Dominique Wilkins has been providing highlights to humans throughout his entire life. At Washington High School he helped lead his team to back-to-back North Carolina state titles before getting a double-double in the 1979 McDonald’s All-American Game. He chose to attend college at Georgia, where he averaged 21.6 PPG during his 3 years on the varsity and was named 1981 SEC POY. He was selected 3rd overall by Utah in the 1982 NBA draft, but after being traded to Atlanta in 1 of the most lopsided deals in NBA history he became an NBA Hall of Famer. He led the league in scoring in 1986 with 30.3 PPG and also won a pair of NBA Slam Dunk contests in 1985/1990. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel celebrates Dominique’s election on Tuesday to the Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame by presenting this never-before-published interview with “The Human Highlight Film”, and congratulates all the new members on their outstanding careers!
You won back-to-back MVP awards after leading Washington HS to a 55-1 record and North Carolina state titles in 1978 and 1979: what do you remember about the 1 loss, and what did it mean to you to win 2 titles? It was great to win back-to-back titles: that is something that very few people get to experience. The 1 loss came at the end of my sophomore year: I remember our coach telling us that if we could stick together as a team and buy into what he was trying to teach us that we would not lose another game for the next 2 years…and he was right!
In 1979 you scored 16 PTS for the East in a 1-PT OT win in the McDonald’s All American Game (which included Sam Bowie/Clark Kellogg/John Paxson/Ralph Sampson/Byron Scott/Isiah Thomas/James Worthy): which of the other players impressed you the most? It is hard to say: there were so many great players in that game.
You came close to leaving school after your sophomore year, but were advised to stay in school by Maurice Lucas: what kind of relationship did you have with Lucas? I had a very special relationship with Maurice: he was a very close friend of mine who prepared me for life in the NBA.
What are your memories of the 1982 NIT (you scored 15 PTS but Russell Cross scored 25 PTS including a layup with 4 seconds left in a 1-PT win by Purdue at MSG)? I was not supposed to play due to a severely twisted ankle: I still do not know how I was able to play that night.
You were named SEC POY as a junior and were a 2-time All-American: what did it mean to you to win such outstanding individual honors? Some of the greatest players in NBA history were in college at that time so it was a great honor.
In 1982 you were drafted 3rd overall by Utah (behind James Worthy/Terry Cummings), but after refusing to sign with the Jazz you were traded to Atlanta several months later for John Drew/Freeman Williams/cash: why did you decide to leave school after your junior year, and how did you feel about heading back to the state of Georgia? It was time to leave: Coach Hugh Durham (a fellow 2016 Collegiate Basketball Hall of Famer) told me that I had done everything I could and that it was time for me to go pro. It was heaven to go from college basketball at Georgia to pro basketball in Atlanta: I could not have asked for a better situation at the time.
In 1986 you scored a career-high 57 PTS in a win over Chicago (Michael Jordan scored 41 PTS): did playing against Jordan bring out the best in you, and was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? He always brought out the best in me and I like to think that I brought out the best in him as well.
You finished that season by winning the scoring title with an average of 30.3 PPG: where does that rank among the highlights of your career? It ranks very high. It was tough to win the scoring title at the time with all the rules back then like hand-checking and the physical play, so if you could score 30 PPG then you knew that you had earned it.
You were named to 9 straight All-Star teams from 1986-1994, including the highest-scoring All-Star game ever in 1987: how on earth did your East team lose that year with a starting lineup of you/Moses Malone/Larry Bird/Julius Erving/Jordan?! The West had a pretty serious starting lineup itself: Magic Johnson/Alvin Robertson/James Worthy/Tom Chambers/Hakeem Olajuwon! It was a serious shootout and an up-and-down game.
In 1988 you scored 47 PTS (a record for most PTS in a Game 7) in a 2-PT loss to Boston and Bird (who scored 20 PTS in the 4th quarter on 9-10 FG) in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 1 of the most memorable playoff games in history: where does that rank among the best games you have ever been a part of? It is probably 1 of the greatest games in history: you had 2 guys who just did not want to lose.
In December of 1992 you set an NBA record by making all 23 of your FTs in a game against Chicago: what is your secret to FT shooting? Just concentration and practicing the same routine over and over again. Dirk now holds the playoff record (24 in a row in Game 1 of the 2011 Western Conference Finals) but I believe that I still have the regular season record.
In 1994 you helped “Dream Team 2” win a gold medal at the FIBA World Championships: what did it mean to you to represent your country? It is the most exhilarating thing in the world to represent your country, so to be a part of that was great.
In 1996 you left the NBA to play in the Greek League and were named Final 4 MVP after having 16 PTS/10 REB in a win over Barcelona to win the Euroleague title: what is the biggest difference between the NBA and pro basketball in Europe? The NBA is more physical than Europe with the best players in the world. Europe is more of a hybrid jump-shooting league with an up-and-down game.
In 1999 you played your final NBA season alongside your brother Gerald with Orlando, and your nephew Damien spent almost a decade in the NBA before going overseas to continue his career: what was it like to play alongside your brother, and how long do you think your nephew will keep playing? It was great playing with my brother: I wanted to play 1 year with him before I retired. Nobody even thought my nephew would make it but I think he still has a few more good years left in him.
In 2004 you became the Hawks’ VP of Basketball, and you are also a color analyst for Hawks games: which of the 2 jobs do you like the most? It is just wonderful to be connected with the team.
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