Dan Roundfield
Dr. Rounds: A tenacious defender and three-time NBA All-Star who played 12 seasons in the ABA and NBA.
Dan Roundfield (May 26, 1953 – August 6, 2012) was an American professional basketball player who played power forward and center. He graduated from Detroit's Chadsey Senior High School in 1971 and played college basketball at Central Michigan University, where he was twice selected to the All-Mid-American Conference Team and was the 1975 MAC Player of the Year. Roundfield played 12 seasons in the ABA and NBA, for the Indiana Pacers (1975–1978), Atlanta Hawks (1978–1984), Detroit Pistons (1984–1985), and Washington Bullets (1985–1987), then played a season for Auxilium Torino in Italy. He was named to three NBA All-Star teams and five NBA All-Defensive teams. His nickname was Dr. Rounds.
Quick Facts
- Affiliation
- Atlanta Hawks (Franchise History)
Lore & Background
Roundfield was selected in the second round of the 1975 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers but opted to play for the Indiana Pacers in the last season of the ABA. After an undistinguished rookie season, he became the starting power forward and jumped center in his second season after the Pacers traded Mel Daniels and Tom Owens left. He was signed by the Atlanta Hawks as a free agent before the 1978–79 season; the Pacers received the Hawks' first-round pick as compensation, which they used to select Dudley Bradley. On November 21, 1978, Roundfield scored a career-best 38 points with 10 rebounds in a 113–107 win over the San Diego Clippers. In the 1979 NBA playoffs, he led the Hawks to a first-round win over the Rockets while averaging 18 points, 15 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game, but the Hawks were eliminated by the defending champion Washington Bullets in seven games. He was selected to the NBA Eastern Conference All-Star team in three consecutive seasons from 1980 to 1982, scoring 18 points and grabbing 13 rebounds in his 1980 All-Star debut. In the 1982 NBA Playoffs, he scored a career playoff-high 29 points in a Game 2 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. On June 18, 1984, he was traded by the Hawks to the Detroit Pistons for Antoine Carr, Cliff Levingston, a 1986 second-round pick, and a 1987 second-round pick. A year later, he was traded by the Pistons to the Washington Bullets for Rick Mahorn and Mike Gibson. After a season in Italy, he retired in 1988.
Reader's Guide
Roundfield was a strong rebounder and tenacious defender. He played 813 regular-season games over 12 seasons (including one ABA season), averaging 14.3 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game. His best scoring season was 1982–83 with the Hawks, averaging 19.0 points per game. He shot 48.2% from the field for his career. In the playoffs, he averaged 15.0 points and 9.7 rebounds in 40 games.
Did You Know?
- He played his rookie season in the ABA with the Indiana Pacers before the NBA-ABA merger.
- He drowned in Aruba in August 2012 after helping his wife, Bernadine, to safety.
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