George Mikan
[*]TwitT
Publications International, Ltd., the Editors of. "George Mikan." 10 August 2007. HowStuffWorks.com. <http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/george-mikan-at.htm> 02 February 2010.
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George Mikan was nicknamed
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[/SIZE][/FONT]In 1950, the Associated Press honored George Mikan as the best basketball player of the first half of the 20th century. Mikan was the NBA's first superstar and the soul of the league's first dynasty, the Minneapolis Lakers. New York Knicks coach Joe Lapchick called him "the Babe Ruth of basketball."
Mikan's career began in earnest in 1942 at DePaul University, where he became a three-time All-American. He won one championship in college and seven more in the professional ranks. When he retired in 1956, he held numerous NBA records, including total points (11,764) and career scoring average (22.6).
A towering 6'10" center, Mikan was unlike any player the game had seen. To begin with, there were only a few big men in his day, and most were woefully lacking in basketball skills. Mikan, on the other hand, could shoot soft hook shots with either hand, and he was accurate from the free-throw line.
His strength allowed him to muscle to the basket for easy shots and rebounds, and he competed fiercely, once scoring 32 points in a playoff game despite playing with a broken leg. He dominated the middle so thoroughly that opponents simply stayed away from him. Eventually, several rules were changed to lessen his influence.
Mikan was born June 18, 1924, and grew up in Joliet, Illinois. Though he sprouted to 6'8" by his senior year at Quigley Prep, his participation in basketball amounted to only a handful of games each season. Nevertheless, a couple of colleges showed interest. Mikan chose DePaul, arriving on campus about the same time as coach Ray Meyer.
Sensing Mikan's potential, Meyer developed a unique workout regimen, consisting of skipping rope, shadowboxing, modern and ballet dancing, and a daily routine of 250 hook shots with each hand. In short order, Mikan was transformed from an ungainly neophyte into the best player in the land. He averaged 23.3 points during his junior season and led DePaul to the National Invitation Tournament championship.
Pro basketball experienced seismic changes in the late 1940's, with rival leagues vying for players and franchises folding at the drop of a hat. Mikan signed with the Chicago Gears of the National Basketball League in 1946, a move that enabled him to continue playing while pursuing a law degree at DePaul. But the Gears disbanded a year later, and Mikan was awarded to the Minneapolis Lakers.
The Lakers dropped out of the NBL to join the Basketball Association of America in 1948. For the 1949-1950 season -- Mikan's fourth as a pro -- teams from the NBL and the BAA merged to form the NBA. Mikan was the league's first scoring champion with 27.4 points per game. The Lakers were a juggernaut.
Mikan, Slater Martin, Jim Pollard, and Vern Mikkelsen all had Hall of Fame careers. Yet Mikan was the undisputed king. During the BAA playoffs in 1949, he averaged 30 points per game while the rest of the Lakers combined for 50. In 1952, he scored 61 points in a game against the Rochester Royals.
When he was in college, Mikan liked to snatch opponents' shots on their downward arc. In response, a goaltending rule was instituted. In 1951, in a move directed at Mikan, the NBA expanded the width of the lane from six feet to 12 feet. Coupled with the three-second rule, this effectively pushed Big George away from the basket.
His scoring average dipped to 23.8 during the 1951-1952 season, but the Lakers still won the championship. The NBA also experimented with 12-foot baskets in exhibition games, another measure designed to lessen Mikan's stranglehold on the game. Mikan quit in 1954 to become the Lakers' general manager. He was only 29 but his body had taken an enormous beating.
He returned to play the last half of the 1955-1956 season, averaging 10.5 points in 37 games, before hanging it up for good. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1959. He died in 2005.
[*]TwitT
Publications International, Ltd., the Editors of. "George Mikan." 10 August 2007. HowStuffWorks.com. <http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/george-mikan-at.htm> 02 February 2010.
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George Mikan was nicknamed
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[/SIZE][/FONT]In 1950, the Associated Press honored George Mikan as the best basketball player of the first half of the 20th century. Mikan was the NBA's first superstar and the soul of the league's first dynasty, the Minneapolis Lakers. New York Knicks coach Joe Lapchick called him "the Babe Ruth of basketball."
Mikan's career began in earnest in 1942 at DePaul University, where he became a three-time All-American. He won one championship in college and seven more in the professional ranks. When he retired in 1956, he held numerous NBA records, including total points (11,764) and career scoring average (22.6).
A towering 6'10" center, Mikan was unlike any player the game had seen. To begin with, there were only a few big men in his day, and most were woefully lacking in basketball skills. Mikan, on the other hand, could shoot soft hook shots with either hand, and he was accurate from the free-throw line.
His strength allowed him to muscle to the basket for easy shots and rebounds, and he competed fiercely, once scoring 32 points in a playoff game despite playing with a broken leg. He dominated the middle so thoroughly that opponents simply stayed away from him. Eventually, several rules were changed to lessen his influence.
Mikan was born June 18, 1924, and grew up in Joliet, Illinois. Though he sprouted to 6'8" by his senior year at Quigley Prep, his participation in basketball amounted to only a handful of games each season. Nevertheless, a couple of colleges showed interest. Mikan chose DePaul, arriving on campus about the same time as coach Ray Meyer.
Sensing Mikan's potential, Meyer developed a unique workout regimen, consisting of skipping rope, shadowboxing, modern and ballet dancing, and a daily routine of 250 hook shots with each hand. In short order, Mikan was transformed from an ungainly neophyte into the best player in the land. He averaged 23.3 points during his junior season and led DePaul to the National Invitation Tournament championship.
Pro basketball experienced seismic changes in the late 1940's, with rival leagues vying for players and franchises folding at the drop of a hat. Mikan signed with the Chicago Gears of the National Basketball League in 1946, a move that enabled him to continue playing while pursuing a law degree at DePaul. But the Gears disbanded a year later, and Mikan was awarded to the Minneapolis Lakers.
The Lakers dropped out of the NBL to join the Basketball Association of America in 1948. For the 1949-1950 season -- Mikan's fourth as a pro -- teams from the NBL and the BAA merged to form the NBA. Mikan was the league's first scoring champion with 27.4 points per game. The Lakers were a juggernaut.
Mikan, Slater Martin, Jim Pollard, and Vern Mikkelsen all had Hall of Fame careers. Yet Mikan was the undisputed king. During the BAA playoffs in 1949, he averaged 30 points per game while the rest of the Lakers combined for 50. In 1952, he scored 61 points in a game against the Rochester Royals.
When he was in college, Mikan liked to snatch opponents' shots on their downward arc. In response, a goaltending rule was instituted. In 1951, in a move directed at Mikan, the NBA expanded the width of the lane from six feet to 12 feet. Coupled with the three-second rule, this effectively pushed Big George away from the basket.
His scoring average dipped to 23.8 during the 1951-1952 season, but the Lakers still won the championship. The NBA also experimented with 12-foot baskets in exhibition games, another measure designed to lessen Mikan's stranglehold on the game. Mikan quit in 1954 to become the Lakers' general manager. He was only 29 but his body had taken an enormous beating.
He returned to play the last half of the 1955-1956 season, averaging 10.5 points in 37 games, before hanging it up for good. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1959. He died in 2005.
hno:That is a great top 5, when you can leave off worthy, mikan, wilt and shack.
You must have seen many a live home game in Minny....PROPS.
Was and am a huge DePaul basketball fan and could only learn about Mikan growing up.
***shack's best days were as a laker and his best years as a scoring leader of the team were very impressive.
You must have seen many a live home game in Minny....PROPS.
Was and am a huge DePaul basketball fan and could only learn about Mikan growing up.
***shack's best days were as a laker and his best years as a scoring leader of the team were very impressive.
When you can leave off a player who was #1 ALL-TIME by many it must be nice.. (duration as a laker means much and your top 5 and 5B are the good real lakers, IMO)
http://www.therxforum.com/showthread.php?t=688383&highlight=worthy+jabbar+kobe
Wilt Chamberlain as a Laker won 33 straight games and the NBA title in 1971-72. Lakers went to 4 NBA finals in his 5 years there.
http://www.therxforum.com/showthread.php?t=688383&highlight=worthy+jabbar+kobe
Wilt Chamberlain as a Laker won 33 straight games and the NBA title in 1971-72. Lakers went to 4 NBA finals in his 5 years there.
