 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1922-07-09)July 9, 1922 Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Died | January 22, 1993(1993-01-22) (aged 70) Stockton, California, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Oakland Tech (Oakland, California) |
| College | Stanford (1940–1942) |
| BAA draft | 1947: 7th round, 62nd overall pick |
| Drafted by | Chicago Stags |
| Playing career | 1947–1955 |
| Position | Small forward |
| Number | 17 |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 1947–1955 | Minneapolis Lakers |
Coaching | |
| 1955–1958 | La Salle |
| 1960 | Minneapolis Lakers |
| 1961–1962 | Chicago Packers |
| 1967–1969 | Minnesota Muskies /Miami Floridians |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career BAA and NBA statistics | |
| Points | 5,762 (13.2 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 2,487 (7.8 rpg) |
| Assists | 1,417 (3.2 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame | |
| Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame | |
James Clifford Pollard (July 9, 1922 – January 22, 1993) was an American professionalbasketball player and coach. As a player in theNational Basketball Association (NBA), Pollard was considered one of the best forwards in the 1950s and was known for his leaping ability,[1] earning him the nickname "The Kangaroo Kid". A five-timeNBA champion and four-timeNBA All-Star, Pollard spent his entire eight-year professional career with theMinneapolis Lakers.
Pollard was inducted into theNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978.[2] He has also been inducted into the Bay Area Hall of Fame, Stanford Hall of Fame, andPac-12 Hall of Honor.
Pollard attendedOakland Technical High School in his hometown ofOakland, California. He led the school's basketball team to three consecutive conference titles from 1937–38 to 1939–40. He averaged 19.8 points per game in his senior year, setting a school record.[3]
Pollard was recruited toStanford University by former Stanford star and future Hall of Famer,Hank Luisetti.[4] Pollard played for theStanford Indians for two seasons, under head coachEverett Dean. During his sophomore season, he was a key member of the team's1942 national championship team, but, due to illness, he did not play in thechampionship game.[3] At Stanford, Pollard joined the Sigma Rho chapter ofDelta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
Pollard's college career was ended early due toWorld War II, and he served with theUnited States Coast Guard from 1942 to 1946. During his service, he starred with the Coast Guard basketball team inAlameda, winning a Northern California title in 1943 and the Service League championship in 1946.[3]
Pollard went on to graduate from theUniversity of Minnesota in 1954.[4]
After World War II, Pollard played amateur basketball for one season with the San Diego Dons of theAmateur Athletic Union. The following season, he played for theOakland Bittners in the same league. He led the AAU in scoring and earned Most Valuable Player honors both years. His teams were runners-up in the national AAU tournament both seasons.[3]
Pollard also played amateur baseball for Jordan, Minnesota'sTown Team baseball club, during his NBA career. He was reputed to be "a good pitcher and a powerful hitter." It was there that Pollard famously "hit a ball that didn't stop until it got to Chicago", because it landed in a gondola car in a freight train passing by the ballpark.[5]
Pollard began his professional basketball career in 1947 after signing with theMinneapolis Lakers while the team was a part of theNational Basketball League. On the team, Pollard was a member of a futureHall of Fame frontcourt alongside centerGeorge Mikan and power forwardVern Mikkelsen, as well as fellow Hall of FamerSlater Martin at shooting guard. Led by coachJohn Kundla, this core group of players have been called the "first legacy in the history of professional basketball".[3] The Lakers won the NBL championship in 1948, theBAA championship in1949, and four NBA championships in1950,1952,1953 and1954. Pollard was a four-timeNBA All-Star, and was named to the All-NBA First Team in 1949 and 1950, and Second Team in 1952 and 1954.
Pollard was renowned for his tremendous leaping ability, and subsequently earned the nickname "The Kangaroo Kid". He could reportedly touch the top of the backboard and dunk from the foul line,[2] being one of the few players in his era who was capable of dunking a basketball.[4] Pollard was also known for his corner jumpshot,[3] and was a respected player and teammate.[2] In 1952, the Basketball Association of America selected Pollard as the best player of the era.[2]
Pollard retired from playing basketball after eight seasons, and finished with career averages of 13.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game.[6]
Pollard immediately moved into coaching after retiring, taking the head coach position atLa Salle University for theExplorers men's basketball team in 1955. Over three seasons with the team, Pollard compiled a record of 48–28.[3]
Pollard was named interim head coach of the Lakers midway through the1959–60 NBA season on January 2, 1960,[6] and recorded a 14–25 record.[7] He was named the head coach of the newly establishedChicago Packers in 1961, and managed an 18–62 record in the team'sfirst NBA season.[7]
He moved to theAmerican Basketball Association for the league's inaugural season in 1967, and coached theMinnesota Muskies, which relocated to Miami and became theMiami Floridians the following season. He was fired by the team midway through the1969–70 season.[7]
| GP | Games 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 |
| † | Won anNBA championship |
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948–49† | Minneapolis | 53 | – | .396 | .687 | – | 2.7 | 14.8 |
| 1949–50† | Minneapolis | 66 | – | .346 | .764 | – | 3.8 | 14.7 |
| 1950–51 | Minneapolis | 54 | – | .352 | .750 | 9.0 | 3.4 | 11.6 |
| 1951–52† | Minneapolis | 65 | 39.2 | .356 | .704 | 9.1 | 3.6 | 15.5 |
| 1952–53† | Minneapolis | 66 | 36.4 | .357 | .769 | 6.8 | 3.5 | 13.0 |
| 1953–54† | Minneapolis | 71 | 35.0 | .370 | .778 | 7.0 | 3.0 | 11.7 |
| 1954–55 | Minneapolis | 63 | 31.1 | .354 | .812 | 7.3 | 2.5 | 10.8 |
| Career | 438 | 35.4 | .360 | .750 | 7.8 | 3.2 | 13.2 | |
| All-Star | 4 | 24.3 | .304 | .750 | 5.5 | 3.3 | 12.0 | |
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949† | Minneapolis | 10 | – | .293 | .710 | – | 3.9 | 13.0 |
| 1950† | Minneapolis | 12 | – | .286 | .710 | – | 4.7 | 12.0 |
| 1951 | Minneapolis | 7 | – | .324 | .833 | 8.9 | 3.9 | 13.6 |
| 1952† | Minneapolis | 11 | 42.6 | .405 | .740 | 6.3 | 3.0 | 16.1 |
| 1953† | Minneapolis | 12 | 37.9 | .371 | .774 | 7.2 | 4.1 | 14.3 |
| 1954† | Minneapolis | 13 | 41.8 | .361 | .800 | 8.5 | 3.2 | 12.3 |
| 1955 | Minneapolis | 7 | 36.7 | .317 | .717 | 11.1 | 2.0 | 14.1 |
| Career | 72 | 40.1 | .339 | .750 | 8.1 | 3.6 | 13.6 | |
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minneapolis | 1959–60 | 39 | 14 | 25 | .359 | 3rd in Western | 9 | 5 | 4 | .556 | Lost inConference finals |
| Chicago | 1961–62 | 80 | 18 | 62 | .225 | 5th in Western | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| Minnesota | 1967–68 | 78 | 50 | 28 | .641 | 2nd in ABA Eastern Division | 10 | 4 | 6 | .400 | Lost inConference finals |
| Miami | 1968–69 | 78 | 43 | 35 | .551 | 2nd in ABA Eastern Division | 12 | 5 | 7 | .417 | Lost inConference finals |
| Miami | 1969–70 | 20 | 5 | 15 | .250 | (fired) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Total | 295 | 130 | 165 | .441 | 31 | 14 | 17 | .452 |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |