Alex Groza

Last updated • 4 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

Alex Groza
Alex Groza.jpg
Personal information
Born(1926-10-07)October 7, 1926
Martins Ferry, Ohio, U.S.
DiedJanuary 21, 1995(1995-01-21) (aged 68)
San Diego, California, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight218 lb (99 kg)
Career information
High school Martins Ferry
(Martins Ferry, Ohio)
College Kentucky (1945–1949)
BAA draft 1949: 1st round, 2nd overall pick
Selected by the Indianapolis Jets
Playing career1949–1951
Position Center
Number15
Career history
As player:
19491951 Indianapolis Olympians
As coach:
1959–1966 Bellarmine
1970 Kentucky Colonels
1974–1975 San Diego Conquistadors
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points 2,925 (22.5 ppg)
Rebounds 709 (10.7 rpg)
Assists 318 (2.4 apg)
Stats   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg at NBA.com
Stats   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing Flag of the United States.svg United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1948 London Team competition

Alex John Groza [1] (October 7, 1926 – January 21, 1995) was an American professional basketball player from Martins Ferry, Ohio. Resulting from the CCNY point shaving scandal, Groza was banned from the National Basketball Association (NBA) for life in 1951. In college, he won two NCAA championships as captain of the University of Kentucky Wildcats, and was a two-time All-NBA player for the Indianapolis Olympians before his career abruptly ended.

Contents

Early life

Groza grew up in Martins Ferry, Ohio and attended Martins Ferry High School. He was the brother of future Pro Football Hall-of-Famer Lou Groza.

Alex Groza led the Purple Riders to two undefeated regular seasons and to the Ohio state tournament both years, as Martins Ferry finished 24–1 in 1943 and 26–1 in 1944. In 1944, he scored 628 points, including 41 in one game, and was named first-team All-Ohio. [2]

College career

A jersey honoring Groza hangs in Rupp Arena. Alex-Groza-jersey.jpg
A jersey honoring Groza hangs in Rupp Arena.

Groza was the captain and center of the "Fabulous Five" that won the 1948 and 1949 NCAA Men's Basketball Championships, as well as the leading scorer on the gold medal-winning 1948 US Olympic basketball team. [3] [4] Groza was three-time All-American and All-SEC, and two-time NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player.

Professional career

Groza was drafted in the 1st round of the 1949 BAA draft by the Indianapolis Jets. [5] While he signed a contract to play for the Jets, he later changed his mind and signed with Indianapolis Olympians of the National Basketball League as a player and co-owner. [6] [7] With the merger of the BAA and the NBL to form the National Basketball Association in August the same year, [8] Groza started his professional career in the new league where he averaged 23.4 points per game in his rookie season and was named NBA Rookie of the Year. Because the award was selected by newspaper writers at the time, the NBA currently does not recognize Groza having won the award. He averaged 22.5 points per game over two seasons before being implicated along with college teammates Ralph Beard and Dale Barnstable in a point shaving scandal during the 1948–49 season at Kentucky. NBA president Maurice Podoloff banned all of the implicated players from the league for life.

As a result of this ban, Groza became the first player in NBA history to end his career with a season in which he averaged at least 20 points per game (Groza averaged 21.7 PPG during the 1950–51). In NBA history, only three players have had higher scoring averages in their final NBA seasons: Bob Pettit (22.5 PPG in '64–65), Paul Arizin (21.9 PPG in '61–62), and Dražen Petrović (22.3 PPG in '92–93).

Groza, along with Beard, attempted a comeback in late 1952 with the Jersey City Titans, formerly of the American Basketball League, but were barred by Judge Saul S. Streit from participating in any professional athletics while under probation. [9]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GPGames played  GS Games started MPG Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage 3P%  3-point field goal percentage FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game APG  Assists per game SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game PPG Points per game Bold Career high
 * Led the league

Regular season

YearTeamGPFG%FT%RPGAPGPPG
1949–50 Indianapolis 64.478*.7292.523.4
1950–51 Indianapolis 66.470*.78610.72.421.7
Career130.474.76510.72.422.5
All-Star1.5001.00013.01.017.0

Playoffs

YearTeamGPFG%FT%RPGAPGPPG
1950 Indianapolis 6.595.8312.022.8
1951 Indianapolis 3.493.75814.00.732.3
Career9.544.80414.01.626.0

