Gus Johnson

Biography

Gus Johnson Jr. (December 13, 1938 – April 29, 1987) was an American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the American Basketball Association (ABA). Often playing as a power forward, Johnson spent nine seasons with the Baltimore Bullets before he split his final campaign between the Phoenix Suns and Indiana Pacers. In his hometown of Akron, Johnson won a city championship for Central-Hower High School and was at one point called the best player to come out of the city. Not intending to go to college, he played in the Amateur Athletic Union and industrial leagues before being recruited to play at Boise Junior College in 1961 at the age of 23. He transferred to the University of Idaho in 1962, where he averaged 19 points and 20 rebounds per game in his only season. He was selected in the second round as the 11th pick for the 1963 NBA draft by the Chicago Zephyrs (who relocated to become the Baltimore Bullets prior to the start of the 1963–64 season). He averaged 17 points with 13 rebounds to finish second in Rookie of the Year voting while being named to the All-Rookie Team. He quickly became known as a lethal inside scorer (notably shattering three backboards in his NBA career) and key defender, which saw him named to the NBA All-Star Game five times with four selections to the All-NBA Second Team and two All-Defensive First Team. Knee injuries started to take their toll on him by 1970. He tried to play through injuries as the Bullets reached the NBA Finals in 1971 and lost in a sweep. After undergoing surgery on both knees, he was traded in June 1972 to the Phoenix Suns, playing 21 games before being released. He was picked up by the Indiana Pacers in December 1972 for veteran presence and averaged six points in 50 games as the team advanced all the way to the ABA Finals. In his final game in Game 7, he played a crucial 13 minutes and grabbed six rebounds as the Pacers held on to win the game to deliver Johnson

Bio from Wikipedia