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Throwback Thursday - Vinny del Negro

Del Negro led the Wolfpack to the 1987 ACC Tournament championship and was named tournament MVP.
1 minute read


Del Negro was born on August 9, 1966, in Springfield, Massachusetts. His father, Vince, was a two-time junior college All-American, and taught his son to play basketball at a young age. Vinny made the varsity basketball team during his freshman year at Cathedral High School.


Del Negro played for Jim Valvano at North Carolina State University. As a senior, he was selected to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference team after averaging 15.9 points, 3.6 assists and 4.9 rebounds per game. In his junior season, Del Negro led the Wolfpack to the 1987 ACC Tournament championship and was named tournament MVP.


Del Negro was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the 29th pick in the 1988 NBA draft. He would play two seasons there before leaving for Italy and Benetton Treviso for another two years (he won the Italian championship in 1992 with over 25 points per game).


Upon his return to the NBA, Del Negro played for the San Antonio Spurs for the next six years. In early 1999 he played four games in Italy for Teamsystem Bologna, before signing with the Milwaukee Bucks, where he played in the 1998–99 and 1999–2000 seasons. Del Negro was traded to the Golden State Warriors in a three-team deal that also involved the Cleveland Cavaliers in June 2000. In January 2001 he was traded to the Phoenix Suns, and was traded to the Clippers in a three-team deal with the Orlando Magic in November, although he would never play for them, and subsequently retired. Del Negro's career statistics included averaging 9.1 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game, while shooting 47.5% from the field and 84.0% from the free-throw line.


Del Negro worked as a radio commentator for the Phoenix Suns before being promoted to director of player personnel for the Suns in 2006. On June 9, 2008, multiple media reports indicated Del Negro had agreed to become the new head coach of the Chicago Bulls. He became the favorite for the job after former Bulls' coach Doug Collins withdrew his name from consideration. With a 41-41 record with the Bulls, Del Negro moved on to coach the Clippers and took them to the playoffs for only the second time since 1984.


Del Negro is currently an analyst with NBA TV.

 

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