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Brad Daugherty

Daugherty in 1999
Personal information
Born	(1965-10-19) October 19, 1965 (age 59) Black Mountain, North Carolina, U.S.
Listed height	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight	275 lb (125 kg)
Career information
High school	Charles D. Owen (Black Mountain, North Carolina)
College	North Carolina (1982–1986)
NBA draft	1986: 1st round, 1st overall pick
Selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers
Playing career	1986–1994
Position	Center
Number	43
Career history
1986–1995	Cleveland Cavaliers
Career highlights and awards
5× NBA All-Star (1988, 1989, 1991–1993) All-NBA Third Team (1992) NBA All-Rookie First Team (1987) No. 43 retired by Cleveland Cavaliers Consensus second-team All-American (1986) 2× First-team All-ACC (1985, 1986) No. 42 honored by North Carolina Tar Heels First-team Parade All-American (1982) McDonald's All-American (1982)
Career NBA statistics
Points	10,389 (19.0 ppg)
Rebounds	5,227 (9.5 rpg)
Assists	2,028 (3.7 apg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

Bradley Lee Daugherty (born October 19, 1965), nicknamed “The Big Train", is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels and professionally with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Daugherty is a co-owner of NASCAR Cup Series team Hyak Motorsports. Daugherty's race teams have won in the Truck Series, Xfinity Series and the Cup Series including the 2023 Daytona 500. He is also an analyst for NASCAR on NBC.

Amateur career

Daugherty played basketball at Charles D. Owen High School in Black Mountain, North Carolina, where he led the Warhorses to the 1982 state finals. Daugherty accepted a scholarship to play at the University of North Carolina under legendary college basketball coach Dean Smith.

Daugherty was one of the greatest big men ever to play at the University of North Carolina. He entered college as a 16-year-old freshman and was a two-time All-ACC first team selection, and a first team All-American in 1986. He was named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team in 2002 and was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame. Daugherty averaged more than twenty points per game in his senior season.

Professional career

Cleveland Cavaliers (1986–1996)

Daugherty was taken as the first overall pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1986 NBA draft. Cleveland had obtained the rights to the first pick in a trade with the Philadelphia 76ers for Roy Hinson and cash. The Cavaliers also drafted Ron Harper with the eighth pick in the 1986 draft and obtained the rights to Mark Price (in a trade with the Dallas Mavericks) the 25th pick (second round). Harper, Price and Daugherty, along with fellow rookie John "Hot Rod" Williams immediately began to pay dividends for Cleveland. Daugherty, Williams, and Harper were all named to the 1986–87 All-Rookie team.

Daugherty averaged nineteen points and ten rebounds per game over eight seasons in the NBA and retired as the Cavaliers all-time leading scorer (10,389 points) and rebounder (5,227). Daugherty's all time-leading scorer record stood until March 21, 2008, when LeBron James broke the point record against the Toronto Raptors. His leading rebounder record stood until December 9, 2008, when Žydrūnas Ilgauskas broke the rebound record, again against the Raptors. He played in 41 postseason games and led the Cavaliers as far as the Eastern Conference Finals in 1992. Brad was a five time All-Star (1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993). As part of the Cavaliers' 30th anniversary in 1999–2000, Daugherty was a unanimous selection to the All-Time Cleveland Cavalier team.

Daugherty's career in the NBA was cut short at the age of 28 because of recurring back troubles. He never played another game after the 1993–94 season, though he did make one appearance in uniform for the Whoopi Goldberg movie Eddie along with teammates Hot Rod Williams, John Battle, Terrell Brandon, and Bobby Phills. After two consecutive seasons of inactivity, he announced his retirement after the 1995–96 season. His #43 jersey, a number he picked as a tribute to NASCAR legend Richard Petty (whom Daugherty lists as his favorite sportsman) was retired by the Cavaliers on March 1, 1997.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Post-basketball career

Daugherty's business interests include car dealerships, waste management and commercial real estate. He is also a college basketball analyst and is a NASCAR broadcaster for NBC. For one season, he was a color commentator, alongside Michael Reghi, for Cleveland Cavaliers telecasts. He is active in many charities including hosting the Presbyterian Home for Children's annual golf tournament, which raises money in support of the home, located in Black Mountain. He also has sponsored an annual scholarship to help a child from Presbyterian Home receive a higher education. At UNC, he has given to the Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture and History and has served on the Board of Visitors and the athletic council of the General Alumni Association Board.

