Purvis Short, American basketball player
Purvis Short (born July 2, 1957) is a retired American professional basketball player who played with the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1978 to 1990. A 6'7" small forward, Short averaged 17.3 points per game over his twelve-season career in the NBA. He is currently the Warriors seventh all-time leading scorer.After a brilliant career at Jackson State, Short was selected fifth overall in the 1978 NBA draft. Short was affectionately nicknamed "Rainbowman" because of the distinctive rainbow-like high arc of his jump shots, something he stated he obtained in high school. He was a role player and sixth man his first few years in the league. Short was a starter by the 1984–85 season, and scored a career high 59 points in a game against the New Jersey Nets in 1984. After leaving the NBA, he played one year of basketball in Israel, and is currently the director of the NBA Players Association's Department of Player Programs.