David Rivers going into Notre Dame Ring of Honor

During halftime of Notre Dame's matchup with Syracuse Saturday, former Irish great David Rivers will have his name added to the Notre Dame Ring of Honor.

Rivers was the Irish point guard from 1984-1988 and led Notre Dame to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances. He is the programs sixth all-time scorer with 2,058 points and also handed out 586 assists.

He will be the sixth men's basketball player to be added to the Ring of Honor, something his former head coach Digger Phelps is proud of.

"He is probably, as you look at those players up there, one of the great point guards ever to play college basketball," said Phelps. "But more importantly, what he's doing now with his life after basketball, helping ex basketball players, especially in Europe, to find a way they can play the game of life and be successful."

Rivers was selected as the 25th overall selection in the first round of the 1988 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Lakers.

He played for the Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers during his NBA career before moving to Europe and developing into one of the most noteworthy American players to ever compete in the Euroleague.

As a member of Olympiacos in Greece, Rivers was named the 1997 Euroleague Final Four MVP when his squad became the first Greek team to win the Euroleague Championship.

Rivers, who served as a team captain during his sophomore, junior and senior seasons, will forever be remembered for his amazing recovery from a life-threatening automobile accident before his junior season at Notre Dame.

On August 24, 1986, he was thrown from the passenger seat of a van that swerved to avoid a drunk driver and suffered a 15-inch gash across his abdomen.

An emergency surgery at Elkhart General Hospital saved his life and Rivers returned to the court just 90 days later to play 34 minutes in Notre Dame’s season-opening game of 1986-87.

Rivers would go on to lead the team in minutes played that season and earn honorable mention All-America honors.