Last Updated on July 28, 2026 by Mat Diekhake

Willie Naulls was an athletic NBA power forward whose scoring, rebounding, and transition play made him one of the premier frontcourt players of the late 1950s and 1960s with the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics. A versatile inside scorer with strong defensive instincts, Naulls blended physicality and mobility while contributing to multiple championship teams in basketball’s early NBA era.

Here is the detailed information about Willie Naulls, a former NBA player:

Player Profile

  • Full Name: William Dean Naulls
  • Nationality: American
  • Age: Born on October 7, 1934 (passed away on November 22, 2018, at the age of 84)
  • Hometown: Dallas, Texas, USA (raised in San Pedro, California)
  • Height: 6 feet 6 inches (198 cm)
  • Weight: 225 pounds (102 kg)
  • Wingspan: 6 feet 7 inches
  • Shoe Size: Size 15 (US)
  • Number: Wore jersey numbers 6, 12, and 71
  • Position: Power Forward / Center
  • High School: San Pedro High School in San Pedro, California
  • College: University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) (1953–1956)
  • NBA Draft: Selected in the 2nd round (9th overall pick) in the 1956 NBA Draft by the St. Louis Hawks
  • Teams Played For:
    • St. Louis Hawks (1956)
    • New York Knicks (1956–1962)
    • San Francisco Warriors (1962–1963)
    • Boston Celtics (1963–1966)
  • Championship Rings: 3 NBA championships with the Boston Celtics (1964, 1965, 1966)
  • Kids: Not publicly available
  • Siblings: Not publicly available

Player Archetype / Play Style

Willie Naulls’ player archetype was that of a scoring forward with interior toughness, essentially an athletic frontcourt scorer who could rebound, run the floor, and carry major offensive responsibility while still bringing strong effort on the glass. Defensively, he fit as a physical forward who used strength, mobility, and competitiveness to battle around the paint, rebound his position, and hold up as a rugged team defender in an era that demanded constant interior play. Offensively, his role was much larger than that of a mere finisher, as he could operate as a primary or secondary scorer, produce from the mid-range and inside, and pressure defenses with his activity and volume scoring, which showed up clearly during his high-scoring Knicks years. Physically, Naulls was a well-built 6-foot-6 forward with a strong frame, good athleticism, and enough quickness to play bigger than many wings while still moving fluidly in transition. Overall, his play style blended scoring punch, rebounding, toughness, and mobile frontcourt versatility, making him one of the more productive two-way forwards of his generation.

Scouting Report

Willie Naulls played with the instincts of a forward who was always searching for the next advantage instead of settling for the obvious one. He wasn’t content to park on the block waiting for an entry pass. He liked to face up, attack from the elbows and flow into quick moves before the defence could load up, and that willingness to operate in space made him much harder to contain than many frontcourt scorers of his era. What stands out is how smoothly he moved without the ball. He recognised when a teammate drew help, slipped behind ball-watchers for easy finishes and timed his cuts so they arrived just as passing lanes opened. His jumper from the mid-range forced defenders to leave the paint, which naturally created cleaner driving lanes for everyone else. Defensively, he covered ground well enough to contest away from the basket before recovering inside, and he rarely overcommitted on the first move, preferring to stay balanced and make scorers finish over length rather than giving them a direct route to the rim. The trade-off was that stronger interior players could drag him into a more physical game around the block, where leverage became more important than mobility, and he wasn’t the type to anchor every defensive possession through sheer size. To me, his ideal role was next to a true interior centre who embraced the bruising work, allowing Naulls to attack from different spots on the floor, run in transition and exploit mismatches against slower forwards. There are echoes of Clifford Robinson in the way he blended mobility with face-up scoring, while parts of his offensive rhythm remind me of Rasheed Wallace when Wallace chose to attack quickly instead of holding the ball. Naulls’ game always felt one step ahead of the defence because he understood that movement, not just talent, creates good offence.

Sources:

Basketball-Reference — Willie Naulls Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft Status and more
UCLA Athletics — Willie Naulls (1986) – Hall of Fame
NBA.com — Knicks Name Willie Naulls First African-American Captain in a Major Pro Sport