Derrick McKey

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Derrick Wayne McKey (born October 10, 1966, in Meridian, Mississippi) is an American former NBA basketball player who played the most part of his career between the small forward and the power forward positions. In addition to being a star basketball player, he was a shortstop on the baseball team despite his 6'9" height. He attended University of Alabama for three years, leading the Tide to a regional No. 1 seed in 1986-87 and to the Sweet 16 (where they were eliminated by Providence). He declared for the NBA after his junior season and was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics with the ninth overall pick of the 1987 NBA Draft, ahead of, notably, Reggie Miller, Horace Grant and Reggie Lewis.

McKey spent the following six seasons in Seattle, before being traded along with Gerald Paddio to the Indiana Pacers for Detlef Schrempf. After years of playoff disappointments, he and the Pacers finally reached the NBA Finals in 2000, before losing to the Los Angeles Lakers. He then spent the 2001-2002 season, the last of his career, with the Philadelphia 76ers.

[edit] His style

At 6'10", McKey was mostly known for his defensive skills and emphasis on teamwork play, as well as his versatility allowed him to guard small forwards and power forward]]s, as well as to help efficiently on centers and guards. Consequently, he was elected twice to the All-NBA Second Defensive Team. These abilities were the prime reason why coach Larry Brown wanted him in Indiana.^{[citation needed]} He was also a smart, team-oriented player, shooting wisely (.486 for his career) and had a knack for passing.