Title...
Proclamation honoring in memoriam Armon Louis Gilliam, a native of Bethel Park, and professional basketball player who played 13 seasons in the NBA.
Body...
WHEREAS, Allegheny County Council does hereby honor the life of Armon Louis Gilliam, a native of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, who unexpectedly passed from this life at the age of 47 on July 5, 2011 while playing basketball, a sport he loved; and
WHEREAS, at Bethel Park High School, Armon played football, basketball and wrestled. He played basketball at Independence Junior College in Kansas before blossoming into an All-American at the University of Las Vegas (UNLV); and
WHEREAS, in 1987, Gilliam parlayed his strength and physicality into a brilliant senior season, scoring 23.8 points per game and leading the Runnin’ Rebels to a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) record 37 wins and a berth in the Final Four. The Phoenix Suns rewarded Gilliam for his brilliant senior season, making him the No. 2 overall pick in the 1987 draft, ahead of future stars Scottie Pippen (No. 5), Kevin Johnson (No. 7) and Reggie Miller (No. 11); and
WHEREAS, Gilliam scored more than 12,000 points and grabbed more than 6,000 rebounds during his 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He also played one season (2005-2006) for the Pittsburgh Xplosion of the American Basketball Association (ABA); and
WHEREAS, after his retirement from the NBA in 2000, Gilliam coached the NCAA Division III Penn State University Altoona Lions from 2002 to 2005;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Allegheny County Council does hereby honor the life, memory and legacy of Armon Louis Gilliam, and in this County of Champions, Armon will be remembered for generations to come.