Orlando Woolridge passed away at just 52-years-old, and adding to what for this blogger is a lengthening list of people who’ve died between the ages of 50 and 55 this year, some I knew, others, like him, I did not know.
But who was Orlando Woolridge? Woolridge played collegiate basketball with Notre Dame in 1978 and was drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls, a teammate of Michael Jordan.
Media reports are that Woolridge was out of the NBA for substance abuse in 1988, but that’s wrong – he made a comeback. Orlando first signed up with the LA Lakers in 1990, then was traded to the Denver Nuggets in 1991, then went to the Detroit Pistons for the 1991-1992 season; split the 1992-1993 season between Detroit and the Milwaukee Bucks, then finished his NBA career with the Philadelphia 76ers in 1994.
After the NBA Woolridge went to play in Europe, then coached with the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA in 1998 and 1999. and currently coaches the Arizona Rhinos of the ABA.
Shreveport Times Smears Orlando Woolridge
For some reason the Shreveport Times is trying to paint Orlando Woolridge in a negative way. The news outlet would make you think Woolridge was out of the NBA for drugs, and was in trouble with the law – it did not report his current coaching job or NBA history. Why the effort to defame him is beyond me.