Darryl Dawkins, NBA’s ‘Chocolate Thunder’ Dunker, Dies at 58
Sixers Darryl Dawkins hammers another dunk shot through the net to score against the Atlanta Hawks in an NBA playoff game, in this April 15, 1980 file photo, in Philadelphia.
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Darryl Dawkins, who was the first high school player to go straight to the National Basketball Association and became known for his backboard-shattering dunks, has died. He was 58.
Dawkins died Thursday at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Allentown, Pennsylvania, according to an e-mailed statement from the Lehigh County Coroner’s Office. The cause was a heart attack, his family said in a statement from the NBA.