Few names evoke a response in San Antonio quite like “Gervin.” There is, of course, Spurs great and NBA legend George “The Iceman” Gervin and for UTSA fans, there is his younger brother Derrick Gervin. UTSA began playing Division I basketball in 1981 and one year later, they received the gift of Gervin.

For three seasons, Gervin lit up the court for the Roadrunners and became a bonafide star on the college basketball scene. His stellar play helped put the nascent program on the proverbial map and brought attention that few players have in the 30 years since he left the program.

Before it was all said and done, Gervin would carve his name all over the UTSA record books. From 1982-1985, Gervin scored 1,691 points and averaged 21.1 points per game, which is currently the highest average in UTSA history. He declared himself eligible for the NBA Draft after the 1984-85 season, but before he left he averaged a staggering 25.6 points per game, also the best in UTSA history.

He was drafted in the fourth round that year by the Philadelphia 76ers, but injuries derailed his NBA career. He would play professionally for a number of teams before he made his NBA debut in the 1990-91 season with the New Jersey Nets. Gervin would go on to play professionally until 2001 when he joined the Iceman on the relaunched ABA’s Detroit Wheels – back in the brothers’ hometown.

After retiring, Gervin settled back in S.A. Since then, he has helped with the Gervin family’s charitable and community-involvement endeavors, run the AAU’s Team Gervin, and launched his own basketball podcast. UTSA also honored Gervin by retiring his jersey in 2006. Recently, he took some time to talk with us about the early days of the Roadrunners, his podcast (the Derrick Gervin “As Good as it Gets” podcast), and his current ties to the program.