Billy Knight (basketball, born 1979)

Billy Knight
Personal information
Born (1979-01-20)January 20, 1979
Los Angeles, California
Died July 8, 2018(2018-07-08) (aged 39)
Phoenix, Arizona
Nationality American
Listed height 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight 209 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school Westchester (Los Angeles, California)
College UCLA (1997–2002）
NBA draft 2002 / Undrafted
Playing career 2002–2016
Position Shooting guard
Career history
2002–2003 Akropol BBK
2003–2004 Entente Orléanaise 45
2004–2005 Apollon Limassol
2005 JA Vichy
2005 Trotamundos B.B.C.
2005–2006 Al Rayyan
2006 Hollywood Fame
2006–2007 Santa Barbara Breakers
2007–2008 ESSM Le Portel
? Los Angeles Lightning
? Boulazac Basket Dordogne
2009–2010 Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix
2010–2011 Osaka Evessa
2011–2015 Hyogo Storks
2015–2016 Yamagata Wyverns
Career highlights and awards
  • bj league champion (2010)
  • 2x bj league All-star
  • JBL2 champion (2013)
  • JBL2 Scoring leader (2011-12)
  • JBL2 Block leader (2011-12)
  • 2x JBL2 Best Five (2011-13)

William Price Knight (January 20, 1979 – July 8, 2018) was an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins. His last professional stops were in Japan with Hamamatsu, Osaka, Hyogo and Yamagata.[1]

Early life

He attended high school at Westchester High in Los Angeles. As a sophomore, he was a reserve at center when Knight's father decided that his son's chances for an athletic scholarship to college rested on his jump-shooting skills. Knight was already tall, so his father set up dummies in their backyard court that he would be forced to shoot over.[2] As a senior, he had developed into one of the top jump shooters nationally and committed to play college basketball for the UCLA Bruins.[3]

Professional career

Knight helped the Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix to their first bj league title in 2009–2010, when he was the league's third-leading scorer, averaging 19.6 points per game. He and teammate Wendell White formed a duo dubbed the "White-Knight Show".[4] In 2012–13, he helped lead the Hyogo Storks to their first Japan Basketball League (JBL2) championship.[5]

Criminal allegations and death

On June 13, 2018, Knight was arrested on six counts of molestation charges, including two counts of sexual conduct with a minor.[6][7] He committed suicide through multiple blunt force injuries on July 8 in Phoenix, shortly after posting a video to YouTube talking about his mental illness and encouraged others to seek help.[8][9]

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
† Denotes seasons in which Knight won a league championship
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2009-10† Hamamatsu 472926.2.413.395.7955.42.01.30.319.6
2010-11 Osaka 503725.0.457.357.7977.32.01.30.317.1
2013-14 Hyogo 545326.6.385.367.8436.81.11.40.317.6
2014-15 Hyogo 5416.9.420.284.8363.60.70.90.213.1
2015-16 Yamagata 36921.9.470.392.8478.91.21.10.621.1

References

  1. ↑ Nishinomiya Storks (11 July 2018). "ウィリアム・ナイト選手の訃報に接して". Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  2. ↑ Plaschke, Bill (March 20, 2002). "Role Models". Los Angeles Times.
  3. ↑ Wilner, John (December 31, 1996). "Knight Committed to Bruins". Los Angeles Daily News – via HighBeam Research. (Subscription required (help)).
  4. ↑ Odeven, Ed (February 24, 2012). "Knight still wonders why no team would give him shot". The Japan Times.
  5. ↑ Odeven, Ed (July 12, 2018). "Former UCLA, Japan pro basketball player Billy Knight dies in suicide after abuse charges". The Japan Times.
  6. ↑ Fattal, Derek (July 11, 2018). "Former UCLA star Billy Knight was facing child molestation charges before death". Los Angeles Daily News.
  7. ↑ TMZ Sports (11 July 2018). "UCLA's Billy Knight Allegedly Sexually Abused 9-Year-Old Girl Before Death". Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  8. ↑ West, Jenna (July 10, 2018). "Former UCLA Player Billy Knight Found Dead at 39". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Former UCLA basketball player Billy Knight found dead at age 39", by Joel Anderson, ESPN
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