Yes, I Did See A Lot Of The Original Lakers
Was just a teenage kid when they got started. As great as Mikan was, remember the game was night & day different from what it is now. Not ONE black guy at first. As much as George was my hero, I now realize of course that he was way too slow & not athletic enough for todays game. The only player that might have had ANY chance today was Jim Pollard a 6'5" or 6, forward. His nickname @ that time was "The Kangeroo Kid" for obvious reasons. @ PF we had Vern Mikkleson, a young kid out of a small Mn. town, who George really took under his wing. I was @ 1 game vs the Sheboygen Redskins (you remmber them), and george was on the bench, their center a guy bigger than Vern was really banging him around. and no fouls were being called. Mikan wanted a TO, so they put him back in, now remember he was a VERY big guy, huge shoulders. Well anyway 1st play, Mikan gets the guy in the hole and dips his shoulder, the guy was all over him like he was w/Mik, Mikan shrugged that shouider up, hit the other guy who flew 3 feet and never came back.
Ahh so many great memories of that team, our PG was Slater Martin, who had epic battles w/Cousy, Wanser, etc.! Philly was also a very tough team then, also Rochester & of course the Celts. I also saw Elgin when he first came up, maybe the strongest, most versatile player I ever saw, and he was not that tall. The 3 best I ever saw in that 6'5" range, Baylor, West, Big O. Hard to rate the players from different eras, as the game is so different. BOL :drink:
Was just a teenage kid when they got started. As great as Mikan was, remember the game was night & day different from what it is now. Not ONE black guy at first. As much as George was my hero, I now realize of course that he was way too slow & not athletic enough for todays game. The only player that might have had ANY chance today was Jim Pollard a 6'5" or 6, forward. His nickname @ that time was "The Kangeroo Kid" for obvious reasons. @ PF we had Vern Mikkleson, a young kid out of a small Mn. town, who George really took under his wing. I was @ 1 game vs the Sheboygen Redskins (you remmber them), and george was on the bench, their center a guy bigger than Vern was really banging him around. and no fouls were being called. Mikan wanted a TO, so they put him back in, now remember he was a VERY big guy, huge shoulders. Well anyway 1st play, Mikan gets the guy in the hole and dips his shoulder, the guy was all over him like he was w/Mik, Mikan shrugged that shouider up, hit the other guy who flew 3 feet and never came back.
Ahh so many great memories of that team, our PG was Slater Martin, who had epic battles w/Cousy, Wanser, etc.! Philly was also a very tough team then, also Rochester & of course the Celts. I also saw Elgin when he first came up, maybe the strongest, most versatile player I ever saw, and he was not that tall. The 3 best I ever saw in that 6'5" range, Baylor, West, Big O. Hard to rate the players from different eras, as the game is so different. BOL :drink:
I was wondering how you left Mikan off your list, especially since you had probably seen him play, so this explains it. I agree with you that the game was different back then but Babe Ruth's game was different than today but I think you have to include him in the list of Yankee all-time greatest.
I see it that Mikan may have been slower but they also played a slower game back then. Who knows, if George was pressed by faster players he could have adjusted to their game. He had the sky hook before Kareen. I think George was one of the best shooters of all the big men.
Quantum Your Point Is Quite Valid
And I think maybe I did big George a disservice. Or maybe mistitled the thread. As far as the greatest, i.e. who contibuted the most to the franchise, as opposed who's the most talented by todays standards. Mikan indeed has to be on the Laker Wall of Fame. As far as Ruth goes, he's undeniably one of the 5 or so greatest hitters of all time. But even he as did Mikan benefited from never having to face any black players or night games.
Sounds like I'm arguing against myself, & maybe I am. But on talent alone I just can't rank Mikan w/the 5 I listed. If we break it into eras, say prior to 1958, then yes George is top 5, not just Laker but NBA overall. Yes, he was one hell of a player in the hole, a real bruiser and a lovely hook. I'll leave it at that. After playing he had a law practice for many yrs, here in the TC's. Very nice man.
And I think maybe I did big George a disservice. Or maybe mistitled the thread. As far as the greatest, i.e. who contibuted the most to the franchise, as opposed who's the most talented by todays standards. Mikan indeed has to be on the Laker Wall of Fame. As far as Ruth goes, he's undeniably one of the 5 or so greatest hitters of all time. But even he as did Mikan benefited from never having to face any black players or night games.
Sounds like I'm arguing against myself, & maybe I am. But on talent alone I just can't rank Mikan w/the 5 I listed. If we break it into eras, say prior to 1958, then yes George is top 5, not just Laker but NBA overall. Yes, he was one hell of a player in the hole, a real bruiser and a lovely hook. I'll leave it at that. After playing he had a law practice for many yrs, here in the TC's. Very nice man.
