 Guerin in 2014 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1932-05-29)May 29, 1932 (age 93) Bronx, New York, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Mount Saint Michael Academy (Bronx, New York) |
| College | Iona (1951–1954) |
| NBA draft | 1954: 2nd round, 17th overall pick |
| Drafted by | New York Knicks |
| Playing career | 1956–1970 |
| Position | Guard |
| Number | 9, 15, 18, 19 |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 1956–1963 | New York Knicks |
| 1963–1967 1968–1970 | St. Louis / Atlanta Hawks |
Coaching | |
| 1964–1972 | St. Louis / Atlanta Hawks |
| Career highlights | |
As player:
As coach: | |
| Career statistics | |
| Points | 14,676 (17.3 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 4,278 (5.0 rpg) |
| Assists | 4,211 (5.0 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame | |
Richard Vincent Guerin (born May 29, 1932) is an American former professionalbasketball player and coach. He played with theNational Basketball Association's (NBA)New York Knicks from 1956 to 1963 and was aplayer-coach of theSt. Louis/Atlanta Hawks franchise where he spent nine years.[1] On February 15, 2013, theNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced that Guerin had been elected as one of its 2013 inductees.[2]
Guerin served in theMarine Corps Reserve from 1947 to 1954. While a reservist, Guerin attendedIona College from 1950 to 1954 where he scored 1,375 points in 67 games playing for coach Jim McDermott. After graduation, Guerin served on active duty atMarine Corps Schools,Quantico, Virginia for two years.[3]
The Knicks drafted Guerin with the 8th pick in the second round of the1954 NBA draft while still on active duty. After leaving the Marine Corps, Guerin would begin his professional basketball career in 1956.[1]
Richie Guerin was a high-scoring point guard in the late 1950s and early 1960s. As a member of the New York Knicks, his feisty on-court style and wisecracking off-court demeanor catered toMadison Square Garden crowds.[4]
Guerin was a gifted scorer,passer,playmaker, and was one of the most successfulrebounding and driving guards of his era. He led the Knicks in assists for five consecutive seasons and inscoring three times during his seven full seasons in theBig Apple, and he tallied more than 20 points per game in four consecutive years. Guerin also set Knicks single-game records for scoring, with 57 points in 1959, and assists, with 21 in 1958.[4] His 57-point game stood as a Knicks record untilBernard King scored 60 on Christmas Day in 1984.[5]
A fan and media favorite, Guerin played in six consecutiveNBA All-Star Games. As a team, New York struggled, reaching theplayoffs only once during Guerin's tenure. He was traded to the St. Louis Hawks midway through the1963–64 season and spent the next eight years as the team's player-coach and then head coach. With St. Louis (and eventually Atlanta), Guerin played alongsideBob Pettit,Lou Hudson,Lenny Wilkens, andCliff Hagan. Guerin helped the Hawks to nine consecutive playoff appearances and was namedNBA Coach of the Year for1967–68.[4]
Richard Vincent Guerin was born on May 29, 1932, in theBronx, New York, where he grew up. He attendedMount Saint Michael Academy, where he excelled inbasketball.[6]
Guerin attendedIona College in 1950 where he playedcenter for coachJim McDermott.[7] He commuted to school daily. He averaged at least 19.9 points per game in his three years of varsity basketball, and set the freshman team scoring record at the time.[6][8]
On April 24, 1954, the New York Knicks selected him in the1954 NBA draft, but Guerin could not join the Knicks until he had completed two years of service in theMarines.[4] He was drafted in the second round, the seventeenth overall pick.[6]
New York was struggling through the mid-1950s at or near the bottom of theEastern Division. Among the only successful players during that period were high-scoring guardCarl Braun, point guardDick McGuire, and centerHarry Gallatin. Turnover on the team was high.[4]
Guerin joined the club in 1956 and quickly established himself. In his second season he made theNBA All-Star Team for the first of six straight years.[5][8] In his third year Guerin led the Knicks in assists (5.1 apg) and ranked second in scoring (18.2 ppg). He made a (then) team-record 21 assists against St. Louis on December 12, 1958. The 21 assists he totaled were alsoMadison Square Garden high untilJohn Stockton broke the record 41 years later.[9] That year New York made its only postseason appearance with Guerin on the team, losing to theSyracuse Nationals in a first-round sweep.[4]
By Guerin's fourth year in the league he had established himself as a scorer. He made both long shots andlayups on his way to a team-leading 21.8 points per game in1959–60. His 57 points against Syracuse on December 11 broke Braun's previous team record of 47.[4]
In1960–61, Guerin again averaged 21.8 points, adding 7.9 rebounds and 6.4 assists per contest. He then had his best season in 1961–62, averaging 29.5 points and a career-high 6.9 assists in 42.9 minutes per game. Guerin ranked sixth in the league in scoring and fourth in assists, and he became the first Knicks player ever to score 2,000 points in a season (2,303). He ended that season as one of eight NBA players to ever have 2000+ points, 500+ rebounds and 500+ assists in a season.[10] By the end of the campaign Guerin had firmly established himself among the league's backcourt elite. He was named to theAll-NBA Second Team for the third time in his first six seasons.[4]
In the1962–63, Guerin averaged a team-leading 21.5 points. He ranked seventh in the league in scoring, eighth in assists (4.4 apg), and second infree-throw percentage (.848).
