William Laimbeer
Born: May 19, 1957
Position: Center
Height: 6-11 (2.11 m)
Jerseys worn: #40
In the NBA:
Nicknames: "The Prince of Darkness," "Street Thug," "Ax Murderer" and "His Heinous" for his dirty defense.
His Game:
Bill Laimbeer was the starting center for the Detroit "Bad Boys" in the 80's. He was an excellent defensive rebounder, a strong defender and a great free-throw and outside shooter. What made him famous though was the way he used his elbows against his opponents, took cheap shots at them while the refs didn't notice and pretended to get fouled by them by falling to the floor and grimacing.
His Career:
Selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers at the 65th spot of the 1979 NBA Draft. He played in Cleveland during his rookie season (1980-'81) and the next year he got traded to Detroit where he played until he retired in 1993-'94. Detroit reached the NBA Finals 3 years in a row (1988-'90).
Honors:
Has won two NBA Championships (1989, 1990). Has played in 4 All-Star Games (1983-'85, 1987). Led the NBA in rebounding in 1986. Grabbed more defensive rebounds than any player from 1982-'90. Tied an NBA Finals record by hitting 6 three-pointers in Game 2 of the 1990 Finals. He retired as the Pistons' all-time leader in games and rebounds. His jersey number (#40) has been retired by the Detroit Pistons.
Highlights:
Laimbeer was the one who labeled his team as "The Bad Boys". The Beastie Boys criticized him in a song called "Tough Guy". He was punched by some of the league's best players, including Robert Parish, Bob Lanier, Larry Bird and Charles Barkley. When he retired, Chicago forward Horace Grant said: "There's going to be a big party at my house tonight. Everybody's invited".
Statistics:
| YEAR |
Team |
Games |
Pts |
FT % |
FG % |
3PM |
3-pt % |
Reb. |
Trn |
Ast |
St |
Blk |
Min. |
Star? |
| 1981 |
Cleveland |
81 |
9.8 |
.765 |
.503 |
0 |
.000 |
8.6 |
1.6 |
2.7 |
0.7 |
1.0 |
30.4 |
YES |
| 1982 |
Cleveland / Detroit |
80 |
9.0 |
.793 |
.494 |
4 |
.308 |
7.7 |
1.5 |
1.3 |
0.5 |
0.8 |
22.9 |
No |
| 1983 |
Detroit |
82 |
13.6 |
.793 |
.497 |
2 |
.154 |
12.1 |
2.1 |
3.2 |
0.6 |
1.4 |
35.0 |
YES |
| 1984 |
Detroit |
82 |
17.3 |
.866 |
.530 |
0 |
.000 |
12.2 |
1.8 |
1.8 |
0.6 |
1.0 |
34.9 |
YES |
| 1985 |
Detroit |
82 |
17.5 |
.797 |
.506 |
4 |
.222 |
12.4 |
1.6 |
1.9 |
0.8 |
0.9 |
35.3 |
YES |
| 1986 |
Detroit |
82 |
16.6 |
.834 |
.492 |
4 |
.286 |
13.1 |
1.6 |
1.8 |
0.7 |
0.8 |
35.3 |
YES |
| 1987 |
Detroit |
82 |
15.4 |
.894 |
.501 |
6 |
.286 |
11.6 |
1.5 |
1.8 |
0.9 |
0.8 |
34.8 |
YES |
| 1988 |
Detroit |
82 |
13.5 |
.874 |
.493 |
13 |
.333 |
10.1 |
1.7 |
2.4 |
0.8 |
1.0 |
35.3 |
YES |
| 1989 |
Detroit |
81 |
13.7 |
.840 |
.499 |
30 |
.349 |
9.6 |
1.7 |
2.2 |
0.6 |
1.2 |
32.6 |
YES |
| 1990 |
Detroit |
81 |
12.1 |
.854 |
.484 |
57 |
.361 |
9.6 |
1.2 |
2.1 |
0.7 |
1.0 |
33.0 |
YES |
| 1991 |
Detroit |
82 |
11.0 |
.837 |
.478 |
37 |
.296 |
9.0 |
1.2 |
1.9 |
0.5 |
0.7 |
32.5 |
YES |
| 1992 |
Detroit |
81 |
9.7 |
.893 |
.470 |
32 |
.376 |
5.6 |
1.3 |
2.0 |
0.6 |
0.7 |
27.6 |
No |
| 1993 |
Detroit |
79 |
8.7 |
.894 |
.509 |
10 |
.370 |
5.3 |
0.7 |
1.6 |
0.6 |
0.5 |
24.5 |
No |
| 1994 |
Detroit |
11 |
9.8 |
.846 |
.522 |
3 |
.333 |
5.1 |
0.9 |
1.3 |
0.5 |
0.4 |
22.5 |
No |
| Career |
Career |
1068 |
12.9 |
.837 |
.498 |
202 |
.326 |
9.7 |
1.5 |
2.0 |
0.7 |
0.9 |
31.8 |
YES |
In Europe:
He played in Italy for Pinti Inox of Brescia in 1979-'80, averaging 21.1 points and 12.5 rebounds.