Episode 20 – Garrett Boorojian and Dave Heeren discuss relationship building in a team environment.
(Del Harris connected Garrett with Dave).
Born on April 11, 1938, Dave graduated from Teaneck High School in Teaneck, New Jersey in 1956. His parents got him a radio when he was in elementary school. Dave would listen to New York Knicks’ games at night. He has impacted the NBA for more than 60 years. Dave’s father was a sports editor for The New York Times and would take Dave to Knicks’ games. Dave was the statistician for the Knicks for the 1961–1962 season. He got that role through his father’s introduction to the Knicks.
Basketball Hall of Famer, Wilt Chamberlain, asked Dave about Wilt’s rating and how it was determined based on the TENDEX system. Dave created TENDEX, which modernized the way NBA players’ statistical performances in points, rebounds, assists, missed shots, etc. were tracked. As the Knicks’ statistician, he witnessed Wilt and Basketball Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson break monumental records of that era.
Dave was the Editor–in–Chief for The Review during his senior year before graduating from the University of Delaware in 1961 with concentrations in English Literature and Mathematics. He served in the U.S. Army and was a reporter for the MLB’s Cincinnati Reds and The Bergen Record (where the latter he was a sportswriter as well). Throughout his journalistic career, Dave also covered Ohio State University Football and Basketball, the NFL’s Miami Dolphins’ 1972 and 1973 Super Bowl teams, University of Miami Football, and New York Yankees’ spring training games.
After Dave moved from New Jersey to Florida, Dave was a journalist for the Fort Lauderdale News, Broward Times, and South Florida Sun-Sentinel (where he was there at the latter for 36 years). Dave also contributed to the publications Basketball Times and The Sporting News.
Dave’s brother–in–law was Dick Davies who was on the 1964 Olympics Team, representing the United States, that won the Gold Medal in Tokyo, Japan. Dick’s brother, Bob Davies, was inducted into the College Basketball and Basketball Hall of Fames. Bob and fellow Hall of Famers Red Auerbach, Henry Iba and John McLendon all coached Dick Davies at different times of his life.
Dave has authored many sports and religion books. Dave wrote “Seventy–Five: Best NBA Players and Teams Rated by Statistician who has Seen Games Since 1947 (League’s Entire 75–Year History).”
Adopted globally, 16 NBA teams had conversations with Dave about his TENDEX system. Basketball leagues in Europe and Australia were also utilizing the TENDEX system.
TENDEX was used for the first time in the 1984 NBA Draft for rating the potential of players such as Hakeem Olajuwon, Michael Jordan, Sam Perkins, Charles Barkley, Kevin Willis, and John Stockton.
TENDEX ranks Dennis Rodman as the greatest rebounder in NBA history.
Hall of Famer Don Nelson asked Dave about his thoughts regarding Don drafting Latrell Sprewell to the NBA’s Golden State Warriors. Hall of Famer Willis Reed called Dave because he wanted to hire Dave at the NBA’s New Jersey Nets.
Dave says he felt the “camaraderie” and being a part of a “team” during his conversations with Hall of Famers’ Don Nelson, Del Harris, and Rick Barry, and the former Senior Vice President of the Orlando Magic, Pat Williams, who was a Philadelphia 76ers’ General Manager when the 76ers won the 1983 NBA Championship.
Dave discusses his deep Christian faith, shares insight into the Christian books he’s authored, references Jesus’ sermons, and quotes Isaiah 6:8 in the Bible. Dave also talks about his late wife, Joan, who also had a strong faith. She has since passed and gone to Heaven.
Dave has won 15 Florida Sports Writing Contest Awards, two National Journalism Citations and a Prose Writing Award from the University of Delaware.