Carroll Dawson to be named Distinguished Alumnus

Published or Revised November 10, 2007

Former Paris Junior College student-athlete and All-American basketball player Carroll Dawson will be named a Distinguished Alumnus of the college at homecoming festivities Nov. 9 and 10. Dawson, who retired earlier this year as general manager of the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball League, will come to Paris with his wife Sharon to accept the award and be keynote speaker for the awards banquet on Nov. 10. "We are looking forward to coming back to Paris and visiting people in Northeast Texas," Dawson said. A native Texan, Dawson hails from Alba, a town with a population of 200 that sits about 65 miles south of Paris in Wood County. A 6-foot, 5-inch center, he played on the Alba High School basketball team. He then went on to win Junior College All-American honors at Paris Junior College under Head Coach Boyd Converse. Known affectionately as "Big Orange" by his teammates and classmates, he led the Dragons to a 20-6 record as a sophomore in 1957-58. Dawson transferred to Baylor University where he went on to an All-Southwest Conference career, averaging 16.4 points per game his senior season. In 1963, he returned to Baylor as an assistant to Head Coach Bill Menefee. He later succeeded Menefee as head coach in 1973, remaining in that position for more than three seasons. After spending two years as a scout for the Dallas Cowboys at the call of executive Gil Brandt, Dawson started a career as a salesman for Converse Shoe Co. before being summoned to the NBA by Rockets Coach Del Harris. Dawson worked as an assistant coach under four Rockets head coaches, aiding Harris from 1980-83, Bill Fitch from 1983-88, Don Chaney from 1988-92 and Rudy Tomjanovich from 1992-96. He was "Big Orange" at PJC, but Dawson is known as "CD" among the Rocket organization and the NBA. For 11 of the 27 years he spent with the Rockets, Dawson was general manager. He oversaw all player personnel activity for the Rockets, including scouting analysis, free agency and trade issues. Dawson is recognized as one of the top executives in the NBA. Since moving to the Rockets' front office job in 1996, he had the ability to both bolster a playoff contender with veterans and acquire emerging talent as part of a youth movement. In his first few years, he made trades for Charles Barkley and Scottie Pippin to give a team led by Hakeem Olajuwon even more experience. Dawson then helped the Rockets acquire several young talents in the following years, including Cuttino Mobley, Steve Francis and five-time All-Star Yao Ming. In the summer of 2005, Dawson worked with owner Leslie Alexander to sign Yao to a maximum-value contract extension. In the summer of 2004, Dawson changed the face of the franchise by obtaining one of the NBA's top players in Tracy McGrady. The two-time scoring champion was acquired from Orlando in a seven-player deal that included Francis and Mobley. Dawson has given Houston a nucleus of Yao and McGrady, two players 27 years old or younger with a combined 12 NBA All-Star Game selections. Since obtaining McGrady, Dawson has provided additional support with the acquisitions of hard-working veterans Rafer Alston, Shane Battier, Juwan Howard and Dikembe Mutombo. He has also worked to maintain a balance of youth by adding Chuck Hayes, Luther Head, John Lucas, Steve Novak, Kirk Snyder and Vassilis Spanoulis. Dawson holds the distinction of being the only person on the coaching staffs of all four Rockets teams that advanced to the NBA Finals, as Houston played for a championship in 1981, 1986, 1994 and 1995. Dawson is known throughout the NBA for his work with front court players and has also been credited with teaching Olajuwon his famous jump hook. Dawson has coached many NBA All-Stars during his years in Houston, including Elvin Hayes, Moses Malone, Ralph Sampson and Tomjanovich. Dawson has been honored with induction into the Paris Junior College Hall of Fame in 1991, the Baylor University Hall of Fame in 1998, the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. He was also named Mr. Sportsman 2005 by Interfaith Charities in Houston. One of the top golfers in the NBA, Dawson resides in Houston with his wife, Sharon. Sharon has a daughter, Elizabeth, and a son, Michael. Dawson recently retired from the Rockets. "I've been fortunate," he said. "Most basketball coaches and GMs never get a chance to remain somewhere long enough to retire." Dawson retired, but he isn't leaving the Rockets any time soon. He just signed a four-year agreement to work as a consultant for the Rockets and owner Les Alexander.