
Team2:FC Barcelona
Years3:1982–1985
Team3:Licor 43
Years4:1985–1987
Team4:RCD Español
Years5:1987–1988
Team5:Fórum Valladolid
Years6:1988–1989
Years7:1989–1990
Team7:CB Juver Murcia
Highlights:

Michael Charles Phillips (March 24, 1956 – April 25, 2015) was an American professional basketball player. At a height of 6feet, he played at the center position. He played professionally for eleven years in Spain, including six years in Spain's top-tier level league, the Liga ACB.

High school

Phillips attended and played basketball at Manchester High School, in New Franklin, Ohio, from 1970 to 1974. He helped lead Manchester to the Ohio state AA basketball title in 1974 with a 26–0 record. His 2,573 career points rank 7th most in Ohio high school history.

College career

Phillips played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats, for coach Joe B. Hall. He helped Kentucky win a national championship in 1978. He teamed with 6feet Rick Robey, to form a duo known as the Twin Towers.[1]

Phillips played four years for the Wildcats, earning All-SEC honors in his sophomore (second team), junior (second team) and senior years (third team). In his senior season, Phillips averaged more than 10 points per game on the Wildcats' 1978 national championship team.[1] For his career, Phillips finished 25th on the school's career scoring list, with 1,367 points (11.4 per game), and he also grabbed 755 rebounds (6.3 per game).[1] [2]

Professional career

Following graduation, Phillips was drafted by the New Jersey Nets, in the 1978 NBA draft, but he never played in the NBA.[1] In 1979, he found his way to Spain, where he had a fruitful career. Phillips played six years in Spain's top-tier level league, the Liga ACB, and he won an ACB league championship in 1981, with FC Barcelona. For his ACB career, Phillips scored 4,423 points (23.2 per game) and grabbed 1,765 rebounds (9.2 per game) in his six seasons.[3]

Death

Phillips died after falling down a flight of stairs at his Madisonville, Kentucky, home, on April 25, 2015.[4] The 59-year-old Phillips was home alone, and the Hopkins County coroner's investigation found no evidence of criminality in the event.

Notes and References

  1. News: Mike Phillips, Half of Kentucky's 'Twin Towers' of Basketball, Dies at 59 . April 28, 2015 . The New York Times . Associated Press . https://web.archive.org/web/20150503021213/http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/29/sports/basketball/mike-phillips-half-of-kentuckys-twin-towers-of-basketball-dies-at-59.html?_r=0 . May 3, 2015 . live .
  2. http://www.ukathletics.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/m-baskbl-2010-11-factbook.html 2010-11 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball media guide
  3. http://www.acb.com/publicaciones/guia20092010/ 2009-10 Liga ACB Annual
  4. Web site: Coroner rules out foul play in Mike Phillips' death . April 27, 2015 . . April 29, 2015.