Billy Cunningham - The Kangaroo Kid

William John "Billy" Cunningham (born June 3, 1943) is an American former professional basketball player and coach.

In 1965, Cunningham joined the Philadelphia 76ers as a sixth man and played well enough to be named to the NBA All-Rookie Team.

Cunningham is well-known for coaching the 76ers to the 1983 NBA Championship. Cunningham also played on the powerful 1967 Sixers championship team (featuring Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer, Chet Walker, and Luke Jackson).

In 1972, he joined the Carolina Cougars of the ABA. In his first ABA season, Cunningham made the All-ABA First Team and was named the ABA MVP. In 1974, Cunningham returned to the 76ers, where he played until he suffered a career-ending injury early in the 1975-76 season. For his career, Cunningham scored 16,310 points and grabbed 7,981 rebounds in both the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the American Basketball Association (ABA).

After his playing days were done, he became the head coach of the 76ers on November 4, 1977, and built a great team featuring the likes of Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks, Andrew Toney, Moses Malone, and of course Julius Erving. He led Philadelphia to 3 Atlantic Division Titles in 1978, 1981, and 1983. He reached the 200, 300, and 400-win milestone faster than any coach in NBA history. In his most successful season as coach, Cunningham coached the 1982-83 76ers to a 65-17 record and won an NBA Championship with a dominating 12-1 march through the playoffs. Upon his retirement, his 454 wins as a head coach were the 12th best in NBA history.

Elected to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (1986), All-NBA First Team (1969, 1970, 1971), Four-time All-Star, One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).

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Sports

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• basketball

[AdreasTheGreat]

@lbirdfan3324 well,actually i tried to explain to some young guys his gamestyle and he was a mix of some of those guys....marion has n't shot-range and is n't good passer.their similarities are that both could play sf-pf as well,were n't very tall but were athletic.ginobili also has some similarities in his game to but was n't so great rebounder.of course it's difficult to compare exactly the gamestyle of some great players like billy

[lbirdfan3324]

adreas - i dont think marion is a real good comparison to billy c, although they have some similarities, in that his offense is limited to short shots around the hoop. billy c was much better shooter/passer and more well-rounded. and marion has never been good in the clutch either. check his playoff career stats compared to reg season. billy c was a very intense competitor. he was kind of a lesser version of larry bird in that he didnt shoot as well with as much range, but was verry versatile.

[lbirdfan3324]

adreas - yea i agree walt frazier was a great player no doubt. one of the top 6 or 8 all-around guards in nba history. oscar of course is a top 3 guard with west and jordan. marques johnson was an excellent player, similar to billy c, but was not as a good a shooter. marques had little range on his shot but was also a fine passer. not as good all-around as billy c though and ruined his career with drugs and overeating.

[AdreasTheGreat]

@lbirdfan3324 u are right about billy's gamestyle but i think frasier was also great all-around player to in 70's and also oscar in early 70's!also marques johnson(80's superstar and verry underrated in my opinion) had similar gamestyle.from today's nba i think prime marion had similar gamestyle but billy was much better passer.

[lbirdfan3324]

billy c was a very good passer and rebounder in addition to his scoring ability. a unique player, no one really like him in the nba since. bird had similarities in his versatility, but didnt drive or jump as well. larry was a better shooter and a great team defender. cunningham was very smart/ intense. coaching success obscured his great playing career, which was shortened by knee injury,. in the early '70s he was arguably the best all-around forward in basketball, along with havlicek and barry.

[THEFUZZERsV2]

@onemooners i am EXTREMELY proud, all he talks about now is stocks though haha :)

[onemooners]

@THEFUZZERsV2 beleive you ,and you can be proud

[THEFUZZERsV2]

i know you might not believe me but he is my grandfather and i can upload proof

[IrishFrisco]

Was told that in the old NBA he and Jerry West were the two caucasian players who were as athletic as the black guys. West was as quick as anybody and Cunningham was an outstanding leaper.

[Nickcat5]

Loved Billy C,as a player and coach!! Always fun to watch!!