Fred Brown (basketball)

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Fred "Downtown Freddie" Brown (born August 7, 1948 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is a former professional basketball player. A 6'3" guard from the University of Iowa, he played 13 seasons (1971–1984) in the NBA, all with the Seattle SuperSonics. Known for his accurate outside shooting, Brown was selected to the NBA All-Star Game in 1976 and scored 14,018 points in his career.

Brown finished his senior year at the University of Iowa in 1971, averaging 27.6 points per game[1], and was selected 6th overall by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1971 NBA Draft. His NBA career got off to a slow start, as he averaged only 4.2 points per game in 33 games as a rookie, playing behind veteran guards Lenny Wilkens and Dick Snyder. Following Wilkens' trade to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1972, Brown saw more playing time and his scoring average rose to 13.5 and 16.5 points per game in the next two seasons.

After Snyder was traded to the Cavaliers in 1974, Brown's output increased again, to 21.0 points per game in the 1974-75 season and he finished fifth in the league in steals per game. In the 1975-76 season, Brown had an All-Star season finishing fifth in the NBA in both scoring average and free throw percentage.

Brown was captain of the SuperSonics' 1978-79 NBA championship team. Often among the league leaders in free-throw percentage, Brown also led the NBA in three-point shooting percentage in the 1979-80 season — the first season in which the three-point line was adopted by the league.

When he retired in 1984 Brown was the SuperSonics' all-time leader in:

  • Games played (963)
  • Points scored (14,018)
  • Field goals (6,006)
  • Free throws (1,896)

Brown still holds the team's all-time marks for points in a regular season game with 58, points in a playoff game with 45 (a record shared with Ray Allen), and steals in a game with 10 (a record shared with Gus Williams).

Brown's #32 SuperSonics jersey was retired November 6, 1986 in honor of his long and distinguished career with the SuperSonics.

[edit] References

  1. ^ hawkeyesports.com: Season Individual Leaders. Retrieved on 2008-05-24.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Seattle SuperSonics 1978-79 NBA Champions
1 Williams | 8 Shelton | 10 Hassett | 11 Snyder | 21 Awtrey | 22 Hansen | 22 Robinson | 23 LaGarde | 24 D. Johnson (Finals MVP) | 27 J. Johnson | 32 Brown | 35 Silas | 42 Walker | 43 Sikma | Coach Wilkens
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