Bill Buntin

William L. "Bill" Buntin (May 5, 1942 in Detroit, Michigan – May 9, 1968) was an American basketball player. He played collegiately for the University of Michigan and in the NBA.

In three seasons playing center for Michigan, the 6' 7" Buntin had 1,037 rebounds, ranking second in school history. He averaged 15.7 rebounds a game in 1963 and recorded 58 double-doubles in 79 games, still a school record. His 1,725 points ranks 9th in school history. Playing with Cazzie Russell in the 1963-1964 season, Buntin helped Michigan win its first Big Ten title in 16 seasons and advance to the Final Four. In his senior year, the Wolverines advanced to the 1965 NCAA title game, where they lost, 91-80, to John Wooden's UCLA. He was named an All-American in both 1964 and 1965.

Buntin was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the 1965 NBA Draft and played for the Pistons for 42 games in the 1965-66 season.

During a pick-up basketball game on May 9, 1968, Buntin suffered a fatal heart attack.

Buntin has received numerous posthumous honors for his accomplishments in basketball, including:
* He was inducted into the University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor in 1980 as part of the third induction class. Only two basketball players, Cazzie Russell and Rudy Tomjanovich were inducted into the Hall of Honor before Buntin.
* In 2006, Buntin's jersey (#22) was retired and hung from the rafters at Crisler Arena. Buntin's number became the fifth to be retired in Crisler Arena.
* The award given each year to the best player on the Michigan basketball team is the Bill Buntin Most Valuable Player Award. Past winners include Louis Bullock (1997), Robert Traylor (1997), Lester Abram (2004), Dion Harris (2005), and Daniel Horton.

ee also

*University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor

External links

*basketball-reference|id=b/buntibi01|name=Bill Buntin
* [http://media.www.michigandaily.com/media/storage/paper851/news/2006/01/10/Sports/Rafters.At.Crisler.Have.Company-1433913.shtml Rafters at Crisler have company, by Jack Herman, Michigan Daily, 1/10/06]
* [http://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/baskmen/baskmaa/buntinaa.htm Bentley Historical Library: Bill Buntin]
* [http://books.google.com/books?id=KAGAwpROdW4C&pg=PT154&lpg=PT154&dq=%22bill+buntin%22+most+valuable+player+award&source=web&ots=R9POziMsjO&sig=q8YhdtanfTkJyEnwTxrLK5Zhe4Y Bruce Madej, Champions of the West, p. 141]