Following his retirement from the NBA, Daugherty co-owned the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team Liberty Racing, featuring such drivers as Kenny Irwin Jr. and Kevin Harvick. In 1997 Irwin won two Craftsman Truck Series races driving for Daugherty (Homestead-Miami Speedway in March and Texas Motor Speedway in June). Daugherty joined ESPN's return to NASCAR racing telecasts in 2007. He was an analyst on the weekly topical show Inside NASCAR on Showtime, and on NASCAR Now, a nightly newscast on the sport. He is also part owner of Hyak Motorsports, which owns the No. 47 Camaro ZL1 1LE driven by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. The team's first win came in 2014 at Watkins Glen International with A.J. Allmendinger driving the No. 47 Chevrolet. Their second win came in the 2023 Daytona 500 with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. winning. With the win, Daugherty became the first black principal owner to win the Daytona 500.

In November 2014, Daugherty began as an NBA and college basketball analyst for ESPN.

After years of animosity for the team's handling of his close friend and former General Manager Wayne Embry, Daugherty joined Fox Sports Ohio for select Cavaliers telecasts in the 2019–20 season as part of the franchise's 50th season celebration.

On July 28, 2020, Daugherty became an analyst for NASCAR on NBC from the first Michigan International Speedway race onwards. Daugherty also served as a roaming reporter for CBS Sports coverage of the 2021 SRX Series.

On August 20, 2020, Daugherty represented the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2020 NBA draft Lottery.

As of the 2023–24 season, Daugherty is currently a part of the Cavaliers broadcast team alongside his NASCAR team ownership.

References

1. "NBA Draft Lottery Year-by-Year Lottery Probabilities". Nba.com. Archived from the original on July 24, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
2. "Year-by-year NBA All-Rookie Teams". NBA.com. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
3. "LeBron claims Cavs' scoring crown en route to win over Raptors". ESPN. March 21, 2008. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
4. "LeBron, Ilgauskas set team records as Cavs win ninth straight". ESPN. December 9, 2008. Archived from the original on December 11, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
5. Moore, Terence (March 7, 2008). "Atlanta Metro News". ajc.com. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
6. "Hoop star Daugherty joins ESPN/ABC team - Oct 13, 2006". Nascar.Com. The Associated Press. October 13, 2006. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
7. "Daugherty to become part-owner of JTG Racing, field full-time Cup team – Racing". ESPN. July 16, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
8. "JTG Daugherty Racing, a leader in NASCAR diversity, makes history in Daytona 500 win". Charlotte Observer. February 20, 2023. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
9. "Brad Daugherty To Remain With ESPN". National Speed Sport News. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
10. "Brad Daugherty joins NBC Sports NASCAR broadcast team". NBC Sports. July 28, 2020. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
11. McCarriston, Shanna. "Superstar Racing Experience: CBS Sports announces broadcasting teams for inaugural SRX season". CBS Sports.
12. "Cavaliers Legend Brad Daugherty to Represent Cleveland at 2020 NBA Draft Lottery". NBA.com. Cleveland Cavaliers. August 18, 2020. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
13. "Bally Sports Ohio's 2023-24 Cavs Broadcast Schedule". NBA.com. Cleveland Cavaliers. October 25, 2023. Retrieved May 10, 2024.

External links

• nba.com/historical/playerfile
• NBA.com profile
• Brad Daugherty ESPN Bio
• Career stats at basketball-reference.com
• "From Basketball to Business" Asheville-Citizen Times interview, June 15, 2008

• 1965 births
• Living people
• African-American Christians
• African-American motorsport people
• African-American television personalities
• All-American college men's basketball players
• American men's basketball players
• American Presbyterians
• American television sports announcers
• Basketball players from North Carolina
• Cleveland Cavaliers draft picks
• Cleveland Cavaliers players
• College basketball announcers in the United States
• Centers (basketball)
• McDonald's High School All-Americans
• Motorsport announcers
• NASCAR team owners
• NBA All-Stars
• NBA broadcasters
• NBA players with retired numbers
• North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players
• Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball)
• People from Black Mountain, North Carolina
• Sportspeople from Buncombe County, North Carolina
• 21st-century African-American sportsmen
• 20th-century African-American sportsmen
• First overall NBA draft picks