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Tony Duckett earned a reputation as one of the top clutch players in the history of Lafayette College men's basketball.
When the game was on the line, the ball routinely wound up in the capable hands of No. 14. More often than not, the talented Leopards guard delivered when he was most needed.Since his graduation in 1985, Duckett hasn't shied away from any of his endeavors in the business world.
Duckett, who lives in Los Angeles, was recently appointed Executive Vice President of Sales for NTN Buzztime, Inc. With nearly 25 years of experience in sales and business development, Duckett is tasked with Buzztime's subscription sales and retention staff.
Prior to NTN Buzztime, Duckett was Senior Vice President of Sales at Nexicon, Inc. Additionally, Duckett spearheaded the Business Development team as president of Umbrella Entertainment, Inc.Duckett, who earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lafayette in Economics and Business, has also held executive level positions with Bowe & Company, Nortel Networks, Tandem Computers, Sony and IBM.Duckett, who is black, admits he faced a considerable adjustment period when he first arrived on Lafayette's campus in 1981.
Duckett's four seasons at Lafayette (1981-85) wasn't the most successful period in school history. The Leopards went a combined 46-66 and their only winning record during that stretch was a 15-13 mark his senior year in 1984-85.Duckett says the record was somewhat misleading.
Duckett played his first three seasons on College Hill under head coach Will Rackley. His senior season he played for the late Butch van Breda Kolff. He admitted his relationship with Rackley was a bit strained.
Duckett says those Lafayette teams lacked the chemistry needed to be consistent winners.
A highlight of Duckett's career was a 67-65 win over LaSalle during his freshman season at Kirby Sports Center.Duckett also recalls a game his senior season against a powerful St. John's team that featured Chris Mullin, Mark Jackson and Walter Berry.
Duckett spoke of his relationship with backcourt mate Stan Morse, who was also a Brooklyn native.
Duckett was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the sixth round (123rd pick) of the 1985 NBA draft. After he was cut, Duckett had a brief professional career in Europe before giving up basketball for the business world.
When the game was on the line, the ball routinely wound up in the capable hands of No. 14. More often than not, the talented Leopards guard delivered when he was most needed.Since his graduation in 1985, Duckett hasn't shied away from any of his endeavors in the business world.
Duckett, who lives in Los Angeles, was recently appointed Executive Vice President of Sales for NTN Buzztime, Inc. With nearly 25 years of experience in sales and business development, Duckett is tasked with Buzztime's subscription sales and retention staff.
"I've come full circle," said Duckett, who was born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y."I'm incredibly pleased with where I'm at. This job allows me to combine entertainment, sports and technology all in one job. All the aspects I have experience in are in this one position."
Prior to NTN Buzztime, Duckett was Senior Vice President of Sales at Nexicon, Inc. Additionally, Duckett spearheaded the Business Development team as president of Umbrella Entertainment, Inc.Duckett, who earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lafayette in Economics and Business, has also held executive level positions with Bowe & Company, Nortel Networks, Tandem Computers, Sony and IBM.Duckett, who is black, admits he faced a considerable adjustment period when he first arrived on Lafayette's campus in 1981.
"It was an interesting time," he said. "At that particular time there weren't a lot of people of color at Lafayette. It was a difficult transition coming from a big city to a small town. But there were a lot of great people there who helped me through that adjustment period."
Duckett's four seasons at Lafayette (1981-85) wasn't the most successful period in school history. The Leopards went a combined 46-66 and their only winning record during that stretch was a 15-13 mark his senior year in 1984-85.Duckett says the record was somewhat misleading.
"We probably lost more games by two or three points than any team in NCAA history," he said. "We just couldn't get over the hump. No excuses. A loss is a loss. But with the exception of Maryland and Georgetown, very few people blew us out. One thing I can say is our teams never gave up. We fought and when we were down we fought some more. I'm very proud of that fact."
Duckett played his first three seasons on College Hill under head coach Will Rackley. His senior season he played for the late Butch van Breda Kolff. He admitted his relationship with Rackley was a bit strained.
"There were certain guys he was exceptionally tough on and I was one of them," Duckett said. "We had a very bad rapport. I was a tough kid from the city and it became confrontational. As I got older I realized I was the leader of the team and that's why he was so demanding. When I was 18, I didn't know that."
Duckett says those Lafayette teams lacked the chemistry needed to be consistent winners.
"We had a lot of talent," he said. "The problem was the coach (Rackley) didn't recruit the right players for the style he wanted to play. It wasn't the coach's fault. We were a bunch of young kids who wanted to do it our way."
A highlight of Duckett's career was a 67-65 win over LaSalle during his freshman season at Kirby Sports Center.Duckett also recalls a game his senior season against a powerful St. John's team that featured Chris Mullin, Mark Jackson and Walter Berry.
"St. John's went to the Final Four that year and we competed pretty well," Duckett said. "We were down six at the half. Five seconds into the second half I went to dunk on a guy and he knocked me into the tuba section. I was shaken up so the coach (van Breda Kolff) took me out of the game and we wound up losing by about three million (93-47)."
Duckett spoke of his relationship with backcourt mate Stan Morse, who was also a Brooklyn native.
"Stan was actually a better athlete than I was," Duckett said. "He could jump higher and run faster than me, but he didn't have the motivation. He lost his mom his freshman year and he never recovered. You know what? My mom died six months later. After seeing what he went through I wasn't going to let the same thing happen to me."
Duckett was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the sixth round (123rd pick) of the 1985 NBA draft. After he was cut, Duckett had a brief professional career in Europe before giving up basketball for the business world.
"I actually had a great camp (in Atlanta)," Duckett said. "I could get to the basket and find the open guy, which is what they were looking for. But I hurt my ankle and that was the end of that. I wanted to play in the NBA and when that didn't happen it was time to pursue something else."