Lloyd Daniels

Lloyd Daniels (born September 4, 1967) is a retired American professional and semi-professional basketball player.

The 6'7" shooting guard was one of the most sought-after recruits in the nation during the 1986-87 recruiting cycle. At the time, he was considered the most talented player from New York City since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. According to authors John Valenti and Ron Naclerio, "Swee' Pea" was reputed to combine the passing ability of Magic Johnson with the shooting ability of Larry Bird. However, Daniels had attended five high schools in three states, and could not read above a third-grade level.

He eventually wound up at UNLV and was slated to play for legendary coach Jerry Tarkanian. One of Tarkanian's assistants, Mark Warkentien, became Daniels' legal guardian, and got him admitted to Mt. San Antonio College, a junior college near Los Angeles, to improve his academics. However, on February 9, 1987, Daniels was arrested for buying crack cocaine from an undercover policeman. Although Tarkanian was known for taking in troubled players, this was too much even for him, and he announced days after the arrest that Daniels would never play for UNLV. It later emerged that Daniels had first been led to UNLV by Richard Perry, who had been convicted twice for sports bribery. Perry's involvement resulted in an NCAA investigation that ultimately forced Tarkanian to resign.

Daniels bounced around in the professional ranks for the next six years, and went through drug rehabilitation three times. In 1988, he was kicked off the Continental Basketball Association's Topeka Sizzlers for not staying in shape. He signed with a team in New Zealand shortly after that, only to be thrown off the team for heavy drinking. On May 11, 1989, Daniels was shot three times in the chest and survived. He still has fragments of a bullet lodged in his right shoulder.

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