Coaching career

After his playing career ended, Groza became the coach of Bellarmine College (now University) in Louisville, Kentucky. In 1963, Groza led the Knights to a Kentucky Intercolliegiate Athletic Conference title and was named KIAC coach of the year. Groza left Bellarmine in 1966 for a brief coaching and managerial career in the American Basketball Association. Between 1971 and 1975, Groza coached 40 games with the Kentucky Colonels and San Diego Conquistadors and held a number of front office positions, including becoming the Kentucky Colonels' business manager in 1969 and general manager of the San Diego Conquistadors in 1972 (and, later, San Diego's head coach). Groza was 2–0 as coach of the Colonels but 15–23 as coach of the Conquistadors after replacing Wilt Chamberlain in 1974, putting his career coaching record at 17–23. [10] He was named general manager of the expansion Conquistadors on August 8, 1972. [11] In 1975 Groza became director of player development for the San Diego Sails of the ABA. [12] After the Sails folded, he was named vice president and general manager of the San Diego Breakers of the International Volleyball Association on April 5, 1976. [13]

Personal life

After the team moved to Houston, Groza remained in San Diego, working as a sales manager for Reynolds International until his death. [14]

Alex Groza died of cancer in 1995 at age 68. He was survived by his wife of 42 years, Jean (Watson) Groza, [2] two sons, two daughters, and two grandchildren. [14]

Miscellaneous

Related Research Articles

The National Basketball League (NBL) was a professional basketball league in the United States. Established in 1935 as the Midwest Basketball Conference, it changed its name to the NBL in 1937. After the 1948–49 season, its twelfth, it merged with the Basketball Association of America (BAA) to create the National Basketball Association (NBA). Five current NBA teams trace their history back to the NBL: the Atlanta Hawks, the Detroit Pistons, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Philadelphia 76ers, and the Sacramento Kings.

Maurice Podoloff was an American lawyer and a basketball and ice hockey administrator. He served as the president of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) from 1946 to 1949, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1949 to 1963, making Podoloff the de facto 1st commissioner in NBA history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indianapolis Olympians</span> Basketball team

The Indianapolis Olympians were a founding National Basketball Association (NBA) team based in Indianapolis. They were founded in 1949 and folded in 1953. Their home arena was Butler Fieldhouse on the campus of Butler University, now known as Hinkle Fieldhouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Capitols</span> Basketball team in Washington, district of colombia

The Washington Capitols were a former Basketball Association of America team based in Washington, D.C. from 1946 to 1951. The team was coached from 1946 to 1949 by NBA Hall of Famer Red Auerbach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Hannum</span> American basketball player and coach (1923–2002)

Alexander Murray Hannum was a professional basketball player and coach. Hannum coached two National Basketball Association (NBA) teams and one American Basketball Association (ABA) team to league championships. He had a combined NBA-ABA record of 649–564 (.535) in the regular season and 61–46 (.570) in the playoffs over 16 seasons. In 1998, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rod Strickland</span> American basketball player and coach

Rodney Strickland is an American basketball coach and former professional basketball player. He is currently the head coach at Long Island University. Prior to LIU, he served as the program manager for the NBA G League's professional path. Strickland played college basketball for the DePaul Blue Demons, earning All-American honors. He had a long career in the National Basketball Association (NBA), playing from 1988 to 2005. Strickland was an assistant coach for the South Florida Bulls, under Orlando Antigua from 2014 to 2017. He formerly served in an administrative role for the University of Kentucky basketball team under head coach John Calipari and was the director of basketball operations at the University of Memphis under Calipari. He is the godfather of current NBA player Kyrie Irving. Strickland was inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame with the Class of 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louie Dampier</span> American basketball player-coach (born 1944)

Louis Dampier is an American retired professional basketball player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ralph Beard</span> American basketball player

Ralph Milton Beard Jr. was an American collegiate and professional basketball player. He won two NCAA national basketball championships at the University of Kentucky and played two years in the National Basketball Association prior to being barred for life for his participation in the 1951 point shaving scandal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stan Albeck</span> American basketball player and coach (1931–2021)

Charles Stanley Albeck was an American professional basketball coach. Albeck coached for several teams in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA), including the Denver Rockets, the San Diego Conquistadors,, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the San Antonio Spurs, the New Jersey Nets, and the Chicago Bulls.

Felton LaFrance Spencer was an American professional basketball player who was a center for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Utah Jazz, Orlando Magic, Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, and New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1990 to 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bo Lamar</span> American basketball player (born 1951)

Dwight "Bo" Lamar is a former professional American basketball player. Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, he graduated from the University of Southwestern Louisiana, now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Lamar was a leading NCAA scorer and was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1973 American Basketball Association Draft.

