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Player profile · DET / MNL / NYK
Walter Dukes
Walter Dukes stats, teams and career impact
#413 all-timeCareer averages · 10.4 PPG · 11.3 RPG · 1.1 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
- Position
- Center
- Final NBA team
- Detroit Pistons
- Height / weight
- 7 ft 0 in (213 cm) · 220 lb (100 kg)
- Born
- June 23, 1930
- Died
- March 13, 2001 (70 yrs old)
- College
- Seton Hall
- NBA seasons
- 8 seasons · 1955–56 to 1962–63
Career summaryWalter Dukes was a center who played 8 NBA seasons, from 1955–56 through 1962–63.
- Career PPG
- 10.4
- Career RPG
- 11.3
- Career APG
- 1.1
- #35 in 1960–61
- #413 all-time
Best-Season Impact Rank
Career Impact Rank
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
Career overview
Why Walter Dukes ranks #413 all time
Walter Dukes ranks #413 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #44.3. His full-career value ranks #1229, so this placement is driven more by dominance than longevity.
450+ minutes required per season
553 games · Career Value Rank #1229
NBA honors2× All-StarContext only; honors are not model inputs.
Head to head
Compare Walter Dukes with…
Suggested matchups from basketball rivalries, comparable roles, and similar careers. Compare career impact, peak seasons, and the numbers behind the result.
- Walter Dukes vs. John Gianelli Similar career path
- Walter Dukes vs. J.J. Hickson Similar career path
- Walter Dukes vs. Jim Krebs Similar career path
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- Walter Dukes vs. Curtis Rowe Similar career path
- Walter Dukes vs. Kevin Kunnert Similar career path
- Walter Dukes vs. Dave Piontek Same-era comparison
- Walter Dukes vs. Jim Loscutoff Same-era comparison
- Walter Dukes vs. Slick Leonard Same-era comparison
- Walter Dukes vs. Johnny McCarthy Same-era comparison
Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources
Full team history
- Teams
- New York Knicks, Minneapolis Lakers, and Detroit Pistons
Career shooting
NBA regular season- Field goal
- 36.9%FG%
- Three-point
- —3P%
- Free throw
- 70.0%FT%
553 career games · 14,671 minutes
Sources and updateConventional stats and measurements: Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 13, 2026. hussEyquation ranking data through 2025–26. Life dates: Wikidata; conflicting dates checked against Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 17, 2026.
Traditional box score
Walter Dukes stats by season
Start with scoring and impact, then switch views for shooting or the full advanced picture. Career percentages use total makes and attempts.
Box impact is an estimate in points per 100 possessions, not the 0–100 Impact Rate score. Zero is league average; higher is better. Rate rank is a league place: No. 1 is best.
Swipe for PPG · RPG · APG · Box impact · Team · G · GS · MPG →
| pts/100 · higher is better | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962–63 | 4.3 | 5.8 | 0.9 | -3.10 | DET | 62 | 0 | 14.7 | 32.5% | — | 73.7% | #78 | -25.1 |
| 1961–62 | 9.4 | 10.4 | 1.6 | -1.10 | DET | 77 | 0 | 24.6 | 39.6% | — | 71.5% | #46 | 44.3 |
| 1960–61 | 11.7 | 14.1 | 1.9 | -0.59 | DET | 73 | 0 | 28.0 | 40.5% | — | 70.3% | #35 | 75.6 |
| 1959–60 | 15.2 | 13.4 | 1.2 | -1.66 | DET | 66 | 0 | 32.4 | 36.1% | — | 74.0% | #54 | 18.5 |
| 1958–59 | 13.0 | 13.3 | 0.9 | -1.62 | DET | 72 | 0 | 32.5 | 35.2% | — | 65.7% | #58 | 22.1 |
| 1957–58 | 11.2 | 13.3 | 0.7 | -1.60 | DET | 72 | 0 | 30.3 | 34.9% | — | 67.5% | #54 | 21.6 |
| 1956–57 | 10.1 | 11.2 | 0.8 | -1.20 | MNL | 71 | 0 | 26.3 | 36.4% | — | 68.9% | #52 | 35.8 |
| 1955–56 | 7.8 | 7.4 | 0.7 | -2.44 | NYK | 60 | 0 | 21.5 | 40.3% | — | 70.8% | #69 | -12.7 |
| Career | 10.4 | 11.3 | 1.1 | — | DET/MNL/NYK | 553 | — | 26.5 | 36.9% | — | 70.0% | — | — |
Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.
What these measures mean
- Box impact
- Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average, from the historical box-score model. Zero is league average; higher is better. Historical defense estimates are included where labeled. This is not the live model's lineup-adjusted estimate.
- Impact Rate
- A 0–100 score comparing performance within one season. Higher is better. This is a score, not points per possession.
