Top 20 former Michigan State Spartans to play in the NBA
By Riley Nisbet
10. Scott Skiles
Scott Skiles was selected 22nd overall by the Milwaukee in the 1986 NBA Draft, but only made 13 appearances for the Bucks in his rookie before being traded to the Indiana Pacers for his sophomore season.
The start to Skiles’ career was slow, although he showed marginal improvement over the course of his first four seasons in both point and assist totals, which paralleled more playing time and more time in a starting role.
It took Skiles until his fifth year before he began to show his full playing potential. In the 1990-91 season, Skiles’ points-per-game average leapt nearly a full 10 points from 7.7 to 17.2. His assists per game nearly doubled from 4.8 to 8.2.
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Although Skiles would sustain this level of play for the next two years, 90-91 may have been his peak. Not only did he win the NBA’s Most Improved Player Award, but Skiles set an NBA record 30 assists against the Denver Nuggets on Dec. 30, 1990.
Outside of Skiles’ prime years, his stat-lines are only decent. Over the course of his career, Skiles averaged 11.1 points and 6.5 assists per game. However, Skiles’ efficiency should not be overlooked.
As a career 44 percent 3-point shooter, in four out of his ten seasons, Skiles ranked in the top 20 for 3-point percentage, and two of those four seasons Skiles ranked in the top five.
As well, Skiles ranked in the top 20 for assists in five seasons.