The 1951 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game played on March 2, 1951, at Boston Garden in Boston, home of the Boston Celtics. The game was the first edition of the National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game and was played during the 1950–51 NBA season. The idea of holding an All-Star Game was conceived during a meeting between NBA President Maurice Podoloff, NBA publicity director Haskell Cohen and Boston Celtics owner Walter A. Brown. At that time, the basketball world had just been stunned by the college basketball point-shaving scandal. In order to regain public attention to the league, Cohen suggested the league to host an exhibition game featuring the league's best players, similar to the Major League Baseball's All-Star Game. Although most people, including Podoloff, were pessimistic about the idea, Brown remained confident that it would be a success. He even offered to host the game and to cover all the expenses or potential losses incurred from the game. The Eastern All-Stars team defeated the Western All-Stars team 111–94. Boston Celtics' Ed Macauley was named as the first NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award. The game became a success, drawing an attendance of 10,094, much higher than that season's average attendance of 3,500.

Eugene Stephen Rhodes was an American basketball player and coach.

The 1949 BAA draft was the third annual draft of the Basketball Association of America (BAA). The draft was held on March 21, 1949, before the 1949–50 season. In this draft, eleven BAA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players. The draft consisted of 8 rounds and a regional selection period, with 75 players selected. This was the final BAA Draft before the league merged with the National Basketball League to form the National Basketball Association (NBA) in August 1949. The 75 players selected matched the same number of players selected in the 1989 draft; both drafts have the fewest picks selected prior to 1989.

John David Douglas is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the San Diego Clippers.

The 1975-76 American Basketball Association season saw the San Diego Sails fold due to weak home attendance and other financial pressures; the team folded 11 games into the season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Spivey</span> American basketball player (1929–1995)

William Edwin Spivey was an American basketball player. A 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) center, he played college basketball for the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Kentucky Wildcats from 1949 to 1951. After his high school career, Spivey was recruited by the University of Kentucky. During his time with the Wildcats, he led the team to the 1951 NCAA tournament championship. When a point shaving scandal was revealed that year, Spivey was accused of being involved, which he denied. He left the Wildcats in December 1951, and the university banned him from the squad in March 1952.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commissioner of the NBA</span> Chief executive of the National Basketball Association

The commissioner of the NBA is the chief executive of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The current commissioner is Adam Silver, who succeeded David Stern on February 1, 2014.

Jack Gordon Parkinson was an American basketball player who is one of few players in National Collegiate Athletic Association history to win both the National Invitation Tournament (1946) and the NCAA tournament (1948). He also played one season in the National Basketball Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dale Barnstable</span> American basketball player (1925–2019)

Dale Barnstable was an American basketball player from Antioch, Illinois who was banned for life from the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1951 for point shaving during his college career at the University of Kentucky.

References

  1. Alex Groza Player Statistics Basketball-Reference.com
  2. 1 2 Alex Groza Ohio Valley Athletic Conference
  3. "All-Time Kentucky Team (Starting PG): #12 Ralph Beard". straitpinkie.com. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  4. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Alex Groza Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  5. "3 'Tucky Stars among choices in BAA draft". The Journal Herald . United Press. March 22, 1949. p. 8. Retrieved June 25, 2024 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  6. "'I suspect Groza is avoiding me', says B.A.A. president Podoloff in Lexington; He was so right". The Courier-Journal . June 2, 1949. p. 11 (Section 2). Retrieved June 25, 2024 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  7. Jim O'Leary (August 10, 1949). "Basketball merger saved red face for Alex Groza". The Knoxville News-Sentinel . p. 17. Retrieved June 25, 2024 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  8. "NBL, BAA merge, end pro net war". The Republic. UP. August 4, 1949. p. 11. Retrieved June 21, 2024 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  9. "Groza, Beard cage ban dooms Titans". The Jersey Journal . November 7, 1952. p. 16. Retrieved September 7, 2024 via Newspapers.com. Closed Access logo transparent.svg
  10. Alex Groza Coach Statistics Basketball-Reference.com
  11. White Jr., Gordon S. "Personalities: K.C. Jones Hired," The New York Times, Wednesday, August 9, 1972. Retrieved November 30, 2020
  12. Remember the ABA: San Diego Conquistadors/San Diego Sails Year-by-Year Notes Archived December 25, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  13. Harvin, Al. "People in Sports," The New York Times, Tuesday, April 6, 1976. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  14. 1 2 Alex Groza, Basketball Star For Kentucky, Is Dead at 68 New York Times. January 23, 1995.
  15. Gould, Todd (1998). Pioneers of the hardwood: Indiana and the birth of professional basketball . Indiana University Press. p.  167. ISBN   978-0-253-21199-6.