Whitey Skoog
Personal information
Born(1926-11-02)November 2, 1926
Duluth, Minnesota
DiedApril 4, 2019(2019-04-04) (aged 92)
St. Peter, Minnesota
NationalityAmerican
Listed height5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolBrainerd (Brainerd, Minnesota)
CollegeMinnesota (1948–1951)
NBA draft1951: territorial pick
Selected by the Minneapolis Lakers
Playing career1951–1957
PositionPoint guard / shooting guard
Number41, 20
Career history
As player:
1951–1957Minneapolis Lakers
As coach:
1957–1981Gustavus Adolphus Golden Gusties
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As coach:

  • MIAC regular season champion (1968, 1975)
Career statistics
Points2,800 (8.2 ppg)
Rebounds1,133 (3.3 rpg)
Assists903 (2.6 apg)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

Myer Upton "Whitey" Skoog (November 2, 1926 – April 4, 2019) was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's Minneapolis Lakers. He was born in Duluth, Minnesota.[1]

A 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) and 180 lb (82 kg) guard, Skoog played collegiately at the University of Minnesota. Following his All-America senior season, he was drafted as a territorial pick in the first round of the 1951 NBA draft by the Lakers.

The Lakers won three NBA Championships in his first three years in the league. Skoog played in six seasons in the NBA before back injuries forced his retirement. Some credit Skoog with being the creator of the jump shot and one of the first players to use a jump shot in an organized game. Following his career in the NBA, Skoog became the men's basketball coach and golf coach at Gustavus Adolphus College. He was the men's basketball coach from 1957 to 1981, and the men's golf coach from 1973 to 1996. He was inducted into the school's hall of fame in 1987. Skoog retired from coaching in 1997, and he continued to live in St. Peter, Minnesota.[2]

Skoog resided in a skilled nursing facility in St. Peter in his later years. He died on April 4, 2019, at the age of 92.[3]

Career statistics

Legend
  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 an NBA championship *  Led the league

NBA

Source[4]

Regular season

Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1951–52† Minneapolis 35 28.2 .345 .789 3.5 1.7 6.7
1952–53† Minneapolis 68 14.6 .386 .754 1.8 1.2 3.7
1953–54† Minneapolis 71 26.4 .400 .742 3.2 2.5 7.2
1954–55 Minneapolis 72 32.8 .395 .806 4.2 3.5 10.9
1955–56 Minneapolis 72 32.1 .398 .803 4.0 3.5 11.6
1956–57 Minneapolis 23 28.5 .355 .936 3.1 3.3 8.7
Career 341 27.0 .388 .799 3.3 2.6 8.2

Playoffs

Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1953† Minneapolis 11 18.0 .429 .800 2.1 1.2 5.8
1954† Minneapolis 13* 30.9 .393 .571 3.6 1.8 7.4
1955 Minneapolis 7 34.4 .391 .905 5.3 2.3 13.0
1956 Minneapolis 3 30.0 .419 .273 6.0 6.0 9.7
Career 34 27.4 .402 .685 3.7 2.1 8.2

References

  1. ↑ Christgau, John (1999). "Fire, Myer!". Origins of the Jump Shot: Eight Men Who Shook the World of Basketball. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. pp. 1–29. ISBN 0-8032-6394-5.
  2. ↑ Akin, J.J. (April 4, 2019). "Longtime Coach Whitey Skoog Dies at 92". Gustavus Adolphus College. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Gophers, Lakers, Gusties great Whitey Skoog dies at 92". Star Tribune.
  4. ↑ "Whitey Skoog NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.


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