What sport did you think a guy named Dunkin was going to play in college: tennis?! Tony Dunkin showed up at Coastal Carolina in the fall of 1989 and proceeded to win every available award. He was named Big South ROY in 1990, Big South tourney MVP in 1991/1993, and became the only men’s D-1 player to ever be named conference POY for 4 straight years. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Tony about facing the Fab 5 and being a great scorer. Today is the 7th anniversary of the Chanticleers making the switch from the Big South to the Sun Belt on July 1, 2016, so we take this time to remember the good old days.
You began your college career at Jacksonville: why did you decide to transfer, and what made you choose Coastal Carolina? Jacksonville had a wonderful coaching staff who recruited me but after I got there I could just never get comfortable so I came back home. Back then they would release you to go to another school but you had to sit out a year. I looked at Clemson but they had signed another guy who played my position, as did Wake Forest. My mom urged me to revisit Coastal because it was so close to home. I just needed to get back into playing ball but once I got there and talked to the coaches I felt comfortable. My mom/sister could come watch me play and my teammates really made me feel at home, so after that I was hooked.
In 1990 you were named conference ROY: how were you able to come in and contribute right from the start? I played for the legendary Taft Watson in high school. He taught us to be competitive and just jump into it: act like you had already been there and belonged. I showed them that I could play and was tough so that it was clear that I belonged. My whole attitude was about winning a championship because they had never won 1 before. I remember our 1st team meeting and that was out whole mindset so I wanted to pull my own weight and show everyone that I could play.
In the 1991 NCAA tourney you scored 11 PTS in a 10-PT loss to Indiana: what was it like to face Bobby Knight in March? That was our 1st run in the NCAA tourney. He had these big guys who kept coming off the bench: it seemed like he had ten 7-footers who kept rotating in! We took it down to the wire even though nobody expected us to keep it that close. Brian Penny played great that night but their big guys tired us out. It was an amazing experience to play against awesome guys like Damon Bailey/Calbert Cheaney: I will never forget it.
In the 1993 NCAA tourney you scored 17 PTS in a loss to Michigan: could you tell at the time that the “Fab 5” were good enough to make it back to the title game for the 2nd year in a row? Absolutely! They were so good that you could have probably put that team in the NBA. Chris Webber led the way and the rest of them were wonderful guys who were talented beyond measure. They were just awesome: we tried to compete as best we could but it was a real longshot. It is all about the experience: they were all projected to go high in the NBA draft and we came up short. It was amazing to play them after seeing them on TV: I enjoyed it and wished we could do it again.
You are the only player in D-1 men’s history to be named conference POY 4 times: do you think that anyone will ever tie your record? I hope that someone does but I have comfort that they can never beat it. I hope that 1 day the NCAA or Hall of Fame will recognize that accomplishment. We were in a good conference and put guys in the NBA/NFL. To be the 1st in history to do that was very special. I am thankful that I was able to do that but would be even more blessed if the recognition went to the school so that other players would try to come there in the future. Our baseball team won a national title a few years ago so there are plenty of reasons to come to Coastal.
You remain the all-time leading scorer in school history with 2151 career PTS: what is the secret to being a great scorer? Practice/practice/practice. I am thankful to Coach Russ Bergman because back then we had no clue. We would practice 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the evening. We worked on game situations and would get into the gym to shoot. After you get a little experience you know how to work on your weaknesses. When we got into the game it was just 2nd nature to us: we could just make eye contact and know what each other was thinking so I would go backdoor and receive a pass for a dunk.
You later played pro basketball in the CBA and in Hungary: what is the biggest difference between college basketball and pro basketball? Money! You realize quickly that it is really a business when you get to the pros. In college you get a free education but as a pro you need to provide scoring/rebounding/whatever your team needs to win. My 1st tour of duty was in Hong Kong with some other guys from America: we found out quickly that it is all about winning/money. We had to pay attention to the game and take care of our bodies: some guys who came in with us got fired and had to go back home.
You have been inducted into the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame/Big South Hall of Fame/Coastal Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame: what did it mean to you to receive such outstanding honors? When Coastal inducted me into its Hall of Fame they unveiled my head shot plaque. Just to see my face was amazing: I told my wife that it was the highlight of my career and we celebrated with our kids. I later received the Big South honor, followed by the South Carolina honor: I could not believe it when my friend told me. I had to pause for a minute to catch my breath because it was such a huge honor. The South Carolina HOF has some great guys like Alex English/Xavier McDaniel: just to be a part of that fraternity was amazing and the celebration was 1st-class. My wife and I relished every second of it. Coach Willie Jeffries came and sat down beside me and I was happy to learn that he knew my name. He looked at my wife and said that I did pretty good for myself!
Earlier this year you were named head coach at Kingstree High School: why did you take the job, and how is it going so far? At age 53 I was not sure why I wanted to coach again but I just really enjoy working with kids. They make me feel that what I do is worth it. I worked many years in finance but it was mundane and it drained me. When you come to a job that is different every day and you get to give kids some direction it gives you a reason to get up every morning. I was not looking to coach as a new granddaddy because I just wanted to spend time with her but when you get that opportunity you realize it is about helping the kids with guidance/direction.
When people look back on your career, how do you want to be remembered the most? I am 1st and foremost a man of God so I try to treat everybody fairly. I want to be remembered as a true man of God who was there for the kids. As far as my playing career I played with/through injuries: when you really want to play you just play through the pain. I gave my all to the sport/community/people and at this point I am all about walking a certain type of way. It is never about me: it is about helping people.