WILL PERDUE
Men’s Basketball
Will Perdue’s big senior season in 1988 helped lift the Vanderbilt basketball team to several milestones, including the program’s first NCAA Tournament berth in 15 years and first Sweet 16 appearance in school history. He blossomed into a dominant player in his final two collegiate seasons, averaging 17.4 and then 18.3 points per game and drawing honors and recognition on the regional and national stage. The 7-foot center went on to have the longest NBA career of any former Commodore and played alongside some of the game’s all-time greats in Michael Jordan and David Robinson at the professional level. He has remained around the game since the conclusion of his playing career and can be seen and heard providing commentary and analysis for ESPN’s basketball coverage.
- 1988 Southeastern Conference Athlete of the Year
- 1988 SEC Player of the Year
- 1988 AP All-American Third Team
- Finished career with .606 field goal percentage, a Vanderbilt record
- Holds the school record for career blocks with 157
- Ranks 22nd all-time among Vanderbilt players with 1,281 career points
- Led Southeastern Conference in rebounding (10.1 rebounds per game) and field goal percentage (.634) in his senior season
- Selected in the first round of the 1988 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls
- Played 792 NBA Games with Chicago, San Antonio and Portland
- Averaged 4.7 points and 4.9 rebounds per game over his 13-season NBA career
- Won four NBA championships – three with Chicago, one with San Antonio