Richard Washington

Richard Lee Washington (born July 15, 1955) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins, winning a national championship in 1975, when he was voted the NCAA tournament's Most Outstanding Player. After being named a consensus first-team All-American as a junior in 1976, he was selected by the Kansas City Kings with the third overall pick of the 1976 NBA draft.

Early life A 6'11" center born in Portland, Oregon, Washington played high school ball at Portland's Benson Tech. An all-around athlete and agile big man, Washington was a three-time all-state and first-team all-tournament selection and led Benson to state championships in 1971 and 1973. Benson was a combined 77–6 those three seasons. Washington was also a hurdler in track and, as a defensive end-receiver, was MVP on the Techmen football team his junior year (the last year he played football).

College career Washington was highly recruited out of high school and seriously considered the University of Hawaii, but he decided to play college basketball for perennial national champion UCLA and legendary coach John Wooden. He played three seasons at UCLA, with the Bruins going 26–4, 28–3 and 28–4. They won three Pac-8 championships and advanced to three Final Fours.

NBA career Washington was declared eligible for the 1976 NBA draft due to hardship status. He played six seasons in the NBA as a member of the Kansas City Kings, Milwaukee Bucks, Dallas Mavericks and Cleveland Cavaliers.

In 1988, Washington was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame.