Hank Luisetti
 |
|
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 16, 1916 San Francisco, California |
| Died | December 17, 2002 (aged 86) San Mateo, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Galileo (San Francisco, California) |
| College | Stanford (1935–1938) |
| Position | Forward |
| Number | 7 |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
| Basketball Hall of Fame as player | |
|
College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 |
|
Angelo-Giuseppi "Hank" Luisetti (June 16, 1916 – December 17, 2002) was an American college men's basketball player and one of the great innovators of the game. In an era that featured the traditional two-handed set shot, Luisetti developed the running one-handed shot. Equipped with such an offensive weapon, Luisetti became one of the most dominant players in American college basketball history.
A graduate of Galileo High School in his native city, San Francisco, he went on to play for Stanford. He became the first player to score 50 points in a game on January 1, 1938, against Duquesne. Luisetti was named the second-best player of the mid-century (behind George Mikan) by an Associated Press poll of sportswriters and broadcasters in 1950.
Luisetti’s influence was aided by a celebrated game between Long Island University and Luisetti’s Stanford Indians. Long Island, at the time of the game, had a 43-game winning streak. The game was played in the evening of December 30, 1936, in Madison Square Garden and a crowd of 17,623 was on hand to see Long Island, the nation's No. 1 team, play Stanford.
Stanford was the defending Pacific Coast Conference champion from the 1935 season and six years later would win an NCAA championship. Still, they were underdogs. The crowd, while not expecting to see their local favorites lose, were intrigued by Luisetti, then a 6-foot-2, 185-pound sophomore. They knew that he shot the ball with one hand while he hung in the air, in stark contrast to the two-handed set shots or hook shots that were commonly attempted in those days.
Although Luisetti scored only 15 points on five field goals and five free throws, Stanford ended the LIU winning streak with a 45-31 victory. The fact that this occurred in the media capital of the country, however, resulted in something more far-reaching. The publicity surrounding Luisetti's shooting style changed the game forever.
Luisetti is often credited with inventing the jump shot, although others were doing it during the 1930s as well. One possible originator was John Miller Cooper. Still, Luisetti definitely popularized it.
...
Wikipedia