Randy Wittman Biography
Randy Wittman is a former American basketball player and coach who played for the Indiana University. Wittman was a guard for the Hoosiers for five seasons between 1979 and 1983. The Indianapolis, Ind. native played at Ben Davis High School where he was a three-year starter and averaged over 23 points per game. In his time with the Hoosiers under coach Bob Knight, Wittman won three Big Ten championships and was a member of the 1981 national championship team. The former Hoosier played professionally for nine seasons in the NBA from 1983-1992 and coached in the league for 24 seasons until 2016. Years after his retirement from playing, Wittman was named to the 2003 Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary Team, inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007, and inducted to the Indiana University Athletics Hall of Fame.
- Position: Randy Scott Wittman
- Nationality: USA
- Age: 64 years old
- Birthday: October 28, 1959
- Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind.
- High School: Ben Davis High School (Indianapolis, Ind.)
- Height: 6’6″ (198cm)
- Weight: 210 lbs (95kg)
- Seasons: 5 (1978-1983)
- Jersey: #24
- NBA Draft: 1983 / Round 1 / 22nd Overall Pick / Washington Bullets
- Professional Career: Atlanta Hawks (1983-1988), Sacramento Kings (1988-1989), Indiana Pacers (1989-1992)
- Coaching Career: Indiana Pacers (1992-1993), Dallas Mavericks (1993-1994), Minnesota Timberwolves (1994-1999), Cleveland Cavaliers (1999-2001), Minnesota Timberwolves (2001-2009), Washington Wizards (2009-2016)
Player Accolades and Awards
- 1979 NIT Champion
- Four-year letter winner (1980-1983)
- 3x Big Ten Champion (1980, 1981, 1983)
- 1981 NCAA National Champion
- Co-Captain 1983
- 1983 Indiana University MVP
- 1983 Big Ten MVP
- 3x First Team All-Big Ten (1981-1983)
- 2x Academic All-American (1982 and 1983)
- Ranked eighth on career scoring list at graduation
- Ranked second on career assist list at graduation
- Ranked third on career steals list at graduation
Randy Wittman High School Career
Randy Wittman played high school basketball in Indiana for Ben Davis High School. He was a starter for three seasons and averaged over 23 points per game for the Giants. Twenty-five years after his high school career, his performance at Ben Davis earned him a spot on the 2003 Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary Team. Long after his playing career, Wittman would be inducted into the 2007 class of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
Randy Wittman Seasons with the Hoosiers
22-12 (10-8 Big Ten)
🏅 NIT Champions
21-8 (13-5 Big Ten)
🏅 NCAA Sweet Sixteen
26-9 (14-4 Big Ten)
🏆 1981 NCAA Champions
19-10 (12-6 Big Ten)
🏅 NCAA Second Round
24-6 (13-5 Big Ten)
🏅 NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Indiana University Career Statistics
| Season | G | GS | MP | FG | FGA | FG% | 2P | 2PA | 2P% | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | FT | FTA | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978-1979 | 34 | 32 | 1258 | 101 | 190 | 0.532 | 39 | 53 | 0.736 | 90 | 154 | 31 | 6 | 73 | 78 | 241 | ||||||
| 1979-1980 | 5 | 5 | 145 | 13 | 28 | 0.464 | 3 | 4 | 0.75 | 7 | 12 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 29 | ||||||
| 1980-1981 | 35 | 32 | 1190 | 155 | 286 | 0.542 | 53 | 69 | 0.768 | 79 | 77 | 27 | 4 | 39 | 63 | 363 | ||||||
| 1981-1982 | 29 | 26 | 986 | 144 | 299 | 0.482 | 59 | 78 | 0.756 | 94 | 102 | 31 | 5 | 43 | 56 | 347 | ||||||
| 1982-1983 | 30 | 30 | 1110 | 236 | 435 | 0.543 | 228 | 417 | 0.547 | 8 | 18 | 0.444 | 89 | 108 | 0.824 | 135 | 87 | 31 | 4 | 48 | 54 | 569 |
| Career | 133 | 125 | 4689 | 649 | 1238 | 0.524 | 228 | 417 | 0.547 | 8 | 18 | 0.444 | 243 | 312 | 0.779 | 405 | 432 | 128 | 19 | 209 | 256 | 1549 |
Randy Wittman Indiana University Career
Randy Wittman began his collegiate career in 1978 playing for coach Bob Knight and the Indiana Hoosiers. Wittman joined a Hoosier ball club coming off a 21-8 record and a second round loss to Villanova in the NCAA Tournament. Wittman’s teammates for his first season included Mike Woodson, Ray Tolbert, Butch Carter and Landon Turner. As a true freshman, Wittman started in 32 out of 34 games for Indiana and was fourth in the scoring column averaging 7.1 points per game.
In Wittman’s first season with the Hoosiers, the team went 22-12 with a 10-8 finish in the Big Ten. Indiana missed out on the NCAA Tournament but the season was not a total loss as they were still able to win a championship. Indiana met their in-state rival Purdue in the 1979 NIT Championship and came out with a one point victory to win the championship against the Boilermakers.
Wittman’s second season in Bloomington was cut short due to a season-ending foot injury. Wittman only appeared in five games for the Hoosiers during the 1979-1980 season.
Wittman returned the next season and was a part of Indiana’s 1981 NCAA National Championship team. In his third year with the team, he averaged 10.4 points per game and was third on the team in scoring behind Isaiah Thomas and Ray Tolbert.
The 1980-1981 Indiana Hoosiers finished the season at the top of the college world defeating North Carolina to win their fourth national championship. Wittman received post season honors with a first team selection on the All-Big Ten team.
Over the next two seasons, Wittman played in 59 games and started all but three for Indiana. He averaged 15.5 points per game during that span and averaged a career high 19 points per game his senior season in Bloomington. The team finished in the top two of the conference both seasons but suffered eliminations in the post-season.
Wittman’s career at Indiana was full of accolades as he was a four-year letter winner and co-captain of the 1983 Hoosier squad. He ended his career with three conference championships and a national championship while playing for Knight. In 1983, he was the Indiana University MVP as well as the Big Ten MVP. Wittman earned First Team All-Big Ten honors three times and did well in the class room with two Academic All-American awards.
