David Greenwood facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
David Greenwood

Greenwood as a junior at UCLA
Personal information
Born	(1957-05-27)May 27, 1957 Lynwood, California, U.S.
Died	June 8, 2025(2025-06-08) (aged 68) Riverside, California, U.S.
High school	Verbum Dei (Los Angeles, California)
Listed height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight	222 lb (101 kg)
Career information
College	UCLA (1975–1979)
NBA Draft	1979 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall
Selected by the Chicago Bulls
Pro career	1979–1991
Career history
1979–1985	Chicago Bulls
1985–1989	San Antonio Spurs
1989	Denver Nuggets
1989–1990	Detroit Pistons
1990–1991	San Antonio Spurs
Career highlights and awards
NBA champion (1990) NBA All-Rookie First Team (1980) 2× Consensus first-team All-American (1978, 1979) 2× Pac-10 Player of the Year (1978, 1979) 3× First-team All-Pac-10 (1977–1979) First-team Parade All-American (1975)
Career statistics
Points	8,428 (10.2 ppg)
Rebounds	6,537 (7.9 rpg)
Blocks	736 (0.9 bpg)

David Murphy-Kasim Greenwood (May 27, 1957 – June 8, 2025) was a professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 12 years, from 1979 to 1991. He was a talented power forward and center known for his strong rebounding skills.

Greenwood played for several famous teams, including the Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, and Detroit Pistons. Right after joining the league, he proved his skill by being named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. One of the biggest moments of his career was winning an NBA championship with the Pistons in 1990.

He passed away in Riverside, California, on June 8, 2025, after a battle with cancer.

College Career at UCLA

Before he became a pro, David Greenwood was a star player for the UCLA Bruins. He played for the team from 1975 to 1979 and was one of the best college players in the country.

In 1978 and 1979, he was named a "Consensus first-team All-American." This is a huge honor that means most experts agreed he was one of the top five college players in the United States. He was also named the Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year twice. Because of his amazing college career, he was later inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.

Professional NBA Career

Starting with the Chicago Bulls

In the 1979 NBA draft, Greenwood was chosen as the second overall pick by the Chicago Bulls. The only player picked before him was the legendary Earvin "Magic" Johnson, who went to the Los Angeles Lakers.

For several years, before Michael Jordan joined the team, Greenwood was one of the Bulls' most important players. He played alongside other team stars like Reggie Theus and Orlando Woolridge. He was known for scoring points and grabbing lots of rebounds.

Playing for Other Teams

On October 24, 1985, the Bulls traded Greenwood to the San Antonio Spurs. In return, the Bulls received future Hall of Fame player George Gervin. Greenwood played for the Spurs for several seasons, where he continued to be a strong forward and center.

Later, in 1989, he was traded to the Denver Nuggets. He played for the Nuggets for part of a season before becoming a free agent, which meant he could sign with any team he wanted.

Winning an NBA Championship

On October 6, 1989, Greenwood signed with the Detroit Pistons. This team was known as the "Bad Boys" and was one of the best in the NBA.

Although he was mostly a reserve player, Greenwood played an important role in helping the Pistons win the 1990 NBA Finals. Winning a championship was a major highlight of his long career.

Final Seasons and Retirement

After his championship season with the Pistons, Greenwood signed with the San Antonio Spurs again on August 17, 1990. He played one more season with the Spurs before his NBA career ended in 1991. Over 12 years, he played in 823 games and was known as a reliable and hardworking player.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1979–80	Chicago	82	82	34.0	.474	.143	.810	9.4	2.2	0.7	1.6	16.3
1980–81	Chicago	82	82	33.0	.486	.000	.748	8.8	2.7	0.9	1.5	14.4
1981–82	Chicago	82	82	35.5	.473	.000	.825	9.6	3.2	0.9	1.1	14.6
1982–83	Chicago	79	61	29.8	.455	.000	.708	9.7	1.9	0.7	1.1	10.0
1983–84	Chicago	78	76	34.8	.490	.000	.737	10.1	1.8	0.9	0.9	12.2
1984–85	Chicago	61	28	25.0	.458	.000	.713	6.4	1.3	0.6	0.3	6.1
1985–86	San Antonio	68	74	28.1	.510	.000	.772	7.8	1.3	0.5	0.8	7.9
1986–87	San Antonio	79	78	32.7	.513	.500	.785	9.9	3.0	0.9	0.6	11.9
1987–88	San Antonio	45	40	27.5	.460	.000	.748	6.7	2.2	0.7	0.5	8.6
1988–89	San Antonio	38	15	24.0	.425	—	.800	6.3	1.4	0.8	0.6	7.7
	Denver	29	3	16.9	.419	—	.676	5.7	1.4	0.6	1.0	5.9
1989–90	Detroit	37	0	5.5	.423	—	.552	2.1	0.3	0.1	0.2	1.6
1990–91	San Antonio	63	11	16.2	.503	.000	.734	3.5	0.8	0.5	0.4	3.8
Career		823	582	28.4	.477	.138	.765	7.9	2.0	0.7	0.9	10.2

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1981	Chicago	6	—	35.3	.586	.000	.417	7.3	1.8	1.5	0.8	17.8
1985	Chicago	4	4	34.8	.536	—	.800	7.8	1.3	1.5	1.0	9.5
1986	San Antonio	3	3	33.7	.522	—	.750	6.0	1.0	1.0	0.3	10.0
1989	Denver	3	0	11.3	.333	—	.500	3.7	0.3	0.3	0.3	1.7
1990	Detroit	5	0	9.4	.500	—	.250	1.8	0.0	0.4	0.1	1.0
1991	San Antonio	1	0	5.0	1.000	—	—	2.0	2.0	0.0	0.0	2.0
Career		22	7	24.5	.557	.000	.583	5.2	1.0	1.0	0.5	8.5

See also

In Spanish: David Greenwood para niños