Milton E. Wagner Jr. (born February 20, 1963) is an American former basketball coach and former professional basketball player. After playing college basketball at Louisville, Wagner played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He served as assistant coach for the UTEP Miners and the Auburn Tigers.[1] He most recently served as the Director of Player Development and Alumni Relations at the University of Louisville.[2]
 Wagner playing for Louisville in 1983 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 20, 1963 Camden, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Camden (Camden, New Jersey) |
| College | Louisville (1981–1986) |
| NBA draft | 1986: 2nd round, 35th overall pick |
| Selected by the Dallas Mavericks | |
| Playing career | 1986–1999 |
| Position | Shooting guard / point guard |
| Number | 20, 25 |
| Coaching career | 2006–2014 |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 1986–1987 | Rockford Lightning |
| 1987 | La Crosse Catbirds |
| 1987–1988 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 1988–1989 | Rapid City Thrillers |
| 1989–1990 | Maccabi Ramat Gan |
| 1990 | Miami Heat |
| 1990–1991 | Quad City Thunder |
| 1991 | Louisville Shooters |
| 1992–1993 | Paris Basket Racing |
| 1993–1994 | Maccabi Ramat Gan |
| 1994–1995 | Hapoel Tel Aviv |
| 1995–1997 | Hapoel Holon |
| 1997–1998 | TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen |
| 1998–1999 | Espé Basket Châlons-en-Champagne |
| As coach: | |
| 2006–2010 | UTEP (assistant) |
| 2010–2014 | Auburn (assistant) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Career
editWagner played high school basketball at Camden High School.[3]
A 6' 5" point guard/shooting guard he led the Louisville Cardinals to the 1986 NCAA Championship along with three Final Four berths (1982, 1983, 1986) as well as to the 1984 Sweet Sixteen. He helped the Cardinals to a 113–32 record, three Metro Conference regular season titles and two Metro Conference Tournament crowns during his college career. He redshirted the 1985 season with a broken foot.
A three-time All-Metro Conference selection, Wagner ranks fifth (was fourth after finishing collegiate career) in Cardinal history with 1,836 career points, with a 12.7 career scoring average while also averaging three assists and 2.5 rebounds. He played in 144 career games, second all-time at Louisville, and started the last 111 games he played. He ranks sixth in career assists (432) and seventh in career free throw percentage (.808, 336-of-413).
Wagner was drafted in the second round of the 1986 NBA draft. Wagner is one of the few players that have won national titles in high school, college and in the NBA. He and Billy Thompson are the only players to win all three championships as teammates.
Wagner is also the father of Munirah Walker, DaShonda Wagner, Janay Wagner and former NBA player Dajuan Wagner, and grandfather of five-star recruit D. J. Wagner who plays for the University of Arkansas.[4][5] He served as an assistant men's basketball coach for the University of Texas at El Paso under Tony Barbee.[6] In 2010, he moved to Auburn as part of Barbee's staff there.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b "Milt Wagner Assistant Coach". Auburn University. Archived from the original on September 15, 2016. Retrieved August 19, 2013.
- ^ "Milt Wagner - Director of Player Development & Alumni Relations - Staff Directory". University of Louisville Athletics.
- ^ Strauss, Robert. "IN PERSON; Hoop Dreams Revisit Camden", The New York Times, February 13, 2000. Accessed April 6, 2008. "Legends have grown up around its stars, from the Sunkett brothers and Itchy Smith in the 1960s to Billy Thompson and Milt Wagner, teammates in the early 1980s, both of whom went on to play for the Los Angeles Lakers.
- ^ Anastasia, Phil (December 20, 2019). "For Camden legend Milt Wagner, a grandfather's pride". www.inquirer.com. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
- ^ Crawford, Eric (November 14, 2022). "Top prep standout D.J. Wagner, grandson of Louisville great Milt Wagner, picks Kentucky". WDRB.
- ^ "Player Bio: Milt Wagner - UTEP OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE". Archived from the original on March 28, 2010. Retrieved July 23, 2008.