Lewis Lloyd


Lewis Kevin Lloyd was an American basketball player. A 6'6" swingman from Drake University, he played most of his professional career for the National Basketball Association's Houston Rockets.

High school and college

Nicknamed "Black Magic," Lloyd played his high school basketball at Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, the same as Wilt Chamberlain.
He graduated from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa after starting his college career at the junior college, New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell. Lloyd averaged 30.2 points and 15 rebounds per game in his junior year and 26.3 per game as a Senior. He was a two-time winner of the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year while at Drake. Lloyd's #30 jersey is retired at Drake.

Professional career

Lloyd played seven seasons in the NBA, after being selected in the fourth round of the 1981 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors.
After two seasons in Oakland, he moved to the Houston Rockets, where he would play three full seasons, appearing in 246 out of 246 possible regular season contests while always scoring in double digits. In late 1986, however, he tested positive for cocaine alongside teammate Mitchell Wiggins, incurring a 2 1/2 year suspension from the league, as the former also led a flamboyant lifestyle.
Soon after his reinstatement in September 1989, Lloyd was released by Houston, retiring at the end of the season after two games with the Philadelphia 76ers, holding averages of 13 points, three rebounds and three assists, in 388 games. He also appeared in 20 post-season contests in 1986 as the Rockets reached the NBA Finals, losing 4-2 to the Boston Celtics.
While suspended from the NBA, Lloyd played for the Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets in the Continental Basketball Association during the 1988–89 season. He averaged 18.8 points and 6.6 rebounds over 18 games.

Post playing career

After retiring, in the 2000s, Lloyd conducted youth basketball clinics along with coaching at basketball camps in Philadelphia, Des Moines, and Wichita.
Lloyd died on July 5, 2019.