Al Butler

Al Butler
Personal information
Born(1938-07-09)July 9, 1938
Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
DiedJuly 12, 2000(2000-07-12) (aged 62)
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight175 lb (79 kg)
Career information
High schoolEast (Rochester, New York)
CollegeNiagara (1958–1961)
NBA draft1961: 2nd round, 17th overall pick
Drafted byBoston Celtics
Playing career1961–1970
PositionPoint guard
Number22, 3, 20
Career history
1961Boston Celtics
1961–1964New York Knicks
1964–1965Baltimore Bullets
1965–1966Trenton Colonials
1966–1967Harrisburg Patriots
1967–1970Wilkes-Barre Barons
Career highlights
Career NBA statistics
Points2,282 (9.8 ppg)
Rebounds696 (3.0 rpg)
Assists530 (2.3 apg)
Stats at NBA.com 
Stats at Basketball Reference 

Elbert J. "Al" Butler (July 9, 1938 – July 12, 2000) was an American basketball player who played four seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Born in Birmingham, Alabama,[1] he played basketball for East High School in Rochester, New York, before playing collegiately for Niagara University.[2] He was named to the 1961 National Invitation Tournament All-Star team by the Associated Press, despite Niagara losing its only game, 68–71 against Providence.[3][4]

He was selected by the Boston Celtics in the second round (17th pick overall) of the 1961 NBA draft.[5] He played for the Celtics (1961), New York Knicks (1962–64) and Baltimore Bullets (1964–65) in the NBA for a total of 234 games.[1] He started for the Knicks for Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game, scoring 8 points.[6]

Butler was the last player to ever wear the number 22 for the Celtics, as they would retire it in honor of Ed Macauley in 1963.[7][8]

Butler played in the Eastern Professional Basketball League (EPBL) for the Trenton Colonials, Harrisburg Patriots and Wilkes-Barre Barons from 1964 to 1970.[9] He won an EPBL championship with the Barons in 1969.[10] Butler was selected to the All-EPBL Second Team in 1966.[9]

Butler died of cancer on July 12, 2000.[6] After his death, a scholarship was established in his name at Monroe Community College, where he had worked as a guidance counselor.[2]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

NBA

Source[1]

Regular season

Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1961–62 Boston 59.4.448.8332.6.86.2
1961–62 New York 5436.5.463.7056.03.714.7
1962–63 New York 7420.1.439.7702.32.110.0
1963–64 New York 7618.1.422.7382.22.18.7
1964–65 Baltimore 256.9.329.733.8.52.4
Career 23421.6.439.7393.02.39.8

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Al Butler NBA Stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Butler honored". Business & Sports. Democrat and Chronicle. October 19, 2000. p. D1. Retrieved June 4, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ Fullerton, Hugh Jr. (March 27, 1961). "NIT's 'Most Outstanding' – Ernst Selected for Award". The Shreveport Times. Associated Press. p. 13. Retrieved June 4, 2022 – via Newspapers.com. Joining with them on the team were ... Al Butler of Niagara, who gave a brilliant individual performance though his team lost its only tournament game.
  4. ↑ "Tournament Results (1960's)". NIT.org. Archived from the original on May 2, 2006. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Draft History | Stats". NBA.com. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  6. 1 2 "Deaths Elsewhere – Al Butler". Daily Chronicle. DeKalb, Illinois. Associated Press. July 15, 2000. p. A4. Retrieved June 4, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Boston Celtics Uniform Numbers". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Retired Numbers | Boston Celtics". NBA.com. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  9. 1 2 "Al Butler minor league basketball statistics". Stats Crew. Retrieved February 16, 2025.
  10. ↑ "1968-69 Wilkes-Barre Barons Statistics". Stats Crew. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
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