Thompson uses experience to share message to kids

Two generations ago, David Thompson changed the way basketball is played. Today, he strives to change lives.

The original “Skywalker” — who gained fame on the basketball court at N.C. State before a namesake, the fictional Luke, came along in Star Wars — now spends his time making motivational speeches, working with youngsters and sharing his Christian faith.

“I hope I can make young people make good choices,” he said Wednesday. “Kids face a lot of challenges today, and I want them to understand the consequences of their choices.” He paused, then added, “I share with them the mistakes I made.”

Those mistakes included substance abuse, which played a role in the downward spiral of his pro career. But with the help of a pastor, he put his life back in order and delved into working with youth.

“Kids are brought up different today — a lot of single parents, life not grounded in the church — and I want to help them,” he said. “I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior, and now seeing kids succeed is very important to me.”

In the early 1970s, David Thompson was important to basketball fans throughout the nation. He became the first major-college superstar to play above the rim, changing the game. Although 6-foot-4, his vertical jump (42 inches in seventh grade, eventually 48 inches off one step) defied gravity, and he joined with teammates Monte Towe and Tom Stoddard in perfecting the alley-oop.

Thompson, 57 and living in Charlotte, came here to promote the opening of the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet story on Garners Ferry Road, and many of the shoppers wanted an autograph and a picture with the Hall of Famer.

Bill Freeman arrived with an N.C. State basketball to get an autograph for his son, an N.C. State graduate.

Another fan brought Sports Illustrated issues of March 25, 1974, and April 1, 1974, with covers focusing on the NCAA tournament. The latter captures two of the game’s all-time greats with Thompson soaring to shoot over UCLA’s 6-foot-11 Bill Walton in the Final Four.

“I found these at an antique store,” he said. “I just had to get him to sign this one.”

Mac Fleming, an Ollie’s employee, remembered seeing Thompson play and recalled that officials had outlawed the dunk in those days.

“He would just jump and drop the ball in,” Fleming said. “The way he could jump, it would have been great to see him dunk.”

In the pros, Thompson competed in the first slam-dunk contest against stars such as Julius Erving and George Gervin. But a couple of rules in college — no dunking and no freshman eligibility — kept him from being even more renown.

“I missed out on those, and I also missed on the 3-point goal,” said Thompson, who averaged 26.8 points and eight rebounds per game in college and 22.7 points per game in the pros.

But he did make one dunk in his college career — a thunderous jam in his final regular-season home game that showed fans what they had been missing.

“They gave me a technical (foul), and I got a standing ovation,” he said, laughing. “You don’t usually have your coach (Norman Sloan) smiling and your fans cheering when you get a ‘T.’ ”

Of course, he earned a truckload of honors, both in college and in the pros. N.C. State fans will remember his part in three games in 1974 — the 103-100 overtime win over Maryland in the ACC final, his 28 points against UCLA in the Final Four and his 21 in the national title game victory against Marquette. Mark Butler, Ollie’s president and CEO, did, too.

“I met David at a charity event in Los Angeles, and we hit it off well,” Butler said. “When we decided to expand into ACC country, I thought, ‘Who better to promote our company than David Thompson?’ ”

The number of people in line suggested that they remembered, too.