Willie Burton (basketball, born 1962)
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 24 June 1962 Georgia, U.S. |
| Nationality | American / New Zealand |
| Listed height | 201 cm (6 ft 7 in) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Jenkins County (Millen, Georgia) |
| College | Tennessee (1980–1984) |
| NBA draft | 1984: 6th round, 125th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Denver Nuggets |
| Playing career | 1985–2006 |
| Position | Power forward |
| Career history | |
| 1985–1986 | Palmerston North Jets |
| 1987–1988 | Hawke's Bay Hawks |
| 1989–1990 | Palmerston North Jets |
| 1991–1993 | New Plymouth Bulls/Bears |
| 1994–1997 | Hawke's Bay Hawks |
| 1999–2000 | Palmerston North Jets |
| 2001–2002, 2005–2006 | Hawke's Bay Hawks |
| Career highlights | |
| |
Willie James Burton Jr. (born 24 June 1962) is an American-New Zealand former professional basketball player who spent 19 seasons playing in the New Zealand National Basketball League (NBL). Burton came to New Zealand in the mid-1980s to play for Palmerston North and continued playing in the NBL until the age of 44. In 2006, he won a championship with the Hawke's Bay Hawks. He won six rebounding titles and ranks as the league's all-time leader around the boards. He finished his career with 4,244 career rebounds, nearly 1,500 rebounds more than the next best individual rebounding total.[1]
Early life and career
Burton grew up playing baseball in his hometown of Millen, Georgia. His father, Willie James Sr., was a keen baseball player, but Burton gravitated towards basketball after a friend introduced him to the sport around the age of 12.[2] He went on to play four years of college basketball for the University of Tennessee between 1980 and 1984. He appeared in 111 games for the Volunteers over his career, and averaged a team-high 13.5 points per game as a senior in 1983–84. He also led the team in rebounds per game as a junior and senior (8.1 and 7.3 per game respectively), and blocks per game as a sophomore and junior (1.3 and 0.8 per game respectively).[3][4]
Following his senior season with Tennessee, Burton was selected in the sixth round of the 1984 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets. He subsequently attended training camp with the Nuggets, but he did not make the final roster cut.[2]
College statistics
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980–81 | Tennessee | 14 | 0 | 5.0 | .524 | .000 | .333 | 1.9 | .0 | .4 | .4 | 1.7 |
| 1981–82 | Tennessee | 30 | 30 | 26.1 | .511 | .000 | .667 | 5.4 | 1.3 | .9 | 1.3 | 5.6 |
| 1982–83 | Tennessee | 32 | 32 | 34.2 | .498 | .000 | .705 | 8.1 | 2.7 | 1.2 | .8 | 9.1 |
| 1983–84 | Tennessee | 35 | 35 | 34.4 | .523 | .000 | .765 | 7.3 | 2.2 | 1.3 | .6 | 13.5 |
| Career | 111 | 97 | 28.4 | .513 | .000 | .716 | 6.3 | 1.8 | 1.1 | .8 | 8.6 | |
NBL career
In 1985, Burton moved to New Zealand and joined the Palmerston North Jets of the National Basketball League (NBL). In his first season, he averaged 28.6 points and a league-high 16.1 rebounds per game. He continued on with the Jets in 1986 before joining the Hawke's Bay Hawks in 1987. After two seasons with the Hawks, he returned to Palmerston North, playing for them in 1989 and 1990. In 1991, he joined New Plymouth and played three seasons for the team before returning to Hawke's Bay in 1994 where he spent the next four years. After playing in the second division competition for the North Otago Penguins in 1998,[5] he returned to Palmerston North for a third stint in 1999,[6] but again re-joined the Hawks just two seasons later. Burton retired following the 2002 season, but came out of retirement in 2005 to help the Hawks reach the grand final, where they were defeated by the Auckland Stars by one point. He played one final season in 2006, this time winning his first and only championship with an 85–69 win in the grand final over Auckland. He retired for a second time following the 2006 season, departing the NBL after 19 seasons.[7]
Burton finished his NBL career as an eight-time All-Star Five honouree and a six-time rebounding champion. He was also named Most Outstanding Forward in 1989, and after gaining New Zealand citizenship in the mid-90s, he was named Most Outstanding Kiwi Forward/Centre in 1997. As evidence of his all-round game, he also won the league assist title in 1999 with 5.6 assists per game.[8] His 4,244 career rebounds ranks first on the league's all-time rebounding list.[1]
After retiring from playing, Burton continued on as an assistant coach with the Hawks, while also coaching the Hawke's Bay under 15, 17 and 19 men's teams.[7]
In June 2025, Burton's number 14 jersey was retired by the Hawke's Bay Hawks.[9]
National team career
Burton debuted for the New Zealand Tall Blacks in 2001 at the Goodwill Games.[10] He had two more stints with the Tall Blacks, playing in series against Australia (2001) and Hungary (2002).[8] Burton was still in the selection mix for the 2002 FIBA World Championship, but was replaced by Ed Book as the team's one allowable naturalised player.[8]
Personal
Burton and his wife Suzanne, a New Zealander, have two sons, Alonzo and Dominique.[2] Alonzo followed in his father's footsteps and joined the Hawke's Bay Hawks in 2012.[11][12]
References
- ^ a b "National Basketball League (New Zealand) - Rebounds". WorldHoopStats.com. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ a b c Singh, Anendra (13 April 2012). "Basketball: Burton's biggies mentality a boon". NZHerald.co.nz. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ "2015-16 Tennessee Men's Basketball Media Guide". issuu.com. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ "2014-15 Tennessee Men's Basketball Record Book" (PDF). grfx.cstv.com. p. 212. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ "Newsletter, Week 1". plug.co.nz. 26 April 1999. Archived from the original on 9 October 1999.
Furthermore, this is Burton's first NBL game in over a year as he played in the second division competition for the North Otago Penguins last year.
- ^ "Palmerston North Signs Top Basketballers". plug.co.nz. 23 March 1999. Archived from the original on 10 October 1999.
- ^ a b "2011 Hall of Fame Inductee Willie Burton". FoxSportsPulse.com. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ a b c "Basketball New Zealand – Willie Burton". Basketball.org.nz. Archived from the original on 24 August 2006. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ Laing, Doug (19 June 2025). "Hawks retire No 14 to honour the career of Willie Burton". NZ Herald. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "Basketball: Tall Black 'old man' raring to do battle". NZHerald.co.nz. 20 September 2001. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ Singh, Anendra (2 May 2015). "Basketball: Burton sticks to nice-guy persona". NZHerald.co.nz. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ Reive, Christopher (27 February 2017). "Alonzo Burton eager to follow father's footsteps and don Taranaki Mountain Airs jersey". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 27 February 2017.