Sleepy Floyd facts for kids
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | March 6, 1960 Gastonia, North Carolina, U.S. |
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| High school | Hunter Huss (Gastonia, North Carolina) |
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| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | |||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 172 lb (78 kg) | |||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||
| College | Georgetown (1978–1982) | |||||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 1982 / Round: 1 / Pick: 13th overall | |||||||||||||
| Selected by the New Jersey Nets | ||||||||||||||
| Pro career | 1982–1995 | |||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||
| 1982–1983 | New Jersey Nets | |||||||||||||
| 1983–1987 | Golden State Warriors | |||||||||||||
| 1987–1993 | Houston Rockets | |||||||||||||
| 1993–1994 | San Antonio Spurs | |||||||||||||
| 1994–1995 | New Jersey Nets | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
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| Career NBA statistics | ||||||||||||||
| Points | 12,260 (12.8 ppg) | |||||||||||||
| Assists | 5,175 (5.4 apg) | |||||||||||||
| Steals | 1,120 (1.2 spg) | |||||||||||||
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Medals
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Eric Augustus "Sleepy" Floyd (born March 6, 1960) is a former American professional basketball player. He was an NBA All-Star in 1987. Sleepy Floyd is well-known for playing with the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets.
Contents
Early Life and Nickname
Eric Floyd was born in Gastonia, North Carolina. He got the nickname "Sleepy" when he was in the fourth grade. During a baseball game, someone watching yelled, "Get that kid out of the game. He's sleeping!" The name stuck with him.
Sleepy Floyd was a talented guard, standing 6 feet 3 inches tall. He played basketball at Hunter Huss High School in Gastonia. In 1977, during his junior year, he led his team to win the North Carolina state basketball championship. They beat Ashbrook High, a team that included future basketball star James Worthy.
College Basketball Career
Floyd became a star basketball player at Georgetown University. He was later honored by being added to the Georgetown University Athletic Hall of Fame. At Georgetown, he was excellent in all four seasons. He led his team in scoring from 1979 to 1982. He was also the team captain in 1981 and 1982.
Sleepy Floyd was chosen for the All-Big East Conference team in 1980, 1981, and 1982. He was also named an All-American in 1981 and 1982. In his last year at Georgetown, Floyd and teammate Patrick Ewing helped their team reach the National Championship game. Floyd scored 18 points, had 5 assists, and made 5 steals in a very close game. They lost 63–62 to North Carolina. Sleepy Floyd still holds the record for the most career points at Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball, with 2,304 points.
Professional Basketball Career
The New Jersey Nets picked Sleepy Floyd as the 13th player in the 1982 NBA draft. During his first season, he was traded to the Golden State Warriors. He quickly became a much better player with the Warriors. In his first full season there, he averaged 16.8 points per game. In the 1984–85 NBA season, he scored a career-high average of 19.5 points per game.
Two seasons later, he averaged 18.8 points and 10.3 assists. This earned him a spot on the 1987 NBA All-Star Team. On December 6 of that season, Floyd scored a career-high 41 points. This happened in a game against the Dallas Mavericks.
During the 1987 NBA Playoffs, Floyd played a big part in helping the Warriors win their first-round series. They upset the Karl Malone-led Utah Jazz. Floyd averaged 21.4 points, 10.2 assists, and 1.8 steals in those 10 playoff games. However, the Warriors were later eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers, who went on to win the championship.
In December 1987, Floyd was traded to the Houston Rockets. He played 5½ seasons with the Rockets. On February 26, 1991, he scored 40 points in just 24 minutes. This was the fewest minutes ever needed for a 40-point game in NBA history at that time. He then signed with the San Antonio Spurs in 1993. After one season there, he returned to the New Jersey Nets. He retired in 1995. He finished his career with 12,260 points and 5,175 assists.
Sleepy Floyd still holds an amazing NBA playoff record. In Game 4 of the 1987 Western Conference Semifinals against the Lakers, he scored 29 points in one quarter. He also scored 39 points in one half. He made 12 shots in a row in the fourth quarter. He finished that game with 51 points. This helped prevent the Warriors from being swept by the Lakers.
