St. Louis American Sports Editor Earl Austin Jr. has written a book on the history of basketball in the Public HIgh League. The book is entitled “The PHL in the STL,” The Public High League: A St. Louis Basketball Legacy. The 188-page book chronicles the PHL with stories of its great players, teams, coaches, memorable moments and girls standouts. In the month of December, the American will run a weekly excerpt of Earl’s book. This week’s excerpt is from the section on great players, featuring former Soldan High great David Thirdkill. The PHL in the STL can be purchased online at www.earlaustinjr.com.
One of the greatest all-around talents in the history of the Public High League, there was nothing that David Thirdkill could not do on the basketball court.
At 6-feet-7 inches, Thirdkill was the total package, complete with size, skill, athleticism and a will to compete and win at the highest level. After a stellar high school career, Thirdkill got a chance to experience the taste of championships and the collegiate and professional levels.
“He was the most complete player I’ve ever had,” said former Soldan coach Marvin Neals. “There was nothing he could not do. He was just a gifted basketball player.”
Thirdkill put together a monster senior year in 1978 when he led the Tigers to a district championship. He averaged 22 points and eight rebounds a game to lead Soldan to a 25-4 record. He scored 24 points in the Normandy Christmas Tournament championship game to lead the Tigers to a victory over Normandy. He had one of the most spectacular plays in the history of the tournament in the semifinals against Kirkwood when he dunked home a missed free throw with his left hand. He was also the Most Valuable Player of the City-County All-Star Game at the end of the season.
He began his college career at Southern Idaho Junior College, where he was a junior college All-American after averaging 22 points a game. Thirdkill then came back to the Midwest, where he was a three-year starter at Bradley University. At Bradley, he became one of the top defensive players in the country, thus earning the nickname, “The Sheriff.”
Thirdkill played virtually every position at Bradley, including point guard on the team’s 1980 NCAA Tournament squad. He led the Braves to the championship of the National Invitational Tournament in 1982. In three years at Bradley, he had 1,261 points, 528 rebounds and 210 assists while starting every game. He was an All-Missouri Valley Conference performer as well. His exploits in college earned him a spot on Bradley’s All-Century Team.
Thirdkill was a first-round draft selection of the Phoenix Suns in 1982. He owns a NBA championship ring as a member of the 1986 Boston Celtics. He spent the next 10 years playing overseas where he became a star in the international professional ranks.
Awards and Honors
St. Louis Post-Dispatch All-Metro,
First Team (1978)
St. Louis Globe-Democrat All District (1978)
All State, Class 4A (1978)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, All-City (1978)
All Public High League (1978)
St. Louis American All-PHL Dream Team (1978)
NJCAA All-American (1979)
All-Missouri Valley Conference (1980)
All-National Invitational Tournament Team (1982)
Voted to Bradley’s All-Century Team (2000)
The PHL in the STL will be available in late December. You can order your copy online at www.earlaustinjr.com.