Dave Bing

Bing was born November 24, 1943, in Washington, D.C., to mother Juanita, a housekeeper, and father Hasker, a bricklayer and deacon for the Baptist Church. He was the second child of four living in a two-bedroom, one-story house in the northeast part of town.[3] In his childhood, Bing received the nickname "Duke" from his father, because, according to Bing, he always "wanted to be top dog."[4] He suffered a traumatic eye injury at age five, when, while playing with an improvised hobby horse he constructed with two sticks nailed together; Bing tripped and accidentally poked his left eye with a rusty nail. The family could not afford emergency surgery, leaving the eye to heal on its own and diminishing his vision thereafter.[5] Bing's father also suffered a severe head injury during the boy's childhood. While working a construction site, a brick fell four stories onto his head, causing a brain clot. The episode led young Bing to promise himself that he would never work in such a profession.[4]

In athletics, Bing played basketball, but older children often told him he was too small for the game.[4] However, he played well, triumphing over such older and bigger children as future Motown musician Marvin Gaye, who, after not performing well on the court, chose to sing on the sidelines. Bing and Gaye forged a friendship, which continued later in life. Despite his basketball play, Bing, a fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers and Jackie Robinson, focused primarily on baseball, the neighborhood's preferred game.[6]

Despite his fuzzy vision, he excelled in baseball at Spingarn High School,[4] where he enrolled in 1958.[7] Nevertheless, the school's head basketball coach William Roundtree encouraged him to revisit basketball. Roundtree became a fatherly figure to Bing, who decided to join the team. He developed into a double-digits per game scorer, noted for his jump shot and knack for driving to the basket.[7] He continued also to compete in baseball into his senior year, but was forced to choose between it and basketball when a scheduling conflict between two tournaments arose.[4] Though he felt he was better at baseball, Bing opted for basketball, believing it gave him a greater chance at a full-ride college scholarship,[8] well aware of the path taken by Los Angeles Lakers forward Elgin Baylor, a Spingarn alum.[7] At the tournament, Bing led his team to victory and earned MVP honors.[4] All in all, in high school, Bing was a three-year letter winner, all–Inter High, all-Metro, and all-East member. In 1962, he was featured in Parade magazine and made the All-American Team.

Bing attended Syracuse University, where he was once roommates with Jim Boeheim.[9] He led the Orangemen in scoring as a sophomore (22.2) in 1964, as a junior (23.2) in 1965, and as a senior (28.4) in 1966. During his senior year, Bing was fifth in the nation in scoring and was Syracuse's first consensus All-American in 39 years. He was also named to The Sporting News All-America First Team and was named Syracuse Athlete of the Year.

In his three-year varsity career at Syracuse, Bing averaged 24.8 points and 10.3 rebounds, with 1883 total points and 786 total rebounds in 76 games.[10]

Bing playing for the Detroit Pistons, c. 1975

Bing's playing style was somewhat unusual for the time. As a lean, athletic and explosive point guard, he functioned as the playmaker distributing the ball, but also did more shooting and scoring than most others who had this position. At one time a joke about him and his backcourt partner, Jimmy Walker, was that it was a shame they could only play the game with one ball at a time.

Bing was awarded the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award in 1977.

Bing was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1990.

In 2006, Bing was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame.

In 1996, he was named one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players.

At age 22 with an NBA contract worth $15,000, Bing was rebuffed by the National Bank of Detroit on getting a mortgage to finance a home. This led Bing to work at the bank during the offseason, holding jobs in the teller, customer relations, and mortgage departments.

Immediately after retiring, he worked at a warehouse of the steel processing company Paragon Steel and was paid $35,000. He left after two years, after stints in the company's shipping and sales operations.

Bing in 2009

On January 19, 2009, Bing was to be named as a recipient of the National Civil Rights Museum Sports Legacy Award. The award honors athletes who have made significant contributions to civil and human rights and who helped establish a foundation for future leaders in athletic careers in the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr.[13] The honor was to be presented during the half-time show of the game between the Memphis Grizzlies and the Detroit Pistons in Memphis, Tennessee. Bing volunteered in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.

• Sharp, Drew (November 1, 2012). Dave Bing: A Life of Challenge. Human Kinetics. ISBN 9781450423526.

• The Next Wave of Urban Reform, City Journal, Fall 2010
• Basketball Hall of Fame
• CityMayors profile
• Appearances on C-SPAN