When he left the Knicks, Guerin ranked second on the team's all-time scoring list behindCarl Braun.
On October 18, 1963, two games into the1963–64 season, the Knicks traded Guerin to theSt. Louis Hawks for cash and a second-round draft pick (Howard Komives was later selected).[8] In his first appearance at the Garden in a Hawks uniform, Knicks fans showed their gratitude by giving Guerin a five-minute standing ovation.[4]
Guerin joined a Hawks team loaded with offensive weapons, and his production dropped accordingly to 13.1 points per game in 1963–64. He became the Hawks'player-coach on December 28, 1964, replacingHarry Gallatin who was fired despite the Hawks being in second place in the NBA Western Division. At the time, he was one of two player-coaches in the NBA, with theDetroit Pistons'Dave DeBusschere being the other.[11] St. Louis had gone 17–16 under Gallatin, and the team went 28–19 under Guerin. The Hawks earned a playoff spot but lost to theBaltimore Bullets in a division semifinal series. Under Guerin's direction, the Hawks reached the playoffs in each of the next seven seasons.[4]
Guerin played two more full seasons, averaging 14.9 points in1965–66 and 13.8 in1966–67. After the Seattle expansion team drafted him in 1967, he announced his retirement as a player. As a coach, he guided the Hawks to a 56–26 record and theWestern Division championship and being namedNBA Coach of the Year for 1967–1968.[12]
On May 1, 1967, Guerin was drafted by theSeattle SuperSonics from the St. Louis Hawks in the NBA expansion draft.[8]
On November 15, 1968, Guerin was traded by the Seattle SuperSonics to the Atlanta Hawks for Dick Smith.[8]
The Hawks moved to Atlanta prior to the1968–69 season, and Seattle traded Guerin back, allowing him to return to playing as a reserve player, guiding the Hawks to a 48–34 record while appearing as a player in 27 games. In the1969–70 season, he guided them to another 48–34 record while appearing as a player in 8 games.[8][13]
The fourth game of the 1970 Western Division Finals against theLos Angeles Lakers on April 19, 1970, was Guerin's last game as a player. He contributed 31 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists, but his team failed to avoid a four-game sweep.[14]
In 2013, Guerin was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame.[15] Guerin was inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992.[5] In 2022, he was a member of the inaugural class of the Bronx Basketball Hall of Fame.[16]
Guerin is considered the last NBA player to use a two-handed set shot.[17][15]
Guerin stayed on as head coach for two more seasons, and Atlanta went 36–46 each year.[13] He compiled a 327–291 career coaching record.[4] Notably, Guerin wasPete Maravich's first pro head coach during those two seasons, and had been responsible for drafting Maravich (third overall) in the 1970 draft (after Maravich had been National College Player of the Year[18]).[6] Guerin thought Maravich, who still holds the all-time NCAA scoring record,[18] was as skilled as anyone who ever played.[6]
Guerin was promoted to general manager on April 24, 1972.[19] His successor as head coach wasCotton Fitzsimmons who was appointed just over five weeks later on May 31.[20] Guerin was fired on August 4, 1973, despite having four years remaining on a five‐year contract. Feeling the need for apromoter as general manager, the Hawks replaced Guerin withPat Williams two days later on August 6.[21][22]
| 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 |
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956–57 | New York | 72 | 24.9 | .368 | .620 | 4.6 | 2.5 | 9.7 |
