Draft:Tony A. Grier
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Tony A. Grier (born July 22, 1960), also known by his childhood nickname ‘Dizz’, is an American entrepreneur and former NBA draft pick of the San Antonio Spurs.[1][2] He is also an author and documentary filmmaker.[3]
Early Life and Education
[edit]Grier was born on July 22, 1960, in Port Chester, New York.[2] He attended Port Chester High School and later attending the University of South Florida, where he completed a degree in sociology in 1984.
College Career
[edit]Grier entered college basketball via Junior College for one year at Polk State College (then called Polk Community College) in Winter Haven, FL. As a freshman he quickly made a name for himself by leading the state Junior Colleges in scoring and was voted All-State. Teaming with Alford "Pop" Turner in the backcourt, they became the highest scoring backcourt in the country as both averaged just under 25 ppg. Knowing he was a (Division l) talent he was confident he would spend just one season in JUCO basketball.[4]
By the spring of his first freshman season several schools offered him a scholarship and eventually he signed with USF. Grier immediately became was one of the most exciting players in program history. As the quickest player to reach the 1,000 career points mark (51 games) he was the first player recognized as USF’s Athlete of the Year in 1981 and Tampa Sports Club Amateur Athlete of the Year in the same year.[4]
Over 45 years has passed and he is still listed in 8 of the Top 10 career categories in the USF record books. Grier led the Sun Belt Conference in scoring his sophomore and junior year and was all-conference 3 consecutive years, a first for USF. Going into his senior year Grier was listed by Basketball Weekly and NBA super Scout Marty Blake as the 3rd ranked guard in the country via the NBA pre-draft early bird roundup.[5]
After winning the Florida Four Tournament (beating Florida and Florida State) Grier and USF were a feature story in Sports Illustrated written by famed writer Jack McCallum.[2] That same month he won MVP in a losing cause against UConn in their tournament championship game in the Connecticut Mutual Classic before 15,000 fans.[4][5]
It is a known fact Tony Grier was the first USF Bull to gain national attention while playing for head coach Lee Rose who had left Purdue after a Final Four appearance in 1980 to lead the USF program.[4][5]
Pro Basketball
[edit]Grier was drafted by the San Antonio Spurs in 1982. Although he did not have an NBA career,[3] he did return to USF to complete his studies and earned his Sociology degree in 1984. He was soon associated with the Tampa Bay Flash of the United States Basketball League (USBL), After being hired as the team’s General Manager he quickly created a buzz in Tampa and hired his former USF assistant coach Gordon Gibbons, the coach who recruited him years earlier, to coach the team.[3]
The Flash won the USBL championship in their first year in 1986, During those times Grier teamed up with St. Pete assistant city manager Rick Dodge to pursue NBA basketball for the Tampa Bay area. Dodge and Grier had contacted the NBA in 1984 in hopes the expansion bug could be ignited and the league would recognize the bay area as a major player if expansion ever happened. They later hired NBA executive Harry Weltman to research and provide a report on the economic feasibilty of NBA basketball in the Tampa Bay market. The ironic twist today is the current Orlando Magic President Jeff Weltman is his son.[4][5]
As the Flash and the CBA’s Tampa Bay Thrillers made their mark all eyes were on Florida. Miami and Orlando were thinking the same thing and as history goes Miami , and then Orlando, were granted franchises as the league expanded by four teams in 1988 and 1989.
Grier immediately contacted Orlando Magic co-founder and president Pat Williams and together they created Magic-by-the-Bay, a fan-based extension to the Magic to offer season tickets specials and bus trips for fans from Tampa to Orlando to watch NBA basketball.[4][5]
Grier later worked with the Miami Heat in season ticket sales and helped former Heat assistant coach Tony Fiorentino with HEAT Summer Camps.[3]
Author
[edit]In 2007, he published A Raging Bull: Chasing the Big Time, a memoir detailing his experiences as a student-athlete,[3] the development of the basketball program, athletics, and the university as a whole.[3]
Filmmaker
[edit]In addition to his business acumen, his author and inventor successes, Grier entered into filmmaking. In 2024, he produced and directed the documentary The Last Teardrop, which received film festival recognition, including best film at the International Film Festival.[6][7][8]
Grier’s first experience with the documentary process was marketing the Oscar nominated documentary Hoop Dreams after its release in 1995. After contacting subjects Arthur Agee and William Gates, and providing the film to the Tampa Theatre, it premiered as subject Agee spoke to the Tampa crowd about his journey and the film success.[1][2]
References
[edit]- 1 2 Persall, Steve. ""Hoop' Dreamers headed to Tampa". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2026-09-22.
- 1 2 3 4 Putnam, Bob. "Grier gives back to community in form of youth programs". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2026-09-22.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Guzzo, Paul. "USF basketball great Tony Grier is now a documentary filmmaker". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2026-09-22.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Where are They Now: Tony Grier". USF Athletics. Retrieved 2026-09-22.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Tony Grier College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2026-09-22.
- ↑ Trujillo, Wayne (2023-10-31). "The Life of Bobby Wilson". Denver Urban Spectrum. Retrieved 2026-09-22.
- ↑ The Last Teardrop - Apple TV. Retrieved 2026-09-22 – via tv.apple.com.
- ↑ The Last Teardrop (2023). 2023-01-01. Retrieved 2026-09-22 – via tubitv.com.