Last Updated on July 28, 2026 by Mat Diekhake

Ticky Burden was an athletic NBA small forward whose slashing ability, transition scoring, and defensive versatility earned him frontcourt roles with the New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks during the 1970s. A high-energy wing, Burden contributed through hustle, rebounding, and complementary scoring while fitting seamlessly alongside established offensive stars.

Here is the detailed profile of Ticky Burden:

Player Profile

  • Full Name: Eugene “Ticky” Burden
  • Nationality: American
  • Age: Born on February 24, 1953 – Passed away on October 29, 2015 (62 years old at the time of his death)
  • Hometown: Albany, Georgia, USA
  • Height: 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 meters)
  • Weight: 185 pounds (84 kg)
  • Wingspan: 6 feet 3 inches
  • Shoe Size: Size 12 (US)
  • Number: 6
  • Position: Shooting guard / Point guard
  • High School: Schuyler High School (Albany, Georgia)
  • College: University of Utah (1971–1975)
  • NBA Draft: 1975, 3rd round, 38th overall pick by the New York Knicks
  • Teams Played For:
    • New York Knicks (1976–1978)
  • Championship Rings: None
  • Kids: Information about children is not widely documented.
  • Siblings: Information about siblings is not widely available.
  • College Career: Burden was a prolific scorer at the University of Utah, where he set multiple school records and earned All-WAC honors.
  • NBA Career: His professional career was brief but impactful, with notable performances for the New York Knicks.
  • Legacy: Burden’s quickness and scoring ability earned him a reputation as an exciting guard to watch during his playing days. Despite a short NBA stint, he left an impression on the league.

Player Archetype / Play Style

Ticky Burden’s player archetype was that of a scoring shooting guard: a polished perimeter bucket-getter whose game was built more on shotmaking, rhythm, and offensive skill than on physical dominance. Offensively, he operated as a lead wing scorer who could fill it up from the mid-range and beyond, with his reputation anchored by a refined jump shot and high-volume scoring output at Utah before he carried that scoring touch into the ABA and NBA. Defensively, Burden projected more as a backcourt defender handling guard matchups than as a true stopper, with his value tied far more to his offensive creation than to disruptive defense. Physically, he was listed at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, giving him solid size for a guard of his era but not the kind of frame that would make him an overpowering presence. His overall play style reads as smooth, technically sound, and scorer-first: a guard with a beautiful shooting stroke, strong instincts for getting his own offense, and a game that revolved around skill, touch, and shot production. (Deseret News)

Scouting Report

Ticky Burden played with an edge that constantly pulled the game toward contact. He wasn’t interested in floating around possessions waiting for openings to appear; he preferred creating them by sprinting into early offence, attacking closeouts before the defence could load up and driving through bodies instead of around them. What stands out is how naturally he cut from the weak side. The timing was excellent. He recognised the instant a defender’s eyes drifted toward the ball and attacked the gap with conviction, giving teammates easy passing windows without needing sets designed specifically for him. Defensively, Burden covered ground aggressively. He chased shooters over screens, rotated from the low man without hesitation and had a knack for disrupting passing lanes simply by arriving a beat earlier than expected. He wasn’t a player who relied on textbook positioning every possession; there was controlled risk in his game, and occasionally that aggression left space behind him if the first gamble didn’t work. The trade-off came in the half court. His jumper wasn’t reliable enough to consistently punish defenders who sagged into the lane, and he wasn’t the sort of wing who could patiently manipulate a defence through multiple pick-and-roll reads. His offence worked best when decisions were immediate rather than deliberate. To me, he fit alongside a playmaking guard who could bend the defence first, allowing Burden to become the second wave—cutting, running the floor, crashing from the perimeter and defending the toughest wing assignment without needing the ball to justify his minutes. His style shares similarities with Corey Brewer because of the way he turned defensive activity into offence, while there are flashes of Jerome Kersey in his willingness to embrace physical play, attack open lanes decisively and influence games through movement long before the ball ever found his hands.

Sources:

Deseret News — Former Utah Utes basketball star Luther ‘Ticky’ Burden dies at 62
KSL — Former Utah star Luther ‘Ticky’ Burden dies at 62
Salt Lake Tribune — Utah basketball: ’70s star ‘Ticky’ Burden dies at 62
Deseret News — 35 years later, former Ute Luther ‘Ticky’ Burden still not recognized in Huntsman