Hal Greer
 Greer in 1969 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 26, 1936 Huntington, West Virginia |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Douglass (Huntington, West Virginia) |
| College | Marshall (1955–1958) |
| NBA draft | 1958 / Round: 2 / Pick: 13th overall |
| Selected by the Syracuse Nationals | |
| Playing career | 1958–1973 |
| Position | Guard / Forward |
| Number | 15 |
| Career history | |
| 1958–1973 | Syracuse Nationals / Philadelphia 76ers |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career statistics | |
| Points | 21,586 (19.2 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 5,665 (5.0 rpg) |
| Assists | 4,540 (4.0 apg) |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame as player | |
|
College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 | |
Harold Everett Greer (born June 26, 1936) is an American retired professional basketball player.
Early years
Born in Huntington, West Virginia, he attended Douglass Junior and Senior High School in Huntington.[1] He played college basketball at Marshall University and was drafted by the Syracuse Nationals of the NBA in 1958.
NBA career
Greer played for Syracuse for five seasons, raising his scoring average to 22.8 points a game in 1961. He was selected for the NBA All-Star team that year.
In 1963, the Syracuse Nationals moved to Philadelphia to become the Philadelphia 76ers. There, Greer became well known as a teammate of Wilt Chamberlain, and starred on the powerful 1966–67 team that ended the eight-year championship reign of the Bill Russell-led Boston Celtics. In the 76ers' 15 playoff games that season, Greer averaged a team-best 27.7 points. Greer had an unusual but highly effective free throw technique, shooting a jump shot from the charity stripe. He is usually considered the third-best guard of the 1960s, behind Oscar Robertson and fellow West Virginia native Jerry West.
Greer played in 10 NBA All-Star Games and was the MVP of the 1968 game when he went 8-for-8 from the field and scored 21 points, a record-breaking 19 in one quarter. He also was chosen to the All-NBA Second Team seven times, and scored more than 20,000 points during his NBA career. His hometown has honored his success by renaming 16th Street, which carries West Virginia Route 10 as the main artery between the campus/downtown area and Interstate 64, as "Hal Greer Boulevard." Hal Greer is recognized as the only African-American athlete enshrined in a major sports hall of fame from West Virginia.
In 1982, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame along with Slater Martin, Frank Ramsey, Willis Reed, coach Clarence Gaines, and contributor Alva Duer.
College accomplishments
- Two-time All-Conference (1957, 1958)
- Team high scorer and Conference MVP (1958)
- AP All-America Honorable Mention (1958)
- Led Marshall in 71 games as its first black scholarship athlete
- Averaged 19.4 ppg and 10.8 rpg
- At the time of graduation, held the school's career record for field goal percentage (54.6 percent), hitting 531 of 974 attempts
- Inducted into the Marshall University Athletics Hall of Fame for his career in basketball and baseball in 1985.[2]
Accolades
- Averaged 22 ppg to lead 76ers to NBA Championship (1967)
- Played in 10 consecutive NBA All-Star Games (1961–70)
- NBA All-Star Game MVP (1968)
- Set record for most points scored in a quarter (19) during an All-Star Game (1968)
- Seven-time All-NBA Second Team (1963–69)
- First all-time in 76ers' history in games played
- Scored 21,586 career points (26th all-time),[3] including 50 in one game vs. Boston Celtics; also leads all 76ers players in career points.
- Scored 1,876 points in 92 playoff games and 120 points in 10 All-Star Games
- NBA 50th Anniversary Team (1996)
- His jerseys were retired by Marshall University (#16) and the Philadelphia 76ers (#15)
- A 1-and-a-half-mile stretch of road in Huntington, West Virginia, was renamed "Hal Greer Boulevard"
See also
- List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
- List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise
References
- ↑ Dr. Alan B. Gould (July 1985). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Douglass Junior and Senior High School" (PDF). State of West Virginia, West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2011-07-23.
- ↑ Marshall Athletics Hall of Fame
- ↑ Rondo scores his 11 in fourth as Celtics pull away from Bucks