Former DeMatha basketball player inducted to James Naismith Hall of Fame
Tuesday morning at the Hyattsville private school, Dantley and Wootten were reunited as both took part in a ceremony honoring Dantley's upcoming induction into the Hall of Fame. Wootten became the first high school coach in the Hall of Fame when he was inducted in 2000. He compiled a 1,274-192 record that featured 33 conference championships and five mythical national titles during his remarkable tenure as the Stags' basketball coach.
Dantley was a four-year starter, graduating in 1973 after helping the Stags go 117-7 during that span. After three years at Notre Dame, where he averaged 25.8 points per game and was also part of the gold-medal-winning 1976 U.S. Olympic team, Dantley spent 15 seasons in the NBA where he scored 23,177 points in 955 games (24.3 ppg) and twice led the league in scoring. He spent much of his career with the Utah Jazz, and also played with the Buffalo Braves, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Lakers, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks and Milwaukee Bucks. He was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1976-77 while playing for Buffalo.
Dantley's most productive years came during his six seasons with the Jazz, where he was selected to play in the NBA All-Star Game each season. He missed most of the 1982-83 season with an injury then returned to be named the Comeback Player of the Year in 1983-84.
He reached the NBA Finals with the Pistons in 1988, only to see the Los Angeles Lakers win the title in seven games. Detroit traded Dantley to the Mavericks during the 1988-89 season, and the Pistons went on to win the title that year.
Wootten guided the Stags from 1956-2002 and led them to their first of 33 league titles in 1960-61. His teams enjoyed two undefeated seasons (1977-78 and 1990-91) and six others in which the team lost only one game. DeMatha was named the mythical national champions in 1962, 1965, 1968, 1978 and 1984 and the Stags were 32-3 during his last season at the helm in 2001-02.