- Odie Spears
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Odie Spears No. 20, 15, 8, 19 Guard Personal information Date of birth June 26, 1925 Place of birth Scottsville, Kentucky Nationality American Date of death March 28, 1985 (aged 59) Place of death Louisville, Kentucky Listed height 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Listed weight 205 lb (93 kg) Career information College Western Kentucky NBA Draft 1948 / Round: -- / Pick: -- Selected by the Chicago Stags Pro career 1948–1957 Career history 1948–1950 Chicago Stags 1950–1951 Louisville Alumnites (NPBL) 1951–1955 Rochester Royals 1955–1956 Fort Wayne Pistons 1956–1957 St. Louis Hawks Career BAA and NBA statistics Points 4,161 (8.7 ppg) Rebounds 1,409 (4.0 rpg) Assists 917 (1.9 apg) Odie Spears at NBA.com Stats at Basketball-Reference.com Marion Odicea "Odie" Spears (June 17, 1925–March 28, 1985) was an American basketball player.
A 6'5" guard from Scottsville, Kentucky, Spears attended nearby Western Kentucky University but saw little playing time during his first two seasons. After his sophomore year, he left Western Kentucky to serve in the United States Army, where he played three seasons for the 326th Glider Infantry basketball team at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He then returned to Western Kentucky in 1946 with improved skills and confidence and became the team's leading scorer during his junior and senior years. Spears received All-American honors in 1948 after leading Western Kentucky to a third-place finish in the National Invitation Tournament (then the nation's premier basketball tournament).[1]
From 1948 to 1957, Spears played professionally in the National Basketball Association as a member of the Chicago Stags, Rochester Royals, Fort Wayne Pistons, and St. Louis Hawks. He averaged 8.7 points per game and 4.0 rebounds per game in his NBA career and ranked as one of the league's top-ten free throw shooters three times.[2] Spears also played during the 1950-51 season for the Louisville Alumnites of the National Professional Basketball League.[3]
After his playing career ended, Spears moved to Louisville, Kentucky, where he became an insurance executive. He was elected to the Western Kentucky Hall of Fame in 1993.[1]
Notes
- ^ a b Odie Spears at Hilltopper Haven. Retrieved 6 August 2007.
- ^
- Odie Spears at Basketball-Reference.com
- ^ Association for Professional Basketball Research, National Professional Basketball League statistics
Categories:- 1925 births
- 1985 deaths
- American basketball players
- Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball players
- Chicago Stags draft picks
- Chicago Stags players
- Rochester Royals players
- Fort Wayne Pistons players
- St. Louis Hawks players
- American basketball biography, 1920s birth stubs
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