After Basketball
After retiring from the NBA, Sleepy Floyd ran a restaurant for three years. He also started a company that helps people manage their money. From 2004 to 2005, he coached junior varsity boys' basketball. He coached at Gaston Day School in his hometown of Gastonia, North Carolina.
In January 2014, Floyd went on a special basketball trip to North Korea. He was part of a group of players for an exhibition game. Soon after arriving, Floyd felt he had been "misled" about the trip.
A movie called Freaky Tales was released in 2024. It includes a story where a fictional version of Sleepy Floyd appears. He is played by actor Jay Ellis.
NBA Career Statistics
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
Regular Season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982–83 | New Jersey | 43 | 6 | 11.5 | .426 | .286 | .844 | 1.0 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 5.3 |
| Golden State | 33 | 11 | 22.8 | .431 | .545 | .830 | 2.9 | 2.2 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 11.7 | |
| 1983–84 | Golden State | 77 | 73 | 33.2 | .463 | .178 | .816 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 16.8 |
| 1984–85 | Golden State | 82 | 82 | 35.0 | .445 | .294 | .810 | 2.5 | 5.0 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 19.5 |
| 1985–86 | Golden State | 82 | 82 | 33.7 | .506 | .328 | .796 | 3.6 | 9.1 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 17.2 |
| 1986–87 | Golden State | 82 | 82 | 37.4 | .488 | .384 | .860 | 3.3 | 10.3 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 18.8 |
| 1987–88 | Golden State | 18 | 18 | 37.8 | .439 | .050 | .835 | 5.1 | 9.9 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 21.2 |
| Houston | 59 | 55 | 31.1 | .431 | .250 | .860 | 3.5 | 6.2 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 13.1 | |
| 1988–89 | Houston | 82 | 82 | 34.0 | .443 | .373 | .845 | 3.7 | 8.6 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 14.2 |
| 1989–90 | Houston | 82 | 73 | 32.1 | .451 | .380 | .806 | 2.4 | 7.3 | 1.1 | 0.1 | 12.2 |
| 1990–91 | Houston | 82 | 4 | 22.6 | .411 | .273 | .752 | 1.9 | 3.9 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 12.3 |
| 1991–92 | Houston | 82 | 3 | 20.3 | .406 | .301 | .794 | 1.8 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 9.1 |
| 1992–93 | Houston | 52 | 10 | 16.7 | .407 | .286 | .794 | 1.7 | 2.5 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 6.6 |
| 1993–94 | San Antonio | 53 | 2 | 13.9 | .335 | .222 | .667 | 1.3 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 3.8 |
| 1994–95 | New Jersey | 48 | 1 | 17.3 | .335 | .284 | .698 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 4.1 |
| Career | 957 | 584 | 27.6 | .444 | .324 | .815 | 2.6 | 5.4 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 12.8 | |
| All-Star | 1 | 0 | 19.0 | .571 | .333 | .714 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 14.0 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Golden State | 10 | 10 | 41.4 | .507 | .464 | .922 | 3.0 | 10.2 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 21.4 |
| 1988 | Houston | 4 | 4 | 38.5 | .426 | .500 | .864 | 1.8 | 8.5 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 18.8 |
| 1989 | Houston | 4 | 4 | 40.0 | .478 | .533 | .714 | 4.5 | 6.5 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 15.5 |
| 1990 | Houston | 4 | 4 | 43.0 | .469 | .250 | .647 | 3.8 | 10.3 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 18.5 |
| 1991 | Houston | 3 | 0 | 13.7 | .333 | .000 | – | 0.7 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 5.3 |
| 1993 | Houston | 7 | 0 | 8.6 | .316 | .333 | .700 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 2.9 |
| 1994 | San Antonio | 4 | 0 | 9.3 | .250 | – | .500 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.5 |
| Career | 36 | 22 | 28.8 | .457 | .414 | .814 | 2.1 | 6.1 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 13.0 | |
See also
In Spanish: Sleepy Floyd para niños
- List of NBA single-game playoff scoring leaders
