Sept. 8, 2011
Bronx, N.Y. -
Former Fordham University All-America Kenny Charles will be inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame in a ceremony held at the New York Athletic Club on Central Park South at 59th Street on Thursday, September 22nd.
A graduate of Brooklyn Preparatory High School, Charles brought his talents to Fordham in 1969 and started rewriting the record books when he joined the varsity squad in 1970. A sophomore on the 1970-71 Digger Phelps-coached team, a squad that went 26-3 and was ranked as high as seventh in the nation, Charles averaged 15.3 ppg in his first varsity season.
A two-time team captain, Charles set the school record for most points in a season as a senior with 679 in 1972-73, a record that still stands today. He also tied Charlie Yelverton's record for points in a game with 46 against Saint Peter's as a junior in 1972.
Over his career, Charles averaged 20.0 ppg, second best in Fordham history, and he graduated as the school's second all-time leading scorer with 1,697 career points, behind only all-time leading scorer Ed Conlin. He also still holds Fordham records for most field goals in a season (275 in 1972-73) and is second on the list in career field goals (688). His 1,697 career points currently ranks Charles seventh on the Rams' career scoring list.
After earning a bachelor's degree in Political Science in 1973, Charles was selected in the second round of the National Basketball Association (NBA) draft. He played for three years in Buffalo under the tutelage of Hall of Fame coach Jack Ramsay, and then played another three seasons for the Atlanta Hawks, coached by legendary Hubie Brown. An outstanding leaper, Charles led all NBA guards in blocked shots in the 1975-76 season.
Following his playing days, Charles became an NBA analyst for ESPN and then worked as a stockbroker and earned a law degree.
Charles also had a stint as a head coach, guiding the Brooklyn Kings of the United States Basketball League (USBL) from 1999 until 2007. He earned USBL Coach of The Year honors in 2005 when the King record the USBL's best record, going 21-9 during the regular season, and winning their second Eastern Division title in as many years.
Charles will be joined at the 2011 induction ceremony by Donnie Walsh, former New York Knicks President, longtime Knicks trainer Mike Saunders, former Knick John Warren, a member of the Knicks 1969-70 NBA championship team, the late Lloyd "Sonny" Dove, Debbie Mason, the former All-America from Queens College known as "Lady Pearl," Tom Henderson, an all-city performer from DeWitt Clinton H.S. in the Bronx, and Jim Larranaga, who led his George Mason team to the 2009 NCAA Final Four.
The New York City Basketball Hall of Fame, founded in 1990, includes a number of basketball legends. The Hall of Fame's 1990 charter class included Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Red Auerbach, Bob Cousy, Clair Bee, Billy Cunningham, Pop Gates, Connie Hawkins, Dick McGuire and Adolph Schayes.
Other inductees include Joe Lapchick, Nate Archibald, Red Holzman, Lenny Wilkins, Satch Sanders, Doug Moe, Frank Layden, Jim Valvano, Kenny Smith and Rolando Blackman.
