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RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Wed Nov 9, 2016 10:14 pm
by keynote
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/18009126/greg-ballard-played-11-nba-seasons-dies-61Greg Ballard, who played 11 NBA seasons and helped the Washington Bullets win the league title in his rookie season, died Wednesday from prostate cancer. He was 61.
Ballard, a small forward who was the No. 4 overall pick out of Oregon in the 1977 draft, played in the NBA from 1977 to 1988. He played eight seasons with the Bullets (now Wizards) and two with the Golden State Warriors. After taking the 1987-88 season off, he returned to play two games for the Seattle SuperSonics and then retired.
Re: RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Wed Nov 9, 2016 10:28 pm
by AFM
RIP.
Re: RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Wed Nov 9, 2016 11:05 pm
by Chocolate City Jordanaire
My mom cooked food for him and his wife when they went to Grace United Methodist church.
(Mighta been Abeneezer AME. Memory fails. I was a kid but IIRC Ballard family were members of same church).
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Re: RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Wed Nov 9, 2016 11:21 pm
by Ruzious
Oh man, RIP. Hard to believe he was 61. It just doesn't seem that long ago when he and Kupchack were the knew kids on the block adding energy off the bench behind Unseld/Hayes/Dandridge. It was hard not to like Ballard - he was a hard-worker, good shooter, always looking serious out there. If Trevor Booker was a jump shooter, he'd be Greg Ballard.
Re: RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2016 1:32 am
by keynote
I was surprised to see him listed as a SF. I always thought of him as a burly, physical player.
Re: RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2016 1:53 am
by penbeast0
Always seemed a classy, intelligent guy. And yeah, for a 3, he was a wide body who could slide to the 4 more easily than guard quick guards but that was the game then.
Re: RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2016 2:10 am
by montestewart
penbeast0 wrote:Always seemed a classy, intelligent guy. And yeah, for a 3, he was a wide body who could slide to the 4 more easily than guard quick guards but that was the game then.
Ballard would play a lot of PF now.
I saw him score 37 (I thought it was 38 but I just looked it up) once against Atlanta at Capital Centre. really close seats (my roommate worked with Red Auerbach's son-in-law, and he got us good tickets sometimes). I can still remember the PA bellowing GREG BALLARD! over and over. I never talked to him but apparently he was pretty well liked. He's a pretty big part of my Bullets memories. RIP
Re: RIP Greg Ballard
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2016 6:20 pm
by dobrojim
RIP. So young to have gone clear.
Who can forget his role in the 78 championship?
If one could feel sorry for a guy living the NBA dream you might
have had some sympathy for Ballard who had to play regularly against
Doc and Bird.