Paul Dawkins

As a boy in Saginaw, Michigan, Dawkins bent coat hangers into a rim, hung it in the family garage, and taught himself a sweet left-handed touch. At Northern Illinois he became the school's all-time scorer with 1,749 points and the 1979 Mid-American Conference Player of the Year. Drafted by the Utah Jazz in the tenth round, he played 57 NBA games and once scored 30 points in a single half against Portland, hitting 13 of 15 shots.

Turkey made him a star. Playing for Galatasaray from 1982 to 1990, he took Turkish citizenship, won three league championships, and averaged over 31 points across eight seasons. Dawkins died in March 2019 at 61.

HOW HE CAME & WENTUtah took him in the tenth round of 1979, 185th overall, and waived him a year later — then signed him again as a free agent in May 1981.

Full name

Paul Lamar Dawkins

Utah Jazz tenure

1979–80

Position

Guard

Born

1957

Died

2019

Height

6′5″ (196 cm)

Weight

190 lb (86 kg)

College

Northern Illinois

Drafted

1979

No photograph of this signature is online yet.