Brad Daugherty (basketball)

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Bradley Lee Daugherty (born October 19, 1965 in Black Mountain, North Carolina) is an American former basketball player at the University of North Carolina and later with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. Brad played basketball at Charles D. Owen High School in Black Mountain, North Carolina. There he led the Warhorses to the 1982 state finals. Daugherty accepted a scholarship to play at the University of North Carolina under legendary college basketball coach Dean Smith.

Daugherty averaged more than twenty points per game in his senior season with the UNC Tar Heels and was taken first overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1986 NBA Draft.

Daugherty averaged nineteen points and ten rebounds per game over eight seasons in the NBA. He played in 41 postseason games and led the Cavaliers as far as the Eastern Conference Finals in 1992, the year he was named to the All-NBA team.

Due to recurrent back troubles, Daugherty never played another game after the 1993-94 season. After two consecutive seasons of inactivity, he announced his retirement after the 1995-96 season. His #43 jersey, a number he picked as a tribute to NASCAR legend Richard Petty, was retired by the Cavs a year later. He currently lives in Asheville, NC with business interests that include car dealerships and commercial real estate. He is also a college basketball analyst for ESPN.

Daugherty is expected to be named as a contributor in ESPN's NASCAR coverage in 2007. Daugherty once owned a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team.