Toros Welcome "Glory Road" Star
February 7, 2006 - NBA G League (G League)
Austin Spurs News Release
AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 7, 2006 - Former Texas Western star player David "Big Daddy" Lattin will make a special appearance at the Austin Convention Center, Saturday, Feb. 11 when the Toros host the Roanoke Dazzle at 7:30 p.m. Lattin's notable contributions to the storied legacy of the 1966 Texas Western national championship team was recently captured in the Jerry Bruckheimer film "Glory Road".
"The Texas Western team made historic contributions in the basketball world, but more importantly to American society during a very turbulent time in our country," said Toros president Mike Berry. "It's a thrill and an honor for the Toros to recognize Mr. Lattin during his visit to Austin and to share the unforgettable, real life story of the 1965-66 Miners."
A native of Houston, Lattin played basketball at Evan E. Worthing Senior High School and led the team to a state title in 1962. Averaging 29 points, 19 rebounds and 13 blocked shots per game during the 62 season; Lattin was the state's first high school All-American and was considered at the time to be the best high school basketball player in Texas.
After graduating from high school, Lattin began his collegiate career at Tennessee State University. Following a short stint at TSU, Lattin landed at Texas Western and played freshman ball in 1964-65 before starting for the title team as a sophomore. The 6-foot-6, 240-pounder averaged 14 points and 8.6 rebounds per game during the 1965-66 championship season.
Led by Coach Don Haskins, known as "The Bear", the 1966 Texas Western Miners made history by winning the NCAA Championship with an all-black starting five. A tight-knit group, the Miners played their way to the NCAA championship game against Adolph Rupp's top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats, an all-white team.
In the historic victory Lattin scored 16 points and had nine rebounds, including a thunderous dunk over Kentucky's Pat Riley. Lattin was also named MVP of the NCAA Midwest Regional, totaling 44 points and 25 rebounds in games against national powerhouses Cincinnati and Kansas.
Until Texas Western, now Texas El-Paso (UTEP), no team had ever started five blacks in an NCAA championship game. When Texas Western defeated Kentucky on March 18, there were no black basketball players in the Southeastern, Atlantic Coast or Southwest conferences. In fact, until Texas Western coach Haskins did it earlier that season, no major-college team had ever started five black players in any game.
Lattin moved on to the NBA after Texas Western as a first-round pick by the San Francisco Warriors. The following season, Lattin became a member of the expansion Phoenix Suns. He later played in the American Basketball Association (ABA), playing at both Pittsburgh and Memphis, and spent three years as a member of the Harlem Globetrotters.
Lattin resides in Houston and is keeping busy with a number of business projects, including buying and selling homes as a real estate investor. He's also working on a book about his life, "Slam Dunk to Glory," which he hopes to publish soon.
Lattin's appearance starts an array of Hoops N' History activities scheduled for the month of February in celebration of Black History month. In addition to special on-court recognition, Lattin will be on-hand to participate in a pre-game Q&A session for season ticket holders and invited guests, as well as a post-game autograph session for all fans.
Additional Hoops N' History activities include Toros Read to Achieve events at local schools highlighting Black History trivia and a round-robin basketball tournament featuring six local middle school boys basketball teams on Feb. 24 at Austin Convention Center.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for both games and parking garages are conveniently located on the corners of 5th & Red River and 2nd & Brazos Street. Tickets start as low as $9 per seat and can be purchased at austintoros.com or at the nine Pinky's Wireless locations in the Austin and Round Rock areas, as well as Waterloo Records. Tickets can also be purchased by calling (866) 433-8849 or online at gettix.net. For premium or group seating call the Toros ticket office at (512) 236-8333.
• Discuss this story on the NBA G League message board...
NBA G League Stories from February 7, 2006
- Thunderbirds fall to Toros - New Mexico Thunderbirds
- Barrett leads Flame to comeback win over RimRockers - Florida Flame
- Real-Life Glory Road Star Comes to Expo Square Pavilion - Tulsa 66ers
- Nuggets Assign Hodge to Austin Toros of D-League - Austin Spurs
- Fayetteville acquires Lyde, Waives Richardson - Fayetteville Patriots
- Toros Welcome "Glory Road" Star - Austin Spurs
- NBA D-League Daily Developments - G League
- 66ers Reacquire Lucas, Pick Up Greer - Tulsa 66ers
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
