Earl Williams (basketball player)

Earl "the Twirl" Williams (born March 24, 1951) is an American-Israeli former professional basketball player[1] and a teacher of children with special needs.

Earl Williams
Personal information
Born (1951-03-24) March 24, 1951
Levittown, Pennsylvania
NationalityAmerican / Israeli
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight230 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High schoolWoodrow Wilson
(Levittown, Pennsylvania)
CollegeWinston-Salem State (1970–1974)
NBA draft1974 / Round: 3 / Pick: 49th overall
Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Playing career1974–1994
PositionCenter
Number14
Career history
1974–1975Phoenix Suns
1975–1976Detroit Pistons
1976New York Nets
1977–1978Alvik BK
1978–1979Boston Celtics
1979–1983Maccabi Tel Aviv
1983–1984Fortitudo Bologna
1984–1985Pallacanestro Brindisi
1988–1989Hapoel Holon
1989–1990Maccabi Ramat Gan
1990–1991Hapoel Holon
1993–1994Bnei Herzliya
Career highlights and awards

Early life and education

Williams played high school basketball while attending Woodrow Wilson High School in Levittown, Pennsylvania. He played college basketball at Winston-Salem State University, with the Winston-Salem State Rams.[1]

Professional career

USA

In the 1974 NBA draft, Williams was selected by the Phoenix Suns in the 3rd round, with the 13th pick (49th overall).[1] He made his NBA debut on October 17, 1974, with Phoenix. During the next four years, he played for other NBA teams as well: the Detroit Pistons, the New York Nets, and the Boston Celtics.[1] On September 30, 1975, he was traded by the Suns to the Detroit Pistons, for a 1976 2nd round draft pick (Earl Tatum).

Sweden

In the 1977–78 season, Williams played for the Swedish League team Alvik. Alvik came in 2nd in the league that year.[2]

Israel

Williams later played professionally in the Israeli League. He starred for a portion of the time with Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Holon,[3][4] and he also played with Maccabi Ramat Gan. In 1990, at age 39, he was the oldest player in the Israeli League.[5]

Italy

Williams played two seasons for Italian teams as well: Fortitudo Bologna in 1984–1985, and Libertas Brindisi in 1988–1989.

Personal life

In 1982, Williams converted to Judaism.[6] Williams also became a naturalized Israeli citizen, becoming a dual US-Israeli citizen.[7][8]

References
  1. "Earl Williams NBA Statistics". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
  2. "1970-80 statistics". Alvik Basket. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  3. "Israeli Basketball Team Plays Despite Cloud of War". St. Paul Pioneer Press. February 22, 1991. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
  4. "Israel's Maccabi Tel Aviv wins Euro championship". Israel21c.org. May 2, 2004. Archived from the original on 2010-06-16. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
  5. Leibowitz, Steve (25 September 1990). "Galil Stop "Upstart" Ramat Hasharon". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
  6. Weisbord, Robert G.; Kazarian, Richard (1985). Israel in the Black American perspective. Greenwood Press. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
  7. Ben-David, Calev (7 March 1991). "A whole new ball game". The Jerusalem Report. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
  8. Gordin, Joel (30 January 1991). "Israeli Basketball In Dire Straits". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
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