Sleepy Floyd

Sleepy Floyd

Eric Augustus "Sleepy" Floyd (born March 6, 1960 in Gastonia, North Carolina) is a retired American professional basketball player.

A 6'3" guard, Floyd played competitively at Hunter Huss High School in Gastonia, and starred at Georgetown University before being drafted by the New Jersey Nets with the 13th pick of the 1982 NBA Draft. During the middle of an unspectacular rookie season, Floyd was traded by the Nets with Mickey Johnson to the Golden State Warriors for Micheal Ray Richardson. Floyd quickly blossomed while playing for the Warriors, averaging 16.5 points per game in his first full season with the franchise, and during the 1984–85 NBA season, he averaged a career high 19.5 points per game. Two seasons later, he averaged 18.8 points and 10.3 assists and earned a spot on the 1987 NBA All-Star Team. In December 1987, Floyd was traded with Joe Barry Carroll to the Houston Rockets for Ralph Sampson and Steve Harris, and Floyd would play 5½ seasons with the Rockets before signing as a free agent with the San Antonio Spurs in 1993, a year before the Rockets would win their 2 consecutive championships. After one season in San Antonio, he returned to the New Jersey Nets, and he retired in 1995 with 12,260 career points and 5,175 career assists.

Floyd still holds the NBA playoff record for points scored in a quarter (29) and in half (39), in game 4 of the 1987 Western Conference Semifinals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Floyd scored 12 consecutive field goals in the fourth quarter, finishing the game with 51 points, and prevented a sweep of the Warriors by in-state rival Lakers.