Al Cervi
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born |
February 12, 1917 Buffalo, New York |
| Died | November 9, 2009 (aged 92) Rochester, New York |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Listed weight | 170 lb (77 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | East (Buffalo, New York) |
| Playing career | 1937–1953 |
| Position | Forward / Guard |
| Number | 15 |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 1937–1938 | Buffalo Bisons |
| 1945–1947 | Rochester Royals |
| 1947 | Trenton Tigers |
| 1947–1948 | Rochester Royals |
| 1948–1953 | Syracuse Nationals |
| As coach: | |
| 1948–1958 | Syracuse Nationals |
| 1958–1959 | Philadelphia Warriors |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
As Player:
As Coach:
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| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 1,591 (7.9 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 261 (1.8 rpg) |
| Assists | 648 (3.2 apg) |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame as player | |
As Player:
As Coach:
Alfred Nicholas Cervi (February 12, 1917 – November 9, 2009) was an American professional basketball player and coach in the National Basketball League (NBL) and National Basketball Association (NBA). One of the strongest backcourt players of the 1940s and 1950s, he was always assigned to defend against the opposing team's best scoring threat. He earned the nickname Digger because of his hard-nosed style of defense.
Born in Buffalo, New York, Cervi attended East High School in his hometown, where he captained the baseball and basketball teams and achieved All-City honors in both sports. He dropped out of school after his junior year when he was recruited by the Buffalo Bisons of the newly formed NBL. He played in all of the Bisons' nine games in 1937–38, the franchise's only season of existence.
He never attended college. Instead, he served five years in the United States Army Air Forces from 1940 through 1945.
After the conclusion of World War II, he joined the Rochester Royals, another NBL franchise entering its first year of operations. He immediately experienced success as the team captured the 1945–46 league title after sweeping the best-of-five championship series from the Sheboygan Red Skins. The Royals returned to the finals the following two seasons, but lost to the Chicago American Gears and Minneapolis Lakers in four games each. Cervi made the All-NBL First Team in 1947 and 1948. In the first of those two campaigns, he was the leading scorer with 632 points.
His time with the Royals lasted only three seasons. After discovering that other teammates were being paid more than his $7,500 annual salary, he requested a $3,500 raise, which was denied by team owner Les Harrison. As a result, instead of moving with the Royals to the Basketball Association of America (BAA) after the 1948 campaign, Cervi stayed in the NBL and joined the Syracuse Nationals, who met his salary demands and appointed him player-coach.
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Wikipedia