- Impact estimate
- The season model's final estimated points per 100 possessions above league average, before conversion to the 0–100 Impact Rate score. It includes lineup evidence where available. Zero is league average; higher is better.
- Impact Rate rank
- The player's place among qualified players in that season's Impact Rate ranking. No. 1 is best. This is a rank, not an impact score.
- Value contribution / Season Value
- Completed seasons use a fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. The live season instead uses Season Value, combining that season's impact with workload.
- Career Impact Rank
- An all-time rank weighted toward the player's best three, five, and ten seasons.
48.8 composite · lower is better
48.2 average league finish
180 total value
- Impact Rate
- 0–100 score within one season. Higher is better.
- Box impact
- Estimated points per 100 possessions above league average, from the historical model. Zero is average; higher is better.
Career standing
How Walter Dukes ranks all time
These are league placements, not raw scores. Each season is judged against that season's qualified player pool.
Best in the league
Elite finishes
Upper-tier finishes
Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons
Career Composite Score48.8
Best 3, Best 5, and Best 10 average league finishes receive 50%, 30%, and 20% window weights. Missing seasons receive a replacement finish just below the player's typical qualified field. Lower is better.
- Best 3 effective weight
- 74%
- Missing-season finish
- 81.0
- Qualified seasons
- 8
- All-time rank
- #413
Strongest seasons
Every season
Walter Dukes advanced stats by season
Era-centered box impact supports comparisons through time. Impact Rate and its rank compare players only within that season.
More advanced statsAge, minutes, impact, rank, value and data coverage
Scroll for more columns
| pts/100 · higher is better | 0–100 · higher is better | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962–63Historical Defense Estimate | DET | 32 | 62 | 913 | -3.10 | 15.4 | #78 | -25.1 | 16th | Modeled |
| 1961–62Historical Defense Estimate | DET | 31 | 77 | 1,896 | -1.10 | 47.7 | #46 | 44.3 | 51st | Modeled |
| 1960–61Historical Defense Estimate | DET | 30 | 73 | 2,044 | -0.59 | 57.0 | #35 | 75.6 | 61st | Modeled |
| 1959–60Historical Defense Estimate | DET | 29 | 66 | 2,140 | -1.66 | 32.1 | #54 | 18.5 | 40th | Modeled |
| 1958–59Historical Defense Estimate | DET | 28 | 72 | 2,338 | -1.62 | 28.8 | #58 | 22.1 | 38th | Modeled |
| 1957–58Historical Defense Estimate | DET | 27 | 72 | 2,184 | -1.60 | 30.3 | #54 | 21.6 | 34th | Modeled |
| 1956–57Historical Defense Estimate | MNL | 26 | 71 | 1,866 | -1.20 | 35.4 | #52 | 35.8 | 42nd | Modeled |
| 1955–56Historical Defense Estimate | NYK | 25 | 60 | 1,290 | -2.44 | 9.3 | #69 | -12.7 | 9th | Modeled |
Career movement
Walter Dukes's box impact by season
Peak box impact -0.59 points per 100 possessions in 1960–61 · 8 seasons · 14,671 minutes
Box impact estimates points per 100 possessions above each season's league average. Zero is average; higher is better. Rank labels show Impact Rate league places, not ranks on this chart's box-impact scale.
Box impact · points per 100 possessionsMinutesModeled estimate
Player-specific impact scaleWorkload
Career comparison
Compare the shape, not the calendar
Align by NBA experience to compare season one with season one, or by age to compare players at the same stage of life.
Walter DukesJohn Gianelli
| NBA season | Walter Dukes | John Gianelli |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | -2.4 | -2.4 |
| 2 | -1.2 | -1.0 |
| 3 | -1.6 | -0.9 |
| 4 | -1.6 | -1.4 |
| 5 | -1.7 | -1.6 |
| 6 | -0.6 | -0.5 |
| 7 | -1.1 | -1.3 |
| 8 | -3.1 | -7.0 |
NBA season number
Similar career arcs
Players with careers similar to Walter Dukes
The career-similarity score compares era-centered box impact, peak, prime, workload, career length, position, and experience-aligned trajectory. It describes career shape, not playing style, equal ability, or probability.
C · All-Time Career #1220
John Gianelli
95career similarity score
94/100 closest-season score · 1960–61 ↔ 1978–79C · All-Time Career #2092J.J. Hickson
94career similarity score
85/100 closest-season score · 1960–61 ↔ 2013–14C · All-Time Career #461Jim Krebs
93career similarity score
91/100 closest-season score · 1960–61 ↔ 1962–63Impact Rate shows how strong a player was compared with everyone else that season. Season Value adds how much he played; completed player-profile rows instead show each season's fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. Career Impact Rank rewards a high peak, a long prime, and repeated seasons near the top. Older seasons use clearly labeled estimates where the NBA did not record today's full set of statistics. Read how every ranking works →