Bill Bradley
William Warren Bradley (born July 28, 1943) is an American politician and former professional basketball player. He served three terms as a Democratic U.S. senator from New Jersey (1979–1997). He ran for the Democratic Party's nomination for president in the 2000 election, which he lost to Vice President Al Gore.
Bill Bradley | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Bradley in 1980 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| United States Senator from New Jersey | |||||||||||||||||||||
| In office January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1997 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Clifford P. Case | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Robert Torricelli | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | William Warren Bradley July 28, 1943 Crystal City, Missouri, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Democratic | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse |
Ernestine Misslbeck Schlant
(m. 1974; div. 2007) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic partner | Betty Sue Flowers (2009) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | Princeton University (BA) Worcester College, Oxford (BA) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Military service | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Allegiance | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Branch/service | United States Air Force | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Unit | Reserves | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Basketball career | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| High school | Crystal City High School | ||||||||||||||||||||
| College | Princeton (1962–1965) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 1965: territorial pick | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Selected by the New York Knicks | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1965–1977 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Small forward | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1965–1966 | Olimpia Milano | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1967–1977 | New York Knicks | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Points | 9,217 (12.4 ppg) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 2,354 (3.2 rpg) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Assists | 2,533 (3.4 apg) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at NBA.com | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Basketball Hall of Fame as player | |||||||||||||||||||||
| College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 | |||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
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Bradley was born and raised in Crystal City, Missouri, a small town 45 miles (72 km) south of St. Louis. He excelled at basketball from an early age. He did well academically and was an all-county and all-state basketball player in high school. He was offered 75 college scholarships, but declined them all to attend Princeton University. He won a gold medal as a member of the 1964 Olympic basketball team and was the Most Outstanding Player of the 1965 NCAA Tournament, when Princeton finished third. After graduating in 1965, he attended Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship where he was a member of Worcester College, delaying a decision for two years on whether or not to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
While at Oxford, Bradley played one season of professional basketball in Europe and eventually decided to join the New York Knicks in the 1967–68 season, after serving six months in the Air Force Reserve. He spent his entire ten-year professional basketball career playing for the Knicks, winning NBA titles in 1970 and 1973. Retiring in 1977, he ran for a seat in the United States Senate the following year, from his adopted home state of New Jersey. He was re-elected in 1984 and 1990, left the Senate in 1997, and was an unsuccessful candidate for the 2000 Democratic presidential nomination.
Bradley is the author of seven non-fiction books, most recently We Can All Do Better, and hosts a weekly radio show, American Voices, on Sirius Satellite Radio. He is a corporate director of Starbucks and a partner at investment bank Allen & Company in New York City. Bradley is a member of the ReFormers Caucus of Issue One. He also serves on that group's advisory board.
Bradley is a member of both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society. In 2008 Bradley was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame.