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LuBara Dixon "Dickey" Simpkins (born April 6, 1972 in Fort Washington, Maryland) is an American professional basketball player best known for his tenure with the Chicago Bulls in the late 1990s.
A 6' 9" forward/center, Simpkins starred at Friendly High School (Maryland) and Providence College before being selected by the Bulls with the 21st pick in the 1994 NBA Draft. Caught behind Luc Longley, Bill Wennington, and later Dennis Rodman in the Bulls' playing rotation, he saw limited action in his first few seasons as a Bull, scoring just 513 points in 167 games. He did earn two NBA Championship rings in 1996 and 1997, but he was not on the team's active roster for either playoff run, and in fall 1997 the Bulls traded him to the Golden State Warriors for guard/forward Scott Burrell.
When the Warriors subsequently waived Simpkins, however, the Bulls decided to give him another chance. Simpkins began to show some improvement, posting a respectable .634 field goal percentage in 21 games, and in the spring of 1998 he participated in the playoffs for the first time of his career, earning his third championship ring. After the 1998-99 NBA lockout, the Bulls parted ways with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and Luc Longley, which provided Simpkins with significantly more playing time. During the 1999 season he emerged as a part-time starter, averaging career highs of 9.1 points and 6.8 rebounds, and in the following season, he played in a career-high 1,651 minutes.
After the Bulls signed Brad Miller in September 2000, the Bulls renounced their rights to Simpkins, who would spend a season in Greece before joining the Atlanta Hawks during the 2001-02 NBA season. He only played one game for the Hawks, though, and spent the rest of the season in Greece and the CBA. Since 2002, Simpkins has enjoyed a lengthy overseas career, playing in Russia, Puerto Rico, Lithuania, Spain, Philippines and Lebanon.[1] He most recently played for GHP Bamberg of the German basketball league. During the summer of 2006 he was seen working out at the Berto Center, the Chicago Bulls' training facility. However, he did not join the team for training camp.[2]
[edit] Player career
- ^ http://www.euroleague.net/noticia.jsp?temporada=E05&jornada=15&id=788
- ^ http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/42205/20060913/simpkins_working_out_in_chicago/ Retrieved 13 September 2006.
[edit] External links
Providence Friars
Makedonikos
Criollos Caguas
Unics Kazan
Lietuvos Rytas
Plus Pujol Lleida
Alaska Aces
Blue Stars
Bamberg
