Interview with Artis Gilmore
Early Life
Artis Gilmore was born in Chipley, Florida as one of 10 children. He was reared there, and attended Roulhac High School. Gilmore was 6'5′ at age 15. When public schools were integrated, he attended Chipley High School for one week before leaving home to attend Carver High School in Dothan, Alabama, a larger community 35 miles to the north. He graduated from Dothan's Carver High School in 1967, at 6'10” as a Third Team All-American.
A star center during his two collegiate years at Jacksonville University, Gilmore led the Dolphins to the NCAA Division I championship game in 1970, where his team was beaten 80–69 by the UCLA Bruins. Gilmore remains the top player in rebounds per game in the history of NCAA Division I basketball.
Artis Gilmore followed five All-Star seasons with the Kentucky Colonels of the ABA by becoming the first overall pick in the 1976 ABA Dispersal draft, which dispersed the players in the ABA clubs, such as the Colonels, that did not join the NBA. During his career, Gilmore was an 11-time All-Star, the ABA Rookie of the Year, and an ABA MVP. Nicknamed “The A-Train”, the 7 ft 2 in Gilmore once played in 670 consecutive games.
Playing career 1971–1989
Position Center
Number 53
Career history
1971–1976 Kentucky Colonels
1976–1982 Chicago Bulls
1982–1987 San Antonio Spurs
1987 Chicago Bulls
1988 Boston Celtics
1988–1989 Arimo Bologna (Italian League)
Career highlights and awards
ABA champion (1975)
ABA Playoffs Most Valuable Player (1975)
ABA Most Valuable Player (1972)
6× NBA All-Star (1978, 1979, 1981–1983, 1986)
5× ABA All-Star (1972–1976)
ABA All-Star Game MVP (1974)
5× All-ABA First Team (1972–1976)
4× ABA All-Defensive First Team (1973–1976)
NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1978)
ABA Rookie of the Year (1972)
ABA All-Rookie First Team (1972)
ABA All-Time Team
Consensus first-team All-American (1971)
Second-team All-American – AP, NABC, UPI (1970)
Career ABA and NBA statistics
Points 24,941 (18.8 ppg)
Rebounds 16,330 (12.3 rpg)
Assists 3,050 (2.3 apg)
Nicknames: (The A-Train, Late Sleeper)
Position: Center ▪ Shoots: Left
7-2, 240lb (218cm, 108kg)
Born: September 21, 1949 (Age: 70-106d) in Chipley, Florida
Colleges: Gardner-Webb University, Jacksonville University
Career Averages:
1,329 games
18.8 Pts
12.3 Reb
2.3 Assists
58.2% FG%
15% 3PT%
69.8% Free Throw %
eFG 58.2%
21.4 PER
Bulls Timeline
March 29, 1971: Drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the 7th round (117th pick) of the 1971 NBA Draft.
August 5, 1976: Drafted by the Chicago Bulls from the Kentucky Colonels in the dispersal draft.
July 22, 1982: Traded by the Chicago Bulls to the San Antonio Spurs for Dave Corzine, Mark Olberding and cash.
June 22, 1987: Traded by the San Antonio Spurs to the Chicago Bulls for a 1988 2nd round draft pick (Shelton Jones was later selected).
December 26, 1987: Waived by the Chicago Bulls.
January 8, 1988: Signed as a free agent with the Boston Celtics.
Career Accomplishments
Most Defensive Rebounds in Professional Basketball history with 11,514.
5th in Professional Basketball History in Overall rebounds 1 – Wilt Chamberlain (23924), 2 – Bill Russell (21,620), 3 – Moses Malone (17,834), 4 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (17,440) 5 – Artis Gilmore (16,330).
Bulls
When you get to the Bulls, you came back from San Antonio in the summer of 1987 in exchange for a 2nd round draft pick, and for a brief time you are on the court in Chicago with not only Michael Jordan but it was Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant's rookie years together.
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