Willie Taylor (basketball)

Taylor was born on September 24, 1946,^[1] and played basketball at Henry High School in Byhalia, Mississippi.^[2] He played college basketball for the LeMoyne–Owen Magicians where he starred as a center from 1965 to 1969.^[3] He averaged 18 points and 18 rebounds per game during his senior season.^[2]

Taylor was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers as the 28th overall pick in the 1969 NBA draft.^[4] He was drafted at the recommendation of a 76ers scout who saw him play at the 1969 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament where he recorded 25 points and 22 rebounds in a game.^[2] 76ers head coach and general manager, Jack Ramsay, considered taking Taylor in the first round – ultimately choosing Bud Ogden – and claimed that "he could be the biggest sleeper in the draft."^[5] Taylor signed a one-year deal with the 76ers on June 29, 1969,^[2] but only played sparingly in two exhibition games.^[6] He was waived by the 76ers on September 28, 1969, as the team's final roster cut before the start of the 1969–70 NBA season.^[6]

Taylor was the pastor of Mt. Olive MB Church in Byhalia.^[7] He had three children with his wife, Cassie, who died in 2014 after 44 years of marriage.^[8]

Taylor died at Methodist Germantown Hospital in Germantown, Tennessee, on January 29, 2026, at the age of 79.^[1][9]