When the NCAA tourney got canceled in March we entered a whole new world, which included a sports void the likes of which we have never seen before. The fine folks at ESPN came to the rescue in mid-April with “The Last Dance”, a 10-part miniseries about the 1998 Chicago Bulls and their quest to win a 6th NBA title in an 8-year span before Coach Phil Jackson and most of his star players all went their separate ways. While it has been comforting to spend the past several Sunday nights with behind-the-scenes stories from Steve Kerr/Scottie Pippen/Dennis Rodman, the star of the show as always is Michael Jordan. Even though the documentary concluded on May 17th, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel has dug through his archives and discovered oodles of unpublished interviews about Jordan’s career, from his early days as the leading scorer for team USA at the 1983 Pan Am Games to a 55-PT playoff performance during Chicago’s final title run in 1998. We continue our trip down memory lane by chatting with Buck Williams about facing Jordan in the 1992 NBA Finals as a player for Portland.
Your 1st name is Charles but your nickname is “Buck”: who gave it to you, and how did you get your trademark goggles? A friend of my family in North Carolina commented on how big I was as a child by saying that I was as “Big as a Buck” so my friends called me “Charlie Buck”, which was later shortened to “Buck”. I got elbowed in the eye by James Donaldson in the 1990 playoffs and afterward the doctor recommended that I wear the goggles.
You were named 1979 ACC ROY at Maryland and 1982 NBA ROY with New Jersey: how were you able to come in and contribute right from the start in both college and the pros? I was able to go to the right teams. I did not start playing organized basketball until the 9th grade so I had to bring my skill set up to speed. My mom was a huge UNC fan but I figured I would get a better chance to play at Maryland.
In 1980 you were selected to the US Olympic basketball team but never got to travel to Moscow due to the American boycott: how excited were you to be chosen, and how frustrated were you when you learned that the team would not be participating? After the Olympic trials the coaches told all of the players to stick around even though we wanted to get home. After I flew home to North Carolina my high school coach told me that I had made the team! It was a great honor to be selected along with other guys like Mark Aguirre/Isiah Thomas. It was disappointing to not go to Moscow but it worked out much better for me as a player to scrimmage against some pro players.
In 1980/1981 you lost a pair of ACC tourney title games by a single point: how competitive was the conference tourney back in the day? It was highly competitive. The year we lost to Duke was on an infamous play. I went up for the game-winning shot but got undercut and no foul was called: I might have missed the FTs. That game changed everything for me: Maryland fans still remember that play just like it was yesterday. I came to college as a PF but later had to play the center position so I faced guys like Ralph Sampson at Virginia/Larry Nance at Clemson, which worked out really well for me.
You made the NBA Finals with Portland in 1990 & 1992: how close did you come to winning a title? We were close during that entire 3-year stretch. We were tied with Detroit before Vinnie Johnson got hot (www.youtube.com/watch?v=44j-teKPsaQ): it was incredible for us to come together like that in only 1 year. In 1992 we lost to the Bulls: Michael Jordan was the X-factor and bailed them out during every close game. We were up big in Game 6 but he won it almost by himself: he was such a phenomenal player and always took the last shot, which I admired. He was a cold-blooded big-shot maker.
You were named to the All-Defensive team 4 times in a 5-year span from 1988-1992: how did you balance your offense with your defense? Everyone talks about my rebounding but I was no slouch on offense either! I scored about 18,000 PTS and was a very good offensive player who could hold my own. At the PF you are a gatekeeper and have to be the most unselfish/tough player on the team. I matched up with some of the toughest offensive guys ever like Karl Malone and I took a lot of pride in making him work for every basket he ever had. I tried to play every facet of the game.
Your 13,017 career REB still remains in the top-20 all-time: what is the secret to being a great rebounder? It is like life: you have to be persistent and go for it every time. I had the foresight to know where the ball was going and how to box out/position myself. Clyde Drexler’s shot would rebound long while Otis Birdsong’s would not. Every time the ball hit the rim I was always in the air chasing it: I was relentless, just like Dennis Rodman.
You spent 17 years in pro basketball and played in 1307 career games: what was the key to your longevity? I was blessed but took good care of my body and had great teammates. I stayed focused on my task of being successful. My parents instilled an incredible work ethic in me but I was never obsessed with basketball: I attribute all of my success to my role models.
You served as president of the NBA Players Association from 1994-1997: why did you take the job, and what were you able to accomplish? Foots Walker nominated me to be the Nets’ player representative early in my career. It thrust me into a leadership position and I enjoyed it: I read about business/labor disputes and tried to look out for the players’ benefits/grievances. I was in a meeting 1 year when Isiah Thomas’ term was going to end: he nominated me (which caught me off guard) but I agreed to do it. We negotiated some great collective bargaining agreements and certified the union. We increased salaries in the early 1990s and you can still see those benefits today: it was my way to give back to the game, just like other players had done so before me.
In 2001 you were inducted into the Maryland Hall of Fame and in 2002 you were named to the ACC’s 50th Anniversary men’s basketball team: where do these rank among the highlights of your career? Probably #1 & #2: I also got inducted into the Maryland State Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018. I was 1 of 7 players who averaged a double-double for my career (along with legends like Bill Russell/Wilt Chamberlain) and I think that will stand out as 1 of my greatest accomplishments. I will go to my grave relishing that honor: to accomplish that as an undersized PF and retire 10th all-time in rebounding made me very proud. To see guys like Rodman/Maurice Cheeks make the Hall of Fame in recent years was also great: they could have been great scorers but sacrificed that aspect of the game to do other things to help their teams win championships.