Kerry Kittles
Sport: Basketball
Induction Year: 2020
University: Villanova
A 6-foot-6 shooting guard highly recruited out of St. Augustine High School in New Orleans, Kittles was a high-scoring guard at Villanova and in an eight-year NBA career from 1997-2005 (he missed the 2000-01 season with a knee injury) after being a first-round pick (No. 8 overall) of the then New Jersey Nets in 1996.
Kittles played in 507 games with 455 starts and posted career averages of 14.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game in seven seasons with the Nets and one with the Los Angeles Clippers. Kittles averaged at least 12.9 points per game every year until injuries limited him to 11 games in his final season (2004-05).
After being a second-team All-Rookie pick in 1997 when he set an NBA rookie record with 158 3-pointers and averaged 16.4 points and 3.9 rebounds, he had his best pro season statistically in 1998 with career highs of 17.2 points and 4.7 rebounds. He also averaged 12.3 points and 3.6 rebounds in starting all 54 playoff games he played, helping the Nets to the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003.
At Villanova, he set 15 school records topped by his 2,243 career points as he averaged 18.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists in four seasons (1993-96) while shooting 47.8 percent from the field in 122 games. Kittles was the Big East Player of the Year as a junior in 1995 when he averaged 21.4 points (shooting 52.4 percent from field), 6.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.2 steals and the Wildcats won their first Big East Tournament crown. He was a consensus second-team All-American in 1995 and a first-teamer in 1996 as a senior. Kittles led the Big East in steals in 1994 with 87. He still ranks seventh all-time in Big East history in scoring (fifth when he graduated), fifth in field goals made (821), ninth in 3-point field-goal percentage (39.4%) and ninth in steals (277).
A two-time All-State pick, Kittles led St. Aug to a 66-5 record in his final two prep seasons (1989-91), reaching the state finals as a junior and winning the Class 5A title as a senior when he scored 22.5 per game. He was chosen Mr. Louisiana Basketball.
Born 6-12-1974 in Dayton, Ohio.