| 1957–58 | New York | 63 | 37.6 | .354 | .691 | 7.8 | 5.0 | 16.5 |
| 1958–59 | New York | 71 | 36.0 | .424 | .802 | 7.3 | 5.1 | 18.2 |
| 1959–60 | New York | 74 | 32.8 | .420 | .773 | 6.8 | 6.3 | 21.8 |
| 1960–61 | New York | 79 | 38.3 | .396 | .792 | 7.9 | 6.4 | 21.8 |
| 1961–62 | New York | 78 | 42.9 | .442 | .820 | 6.4 | 6.9 | 29.5 |
| 1962–63 | New York | 79 | 34.3 | .432 | .848 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 21.5 |
| 1963–64 | New York | 2 | 13.0 | .688 | .800 | 1.5 | 2.0 | 13.0 |
| 1963–64 | St. Louis | 78 | 30.0 | .410 | .819 | 3.2 | 4.8 | 13.1 |
| 1964–65 | St. Louis | 57 | 29.4 | .446 | .767 | 2.6 | 4.8 | 14.4 |
| 1965–66 | St. Louis | 80 | 29.5 | .415 | .812 | 3.9 | 4.9 | 14.9 |
| 1966–67 | St. Louis | 80 | 28.4 | .436 | .731 | 2.4 | 4.3 | 13.7 |
| 1968–69 | Atlanta | 27 | 17.5 | .423 | .770 | 2.2 | 3.7 | 5.6 |
| 1969–70 | Atlanta | 8 | 8.0 | .273 | 1.000 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 0.9 |
| Career | 848 | 32.4 | .416 | .780 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 17.3 | |
| All-Star | 6 | 20.3 | .411 | .654 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 10.5 | |
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | New York | 2 | 38.5 | .257 | .857 | 9.0 | 7.5 | 15.0 |
| 1964 | St. Louis | 12 | 35.7 | .444 | .788 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 18.1 |
| 1965 | St. Louis | 4 | 31.3 | .385 | .760 | 2.0 | 5.3 | 17.3 |
| 1966 | St. Louis | 10 | 39.9 | .453 | .816 | 3.7 | s7.9 | 20.6 |
| 1967 | St. Louis | 9 | 25.3 | .419 | .800 | 2.6 | 4.3 | 10.7 |
| 1969 | Atlanta | 3 | 10.7 | .250 | .500 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 1.0 |
| 1970 | Atlanta | 2 | 28.0 | .619 | 1.000 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 16.5 |
| Career | 42 | 32.0 | .429 | .803 | 3.5 | 5.1 | 15.6 | |
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis | 1964–65 | 47 | 28 | 19 | .596 | 2nd in West | 4 | 1 | 3 | .250 | Lost inDiv. Semifinals |
| St. Louis | 1965–66 | 80 | 36 | 44 | .450 | 3rd in West | 10 | 6 | 4 | .600 | Lost inDiv. Finals |
| St. Louis | 1966–67 | 81 | 39 | 42 | .481 | 2nd in West | 9 | 5 | 4 | .556 | Lost inDiv. Finals |
| St. Louis | 1967–68 | 82 | 56 | 26 | .683 | 1st in West | 6 | 2 | 4 | .333 | Lost inDiv. Semifinals |
| Atlanta | 1968–69 | 82 | 48 | 34 | .585 | 2nd in West | 11 | 5 | 6 | .455 | Lost inDiv. Finals |
| Atlanta | 1969–70 | 82 | 48 | 34 | .585 | 1st in West | 9 | 4 | 5 | .444 | Lost inDiv. Finals |
| Atlanta | 1970–71 | 82 | 36 | 46 | .439 | 2nd in West | 5 | 1 | 4 | .200 | Lost inDiv. Semifinals |
| Atlanta | 1971–72 | 82 | 36 | 46 | .439 | 2nd in West | 6 | 2 | 4 | .333 | Lost inDiv. Semifinals |
| Career | 618 | 327 | 291 | .529 | 60 | 26 | 34 | .433 |
Guerin enlisted in theMarine Corps Reserve and served from 1947 to 1954. While a reservist, Guerin attendedIona College from 1950 to 1954, and upon graduation was commissioned asecond lieutenant. He served on active duty with the T&T Regtiment, Marine Corps Schools,Quantico, Virginia until his discharge as afirst lieutenant in June 1956. He was awarded theNational Defense Service Medal and the Organized Marine Corps Rerserve Medal.[23][6]
Guerin was inducted into the Marine Corps Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.[3]
Following his retirement from professional basketball, Guerin became a Knickssportscaster and aWall Streetstockbroker.[4] Guerin retired in 2005 following a 31-year stint first as a broker, then asmanaging director, forBear, Stearns & Co. Guerin, who has four children and nine grandchildren, now resides inPalm Beach, Florida with his wife, Pat.[24]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
