1. Ralph Sampson is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
32 Facts About Ralph Sampson
1. 2.
The NBA Rookie of the Year, Ralph Sampson averaged 20.7 points and 10.9 rebounds for his first three seasons with the Houston Rockets before injuries began to take their toll.
3.
Ralph Sampson averaged nearly 30 points, 19 rebounds, and 7 blocked shots as a senior, at Harrisonburg High, leading the team to state AA basketball championships in 1978 and 1979.
4.
Ralph Sampson earned unanimous All-America honors, starred in post-season all-star games and made the Pan Am Games team.
5.
Ralph Sampson was arguably the most heavily recruited college basketball prospect of his generation and appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated six times in a span of fewer than four years.
6.
Ralph Sampson earned three Naismith Awards as the National Player of the Year, only the second athlete to do so, and a pair of Wooden Awards.
7.
Ralph Sampson considered leaving Virginia after his junior year and declaring for the 1982 NBA draft.
8.
The San Diego Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers would flip a coin to determine who would draft first overall, but the deadline for Ralph Sampson to make himself available came before the scheduled coin flip.
9.
Rather than risk playing for the Clippers, Ralph Sampson stayed in school.
10.
Ralph Sampson, playing a new style of power forward, had new expectations placed upon him.
11.
Ralph Sampson had his best individual campaign, averaging 22.1 points and 10.4 rebounds and earning a berth on the All-NBA Second Team.
12.
On March 5,1985, in a loss against the Denver Nuggets, Ralph Sampson recorded 30 points, 15 rebounds, 8 assists, and 5 steals and was the first player in NBA history to record at least 30 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 steals since the league started recording steals.
13.
Ralph Sampson experienced his first scare with injury during a game on March 24,1986, when an attempt to grab a rebound against the Boston Celtics saw him land awkwardly with his head driven into the court.
14.
Ralph Sampson had a severely bruised back and missed three games; team president Ray Patterson later contended that Sampson was never quite the same after that injury.
15.
In Game 5 of that series, Ralph Sampson provided one of the most memorable moments in NBA Playoff history.
16.
Game 6 went back to Boston with Ralph Sampson finding himself again in foul trouble and of little effect against the older and wiser Celtic frontcourt of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish.
17.
In 1987, Ralph Sampson signed a $14.4 million contract for six years with the Rockets.
18.
Ralph Sampson wore a knee brace and tried to play on it but left the game soon after.
19.
Ralph Sampson had arthroscopic surgery and rushed his rehab to make it back for the playoffs, a decision he has stated his regret over.
20.
That year, the Rockets made it to the Conference Semifinals, with Ralph Sampson appearing in each playoff game and averaging over 30 minutes a game, which saw him average over 15 points with eight rebounds.
21.
Ralph Sampson had averaged 15.9 points with 9.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists when he was traded on December 12,1987, to the Golden State Warriors alongside reserve Steve Harris for Joe Barry Carroll, Sleepy Floyd, and cash; like Sampson, Carroll and Floyd had been NBA All-Stars in 1987.
22.
Ralph Sampson played in 29 games for the Warriors while averaging 15.4 points with ten rebounds and 2.9 assists, but he was bothered by his left knee again, which required fluid to be drained out of it that made it less strong than his right knee; the Warriors won just 20 games that year.
23.
The Warriors made the postseason that year and reached the Semifinals, but Ralph Sampson only made appearance in the second round, playing 43 total minutes against the Phoenix Suns.
24.
Ralph Sampson scored a total of 20 points with one assist and 14 rebounds in three combined games as the Warriors lost in five games.
25.
Ralph Sampson was traded to the Sacramento Kings on September 27,1989, for Jim Petersen.
26.
In October 2012, Ralph Sampson joined the Phoenix Suns' player development staff.
27.
In June 2013, Ralph Sampson announced that he would not return as an assistant head coach.
28.
In 1996, Ralph Sampson was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.
29.
On November 22,2011, Ralph Sampson was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
30.
In February 2012, Ralph Sampson was honored by Houston Rockets and fans as a member of the Decade Team of the 1980s.
31.
Ralph Sampson has four other children with four women, including daughters named Leah and India.
32.
In 2005, Ralph Sampson pleaded guilty to owing more than $300K in back child support for two children from different mothers in the Northern Virginia area.