‘ I’m just a crossing guard’: Forgotten NBA Hall of Famer and Lakers and Jazz star has stunning career change that sees him earn just $14,000 a year – HO

Adrian Dantley is one of the greatest scorers to have ever touched a basketball.

Dantley is a six-time NBA All-Star and two-time scoring champion who is the Utah Jazz’s all-time scoring leader and finished ninth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list upon retirement.

Dantley is a Utah Jazz legendCredit: Getty

The former sixth overall pick in the 1976 NBA Draft played 15 years in the NBA for the Buffalo Braves, Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks, and Milwaukee Bucks, averaging 24.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game.

The undersized forward retired in 1991 but returned to The Association in 2003 as a coach, spending eight years in Colorado as an assistant for the Denver Nuggets.

In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

One might think the now 69-year-old would be enjoying the fruits of his labor and relishing a quiet life in retirement.

But the 6ft 5in star is determined to give back to his local community, and took up a role in Silver Spring, Maryland, coaching young players and helping out with different roles across Eastern Middle School and New Hampshire Estates Elementary School.

One of those roles involves being a crossing guard for two hours a day, helping children safely cross the busy roads near the school.

According to Montgomery County civil service records, the job earns Dantley just $14,685.50 a year – despite the fact he made over $3.5 million during his playing days and still reportedly lives nearby in a home he bought for $1.1 million in 1990.

“You made millions playing in the NBA. You’re a Hall of Famer. Why this job?” Dantley was once asked.

He also played for the Lakers and made around $3.5 million during his careerCredit: Getty

Dantley has started a new career since retiring, working as a crossing guard for school childrenCredit: YouTube@abcnews

He earns about $14,000 a year for the job but loves itCredit: YouTube@abcnews

“Well, basically I didn’t work last year so I got bored sitting around the house,” Dantley responded.

“Usually I’m a routine guy. So I was in the weight room one day, and some guys were in there talking. They said they liked to do some things for some kids, but just a little bit, maybe one hour a day. And then one guy said you know what, my wife is a crossing guard! And I said to myself, that’d be a good job for me. That way I can stay busy, spend some time with the kids, do something for the community, and that’s why I’m here.”

Throwback to Charles Barkley getting roasted during first appearance on ‘Inside the NBA’ in 2000
“I didn’t know you were famous?” one kid asks him as he’s helped across the road.

“I’m not famous. I’m just a crossing guard,” Dantley humbly admits.

Dantley’s new vocation is certainly a far cry from his Hall of Fame basketball career.

He led the league in scoring in 1981 and 1984, averaging over 30 points per game each year while being named the 1984 NBA Comeback Player of the Year.

He also made all six of his all-star appearances while playing in Utah and was Team USA’s leading scorer in the 1976 Montreal Olympics as they claimed the gold medal.

When once asked by ABC News in 2013 why he chose such an unpretentious job, Dantley plainly replied, “It’s not beneath me! I’m a regular guy. I just played basketball. I’m a Hall of Famer, but I’m a regular guy. I like working. I do it to be beside the kids. I’ve definitely saved two kids’ lives [on the crossing].”

Dantley decided to do it because he was bored sitting at home and wanted to help outCredit: YouTube@abcnews

The NBA legend insists it isn’t beneath him and wants to instil an ethic of hard work to the kids he interacts withCredit: X@utahjazz

The 69-year-old also serves as a referee for youth basketball gamesCredit: X@utahjazz
He also admitted that the job had great health benefits and helped pay for his health insurance.

“I think I’ve been doing this for 10 years,” Dantley told Utah Jazz’s official YouTube channel in 2022. “10 years [and] probably do it till I go under.”

“It’s pretty fun, especially with the little ones. I just give them a high-five, talk to them a little bit, encourage them, that’s it.

Dantley is still very much in touch with his basketball roots though.

He’s also a referee for youth 10-and-under basketball games around his local area.

“I’ve been refereeing now for about nine years, I think,” Dantley said. “I enjoy being around the guys playing basketball. I really enjoy being around the 10-and-under just to see them develop from elementary school all the way through junior high school and then high school.”

“Most of the kids when I first started, they didn’t know me,” he went on. “As I’ve been officiating, pretty much all the kids and the parents know me now since I been doing it for a long period of time.”

Despite his legendary status in the world of basketball, Dantley wants the children he interacts with on a daily basis to understand the power of hard work and perseverance.

“I defeated all the odds and persevered. … That’s what I’m known for,” Dantley said.

“A lot of people that know me, they always say, ‘The hardest working man in town, they call me James Brown Jr.'”

Dantley is a legend in Salt Lake City and recently reflected on his time there.

“Utah is where it started. It was a great career. I enjoyed it,” he said.

“I love Utah, you know when I used to tell people, ‘I love Utah.’ They looked at me like I was crazy, like, ‘Hey, you a black guy, what is it do out there? I say, ‘Hey, I’m not going to do anything anyway during the season but play basketball and sleep.’ But I really like the people out there.”