Adrian Dantley

One of the all-time great free throw shooters, he had a set routine of four two-handed dribbles and two spins of the ball before every free throw. In addition, "prior to each free throw, he would recite his mantra from junior high that adept lip readers couldn’t mistake: “Over the front rim, backspin, follow through.” Fundamentals were not lip service but a way of life for Dantley."

Dantley finished his career with an average of 24.3 points per game. He scored his points with a mix of flat-footed mid-range jump shots, high-percentage opportunities close to the basket, and frequent trips to the free throw line. For his career, he shot .540 from the floor—16th in NBA history—and .818 from the free throw line. He led the league in free throws six times and ranks ninth all-time in that category. He shares the record with Wilt Chamberlain for most free throws made in a regular-season NBA game with 28.

Since 2013 Dantley has been working part-time as a crossing guard for Maryland's Montgomery County Public Schools. He has said that he likes both the job and the fact that it provides health benefits.

Dantley later worked for the Denver Nuggets as an assistant coach for eight seasons. He briefly served as the team's head coach during the 2009–10 NBA season, filling in for George Karl, who was fighting cancer.

Dantley enjoyed outstanding success at every level of basketball, including high school, college, Olympics, and the NBA. On April 7, 2008, he was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame, 16 years after he retired.

His son Cameron Dantley was the starting quarterback for the Syracuse Orange during the 2008 season.

Utah retired Dantley's uniform number (#4) on April 11, 2007.

Dantley was an assistant basketball coach at then-Towson State from August 1993 to 1996. Dantley had played for Towson head coach Terry Truax in high school.

Dantley played two more seasons in the NBA before retiring after a 13-game stint with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1991.

Utah traded Dantley to the Detroit Pistons after the 1986 season. Dantley was still an effective scorer but did not get as many shots with Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Vinnie Johnson, and Bill Laimbeer all averaging at least 10 points per game. Dantley was knocked unconscious while diving for a loose ball in Game 7 of the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals. By starting the season with the 1988-89 Pistons, he is listed as a member of one of the top 10 teams in NBA history. Midway through the 1989 season Detroit traded Dantley to the Dallas Mavericks for Mark Aguirre due to personal conflicts with Isiah Thomas.

In Utah, Dantley reached his peak establishing his reputation as a prolific scorer, twice leading the league in scoring (in 1981 and 1984). He averaged over 30 points per game each season between 1981 and 1984, though he missed 60 games in 1983 after tearing ligaments in his right wrist. In his seven years with the Jazz, Dantley picked up all six of his All-Star appearances and two All-NBA second-team honors. Dantley's 1980–1984 seasons include two of the top three and four of the top seven spots in true shooting percentage for players averaging at least 30 points per game.

Buffalo traded Dantley to the Indiana Pacers before the 1977–78 NBA season, making him the first NBA Rookie of the Year to be traded following his rookie season. Indiana traded him after 23 games to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Dantley turned pro in 1976 after his third season at Notre Dame. He graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in economics in August 1978.

In the 1976 NBA draft Dantley was drafted sixth overall by the Buffalo Braves. He became the third Buffalo player in five years to receive the NBA Rookie of the Year Award when he won it after the 1977 season.

Dantley had a stellar collegiate career for the Fighting Irish. As a freshman, he played an important role in one of the biggest games in college basketball history, Notre Dame's 1974 upset to end UCLA's record 88-game winning streak. That UCLA team, coached by John Wooden, featured Bill Walton, Jamaal Wilkes (then known as Keith Wilkes), and Dave Meyer.

Dantley led Notre Dame in scoring in 1974–75 (30.4 points per game) and 1975–76 (28.6 points per game), while also leading the team in rebounding those two seasons with marks of 10.2 and 10.1 rebounds per game, respectively. He was also the leading scorer on the 1976 US Olympic team that captured the gold medal in Montreal.

Dantley was a forward at Notre Dame from 1973 to 1976. He was a consensus first-team All-American in 1974–75 and 1975–76. He ranks second on Notre Dame's career scoring list with 2,223 points and holds the school record for free throws made (615) and free throws attempted (769).

Adrian Delano Dantley (born February 28, 1955) is an American retired basketball player who played 15 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A six-time NBA All-Star forward, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008. Nicknamed AD, he finished ninth on the all-time NBA scoring list at the time of his retirement. In 2010, he was appointed acting head coach of the Denver Nuggets in the absence of stricken head coach George Karl.