Jamie Russell

Last updated

Jamie Russell
Personal information
Born (1952-04-23) 23 April 1952 (age 72)
Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
NationalityCanadian
Listed height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Career information
High school Nelson High School
(Burlington, Ontario)
College Colgate University (1971–1975)
University of Waterloo (1975-76)
Position Power forward
Number11
Career highlights and awards
  • CIAU Player of the Year (1976)
  • CIAU First Team All-Canadian (1976)
  • OUAA All-star (1976)
  • OUAA Tournament MVP (1976)

James Russell (born 23 April 1952) is Canadian basketball player, Olympian and a surgeon. His accomplishments include being the youngest starter for the Canadian men's national basketball team [1] , performing well for Canada in multiple international tournaments, [1] [2] and being named the Canadian university ("CIAU") MVP in 1976. [1] [2] [3] After his basketball career, Russell distinguished himself in the field of general surgery. [4]

Contents

International career

Russell played for the Canadian national team from 1972 to 1979. [2] [5] At age 20, he was the youngest starter for the national team. [1]

Russell represented Canada in the 1976 Olympic games. [2] [5] [6] Canada performed well in these Olympics, finishing fourth overall. [5] [7] [8] This and the 1984 Olympics constitute the only occasions in the last 90 years in which Canada has competed for an Olympic medal in basketball. [7] Russell performed well in this tournament, being Canada's 4th leading scorer with 10 ppg [8] and Canada's third leading rebounder with 5 rbg. [9]

Russell represented Canada in many additional international tournaments. Russell played in the 1972 Pre-Olympic Tournament where he was Canada's fourth leading scorer. [5] [10] Russell then competed in the 1973 World Student Games, where Canada finished fourth overall. [1] [2] Russell also competed in the 1974 FIBA World Championship where he performed particularly well, being Canada's leading scorer with 14 ppg. [2] [6] [11]

Russell also participated in the 1975 Intercontinental Cup. [1] [2] In this tournament, Canada achieved its first win against the Soviet Union in basketball, with Russell leading Canada with 26 points. [1] [2]

Russell played in the 1975 Pan American Games [1] [2] and then in the 1977 World Student Games, where Canada finished fourth. [2]

Russell also competed in the 1978 FIBA World Championship where Canada finished 6th overall, with Russell being Canada's fourth leading scorer with 8.9 ppg. [1] [2] [12]

University

Before university, Russell played for Burlington Nelson High School, where he led the team to its first provincial championship. [1] [2] [5]

Russell played for Colgate University from 1971-1975, where he was a starter for three years. [2] [5] Colgate is one of the most selective universities in the United States, [13] which required strong academic performance by Russell prior to admission. [1] Russell led the team in rebounds in each of his seasons at Colgate. [6] In his freshman year, Russell averaged 22 points per game with a 63.7% field goal percentage. [2] In his final season with Colgate, he was co-captain. [1] [2] [6] During his time at Colgate, he scored 927 points and recorded 463 rebounds with a 52% field goal percentage. [2] [6]

In the 1975-76 season, Russell played a 5th year at the University of Waterloo. [1] [5] In 1976, Russell received the inaugural Mike Moser award as the CIAU male basketball player of the year. [1] [2] [3] This year, he was also named a CIAU First Team All-Canadian, Ontario Universities Athletics Association ("OUAA") All-star and as the OUAA tournament MVP. [1] [2] [3]

In this 1975-76 season, Russell led the Waterloo Warriors to a third-place finish in the CIAU tournament. [1] [2] He averaged 23.9 ppg, 10.3 rebounds per game with a 51.8% field goal percentage. [1] [2] [3] He was also named as the MVP of the Naismith Classic as well as the Waterloo team MVP. [2] [3]

After his university career and while playing for the national team, Russell served as an assistant coach at McMaster University from 1976-78. [2] [3]

Professional/Semi-Pro

From 1976-82 and then from 1987-91, Russell was captain of the Toronto Estonia team in the Canada Senior Men's League, where he won 10 Ontario Basketball Association championships and two Canadian league championships. [1] [2] [5]

Post-career recognition

Russell has been inducted into the Canada Basketball Hall of Fame (2000), [5] the Ontario Basketball Hall of Fame (2019), [2] the Colgate University Athletic Hall of Honor (1980) [6] and the city of Burlington Sports Hall of Fame (2016). [1] Also, the 1976 men's national team of which he was part was inducted into the Canada Basketball Hall of Fame (2007). [14]

Medical career

Russell received his medical degree from McMaster University in 1979. [1] [2] [4] He served as assistant coach at McMaster while completing his studies. [2] He completed his residency at McMaster and his fellowship in surgery/critical care medicine at the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services. [1] [2] [4] He is board certified by the American College of Surgeons in Surgery and Surgical Care, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeon, a member of the American Society of General Surgeons and an instructor in Advanced Trauma and Life Support. [4] He is also a clinical assistant professor at the University of Arizona. [2]

Personal life

Russsell was raised in Burlington, Ontario and was born on 23 April 1952. [5] [15]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 "Dr. Jamie Russell". Burlington Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 "James Russell" (PDF). Ontario Basketball Hall of Fame. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Jamie Russell". U Sports Hoops. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "James Russell, MD". Dignity Health. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Jamie Russell—Athlete" (PDF). Canada Basketball Hall of Fame. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "James C. Russell". Colgate Raiders Hall of Honor. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  7. 1 2 "Reflecting on when Karl Tilleman, Eli Pasquale, and Their Fellow Canadian University Teammates Took a Shot at Ruling the Basketball World". Somers Point News. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  8. 1 2 "1976 Olympic Games - Canada's Roster". FIBA Archive. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  9. ↑ "1976 Olympic Games - Canada Team Statistics". FIBA Archive. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  10. ↑ "1972 Pre-Olympic Tournament - Canada's Roster". FIBA Archive. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  11. ↑ "1974 World Championship for Men -- Canada's Roster". FIBA Archive. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  12. ↑ "1978 World Championship for Men -- Canada's Roster". FIBA Archive. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  13. ↑ "Top 100 - Lowest Acceptance Rates". US News & World Report. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  14. ↑ "1976 Senior Men's Olympic Team – Team Induction Class of 2007" (PDF). Canada Basketball Hall of Fame. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  15. ↑ "Jamie Russell". Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
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