Quintin Dailey

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Quintin Dailey, a former All-American basketball player who also played 10 seasons in the NBA and made the 1982-1983 All-Rookie team, has died in Las Vegas. He was 49.

The Clark County Coroner's Office on Tuesday confirmed Dailey's death to The Associated Press. The office said the former University of San Francisco star died naturally of hypertensive cardiovascular disease.

Dailey's death was first reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Former USF coach Dan Belluomini, who recruited Dailey from high school at Cardinal Gibbons in Baltimore, said he was a tremendous player and terrific worker.

"He was a big surprise when he came to USF as a freshman and I remember (former Georgetown coach) John Thompson telling me that Quintin was a great player and when you get him at San Francisco you will find out how good," Belluomini said. "About 20 minutes into the first practice, I found out how true that was. It's a shame that he passed so early."

Dailey became one of the best offensive players in Dons history, leaving after three years with 1,841 points, second best in school history at the time.

Dailey won West Coast Conference player of the year in 1981 and 1982 and was an AP All-American in 1982. He played professionally for Chicago, the Los Angeles Clippers and Seattle, averaging 14.2 points per game for his career.

Dailey worked as a supervisor at a community center in Las Vegas for at-risk youth. A worker who answered the phone at the center Tuesday referred questions to a county spokeswoman, who declined to comment beyond the coroner's findings.

USF officials said Dailey is survived by his daughter, Quincy, and son Quintin, a junior guard for Eastern Michigan.


Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press