Daily Dunk: Darrell Griffith

When I went on my classic college dunk binge a couple weeks back, I left a gaping hole in the series, which I am now rectifying.

Darrell Griffith was arguably the biggest star during Louisville's heyday in the 1980s. The lone senior starter, he led the team to a 26-3 record and the national title in 1980, when he dropped 23 points on a UCLA squad starring Kiki Vandeweghe. He averaged 22.5 ppg that season and was named College Player of the Year. He remains Louisville's all-time scoring leader nearly 30 years later.

And unlike some college star athletes, he actually became a great pro, winning NBA Rookie of the Year in 1981 with the Utah Jazz after being selected No. 2 overall and averaging more than 20 ppg. He played 11 years in SLC, finishing with career averages of 16 ppg and 46% from the field, 33% from downtown. He's the franchise's fourth all-time leading scorer and had his number 35 retired by the team in 1993.

More importantly to this blog, he earned the ill nickname "Dr. Dunkenstein" on a team nicknamed "Doctors of Dunk" - which also counted future pros Rodney and Scooter McCray in its lineup - and showed why with his classic "Around The World" dunk against LSU in the 1980 NCAA tournament.