Former Tiger Dell Demps Featured on NBA Retired Players Association Website

April 26, 2006

Below is an excerpt from an interview conducted by Andrew Stephens of nbrpa.com. The full interview can be accessed here.

What is your most memorable moment from the NCAA and the NBA?

The year before I attended the University of the Pacific, their basketball program was in a rebuilding period. When I reflect back and see where the school was before I got there - what I was able to do for their program - and now seeing them participate in the NCAA Tournament, it has been very fulfilling. In addition to that, when I left Pacific, I was named Big West Conference Scholar Athlete of the Year and an Academic All-American Finalist.

I came into the NBA the untraditional way. I started out by playing overseas and then came back to the states to play in the CBA. My most memorable NBA moment was getting an opportunity to play for the Golden State Warriors. Growing up in the Bay Area, you dream of one day playing for your hometown team.

I have to express gratitude to Mitch Richmond and Mario Elie for helping me throughout my playing career. Both of them played a big role in embracing me when I came into the league. I played with Mario and Mitch in the off-season to fine tune my game and get better. A special thanks has to go out to the coaching staff, Greg Popovich, who was the assistant coach at the time, and the head coach Don Nelson, for giving me a chance to play in the NBA and believing in me.