Efrem Winters

Efrem Winters

Personal information
Born	Chicago, Illinois
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight	240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High school	King College Prep (Chicago, Illinois)
College	Illinois (1982–1986)
NBA draft	1986 / Round: 4 / Pick: 88th overall
Selected by the Atlanta Hawks
Position	Forward
Number	24
Career highlights and awards
All-Big Ten (1984) McDonald's All-American Game MVP (1982)

Efrem Zimbalist Winters^[1] is a former college basketball player. He played college basketball at Illinois.

Biography

Winters played in the 1982 McDonald's All-American Game and won the game's MVP award.

Winters played college basketball at Illinois, where he joined guards Bruce Douglas and Doug Altenberger, forward Scott Meents, as well as George Montgomery and Anthony Welch to form the nucleus for a team that would advance to the NCAA tournament every year. Winters started all four years at Illinois and made an immediate impact, setting freshman school records for scoring, rebounding and games started. He also led the team in both rebounding and blocked shots in 1982–83, and repeated this feat in 1984–85. The 1983–84 season stands out as Winters' best season. During Winters' sophomore campaign, he led the team in scoring, averaging 14.7 points per game, and earned All-Big Ten Team honors. He sprained his ankle prior to Illinois' Elite Eight matchup against Kentucky in the 1984 Tournament, and did not regain the same effectiveness after the injury. However, he finished his Illinois career as the school's all-time rebounding leader with 853 rebounds (since eclipsed and now holds third) and #3 all-time scorer. He started 120 games in his Illinois career, a school record surpassed in 2002 by Cory Bradford. Winters served as a captain of the team during his senior season in 1985–86. He received honorable mentions to the All-Big Ten Team in 1984–85 and 1985–86. Winters helped to start Illinois' nearly annual appearance in the NCAA Tournament.^[2]

The Douglas-to-Winters alley-oop became a staple play of the Illinois offense.^[3] For his position and height, Winters was a superb free throw shooter; his name appears several times in the school record book for accuracy from the foul line.

College statistics

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1982–83	Illinois	31	29		.464	.000	.713	6.9	0.6	0.5	1.0	12.4
1983–84	Illinois	31	28		.514	—	.767	6.6	1.7	0.6	0.7	14.7
1984–85	Illinois	35	33		.474	—	.738	7.2	1.4	0.9	0.9	10.0
1985–86	Illinois	32	30		.528	—	.593	5.7	1.3	0.5	0.6	9.3
Career		129	120		.493	.000	.711	6.6	1.3	0.6	0.8	11.5

Winters was invited to tryouts for the United States men's national basketball team in preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics.^[4] However, he did not make the first cut when the field was reduced to 32 players by head coach Bobby Knight and his selection committee.^[5]

After college, Winters was selected by the Atlanta Hawks as the 88th overall pick in the fourth round of the 1986 NBA draft. However, he was cut by the Hawks. He also tried out for a professional club in southern France, but did not make the cut. He now works for a construction company.^[2]

References

1. Myslenski, Skip; Kay, Linda (March 5, 1986). "News, notes and nonsense". Chicago Tribune. p. C2.
2. Tate, Loren (January 7, 2009). "Winters started resurgence". The News-Gazette. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
3. Helfgot, Mike (February 9, 2011). "Former Illini Efrem Winters, Bruce Douglas still tight after meeting at McDonald's All-American Game 29 years ago". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 23, 2016. Before the Douglas-to-Winters alley-oop became a staple of the Illini's mid-1980s resurgence...
4. "Olympic Basketball Tryout Invitees". The Dallas Morning News. April 19, 1984. p. 14B.
5. Horn, Barry (April 22, 1984). "4 from SWC make cut for U.S. basketball team; Those Who Made It". The Dallas Morning News. p. 10B.