Stephen Whitehead
July 23, 2020
David Colbert
- Nationality: USA
- Date of Birth: 30/10/62
- Place of Birth: Cleveland, Ohio (USA)
- Position: FRD
- Height (CM): 205
- Weight (KG): 110
- Junior Assoc:
- College: Cleveland State (1981-1982) / Dayton (1983-1986)
- NBL DEBUT: 21/04/89
- AGE AT DEBUT: 26
- LAST NBL GAME: 17/06/95
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 32
- NBL History: Melbourne 1989-91 | Brisbane 1993-95
- Championships: 0
- None
BIO: David Colbert was born in Cleveland, Ohio (USA).
NBL EXPERIENCE
David Colbert made his NBL debut with the Melbourne Tigers at 26 years of age. He scored 34 points in his first game.
On the 27th of July, 1991 Melbourne and Illawarra left defence at the door as both team’s held a track meet resulting in the highest scoring game in NBL history. The Melbourne Tigers collected the 186-158 win where a total of 344 points were scored. Colbert contributed 42 points himself and racked up 20 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks to go with them. Remarkably the Hawks shot 76% from the field, which remains the highest shooting percentage ever recorded by a team in a losing effort.
David Colbert played six seasons in the NBL, playing for both the Brisbane Bullets and the Melbourne Tigers. He averaged 23.8 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 144 NBL games.
NBL TOTAL STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 32 | Brisbane | 16-10 (5) | 4 | 53 | 24 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 18 | 44% | 2 | 5 | 40% | 6 | 6 | 100% | 58% | 50% | 9 |
| 1994 | 31 | Brisbane | 18-8 (4) | 29 | 1,156 | 534 | 234 | 101 | 77 | 157 | 31 | 25 | 84 | 126 | 192 | 439 | 44% | 70 | 175 | 40% | 80 | 94 | 85% | 55% | 52% | 29 |
| 1993 | 30 | Brisbane | 16-10 (4) | 31 | 1,312 | 699 | 292 | 87 | 72 | 220 | 52 | 40 | 82 | 119 | 256 | 521 | 49% | 76 | 177 | 43% | 111 | 119 | 93% | 61% | 56% | 39 |
| 1991 | 28 | Melbourne | 16-10 (5) | 28 | 1,244 | 688 | 275 | 87 | 74 | 201 | 47 | 43 | 74 | 92 | 244 | 581 | 42% | 78 | 202 | 39% | 122 | 156 | 78% | 53% | 49% | 42 |
| 1990 | 27 | Melbourne | 17-9 (4) | 28 | 1,231 | 872 | 299 | 82 | 84 | 215 | 35 | 45 | 77 | 94 | 343 | 669 | 51% | 79 | 203 | 39% | 107 | 132 | 81% | 60% | 57% | 52 |
| 1989 | 26 | Melbourne | 16-8 (4) | 24 | 1,086 | 620 | 284 | 90 | 64 | 220 | 40 | 37 | 76 | 86 | 262 | 554 | 47% | 35 | 116 | 30% | 61 | 85 | 72% | 52% | 50% | 35 | Totals | 144 | 6082 | 3437 | 1390 | 452 | 373 | 1017 | 206 | 193 | 399 | 521 | 1305 | 2782 | 46.9% | 340 | 878 | 38.7% | 487 | 592 | 82.3% | 56% | 53% | 52 |
NBL PER GAME STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 32 | Brisbane | 16-10 (5) | 4 | 13.3 | 6.0 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 4.5 | 44% | 0.5 | 1.3 | 40% | 1.5 | 1.5 | 100% | 58% | 50% | 9 |
| 1994 | 31 | Brisbane | 18-8 (4) | 29 | 39.9 | 18.4 | 8.1 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 5.4 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 2.9 | 4.3 | 6.6 | 15.1 | 44% | 2.4 | 6.0 | 40% | 2.8 | 3.2 | 85% | 55% | 52% | 29 |
| 1993 | 30 | Brisbane | 16-10 (4) | 31 | 42.3 | 22.5 | 9.4 | 2.8 | 2.3 | 7.1 | 1.7 | 1.3 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 8.3 | 16.8 | 49% | 2.5 | 5.7 | 43% | 3.6 | 3.8 | 93% | 61% | 56% | 39 |
| 1991 | 28 | Melbourne | 16-10 (5) | 28 | 44.4 | 24.6 | 9.8 | 3.1 | 2.6 | 7.2 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 2.6 | 3.3 | 8.7 | 20.8 | 42% | 2.8 | 7.2 | 39% | 4.4 | 5.6 | 78% | 53% | 49% | 42 |
| 1990 | 27 | Melbourne | 17-9 (4) | 28 | 44.0 | 31.1 | 10.7 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 7.7 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 2.8 | 3.4 | 12.3 | 23.9 | 51% | 2.8 | 7.3 | 39% | 3.8 | 4.7 | 81% | 60% | 57% | 52 |
| 1989 | 26 | Melbourne | 16-8 (4) | 24 | 45.3 | 25.8 | 11.8 | 3.8 | 2.7 | 9.2 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 10.9 | 23.1 | 47% | 1.5 | 4.8 | 30% | 2.5 | 3.5 | 72% | 52% | 50% | 35 | Total | 144 | 42.2 | 23.9 | 9.7 | 3.1 | 2.6 | 7.1 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 2.8 | 3.6 | 9.1 | 19.3 | 46.9% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 38.7% | 2.4 | 6.1 | 82.3% | 56% | 53% | 52 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 52 | 22 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 0 |
|---|
NBA EXPERIENCE
David Colbert was drafted by the Boston Celtics with pick #116 in the 1986 NBA Draft.
Colbert played games in the NBA. He averaged 0 points, 0 rebounds, and 0 assists per game over his NBA career.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
Colbert also played professionally in Israel and France.
COLLEGE
Colbert played college basketball at Cleveland State during the 1981-82 season before transferring to Dayton, where he competed from 1983-84 to 1985-86.
At Cleveland State, Colbert suited up as a freshman in 1981-82 on a team that finished 17-10 under head coach Ray Dieringer, and he played 27 games while averaging 10.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game.
In 1982-83, he returned for his sophomore season as Cleveland State moved into the Mid-Continent Conference, and he played 28 games while raising his production to 15.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per contest as the Vikings finished 8-20 overall and 1-4 in league play under Dieringer.
After transferring to Dayton, Colbert did not play in the 1983-84 season as a transfer student, then joined the Flyers’ rotation for the 1984-85 campaign as Dayton competed as an independent under head coach Don Donoher.
In 1984-85, Dayton went 19-10 and earned an NCAA Tournament berth as a No. 9 seed in the Southeast region, and Colbert delivered an immediate impact season, averaging 16.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game while being recognized as the team’s most valuable player.
Dayton’s 1985 NCAA Tournament run ended in the round of 64 with a 51-49 loss to Villanova, and that Villanova team went on to win the national championship, with the Flyers’ season closing with a two-point defeat in a game decided in the final minutes.
Colbert followed with another team-leading year in 1985-86, again earning MVP recognition while averaging 18.8 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game as Dayton finished 17-13 and reached the National Invitation Tournament.
Across his two playing seasons at Dayton from 1984-85 through 1985-86, Colbert appeared in 59 games and scored 1,049 points, an average of 17.8 points per game, while also totaling 470 rebounds for the Flyers during that stretch.
His Dayton career was also defined by heavy minutes, and his 37.7 minutes per game across his Flyers tenure stands among the top career marks in program history for average minutes per game.
Across his four collegiate seasons split between Cleveland State and Dayton, Colbert scored 1,767 total points, including 718 points for Cleveland State and 1,049 points for Dayton, while developing from a frontcourt contributor early in his career into a primary scoring option and team MVP at Dayton in both of his playing seasons with the program.
LIFE AFTER BASKETBALL
David Lee 'Dave' Colbert Sr. died on December 4, 2009, aged 47, in a single-car road accident in the United States.
Former NBL player John Rillie paid tribute on December 9, remembering Colbert as a hardworking competitor and outstanding scorer.
Family and friends farewelled Colbert at John Marshall High School in Cleveland, Ohio, on December 12, 2009.
Related
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