Ralph Siewert

Ralph Paul Siewert (December 31, 1923 – November 21, 1990)[1][2] was an American professional basketball player during the inaugural 1946-47 season of the Basketball Association of America. At 7 feet 1 inch (2.16 m) tall,[1] he was the first seven-footer to play professional basketball.[3][4]

Career

At high school in Mount Clemens, Michigan, Siewart was both a center in basketball and a first baseman in baseball.[5]

In 1944, he was a batting practice pitcher for the Detroit Tigers. Ideally, the team would have sent him to the minor leagues for experience, but the team could not imagine him folding his long legs on bus rides.[5] He also played for the New York Yankees as well as other farm teams. His baseball career ended after suffering an elbow injury when he was hit by a drive from Rudy York.[6]

Siewert then went to college at Dakota Wesleyan University, where Siewert earned the nickname "Sky",[7] and later "Timber."[7] His college career ended prematurely when it was discovered that he had pitched professionally.[6] Afterwards, he signed to play American football with the Chicago Rockets of the All-America Football Conference.[6]

Siewert started his professional basketball career with the St. Louis Bombers.[4] Fans started calling Siewert "Timber" because he kept falling like a tree when knocked down by stronger players.[7] In February 1947, the Toronto Huskies acquired Siewert. Siewert averaged just 1.1 points per game with the Huskies and had the lowest field goal percentage on the team.

Siewert scored a total of 20 points in his 21 game career.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 "Ralph Siewert NBA & ABA Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved June 21, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Ralph Paul (Sky) Siewert". NBA.com. Retrieved 2014-06-05.
  3. ↑ Johnson, Roy S. (21 October 1985). "Lots More Fun From Top to Bottom". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 Kranes, Marsha; Worth, Fred L.; Tamerius, Steve; Driscoll, Michael (1999). 5087 Trivia Questions & Answers. Black Dog Publishing. pp. 129–30. ISBN 1579120865.
  5. 1 2 "Detroit Tigers Find Skyscraper Batting Practice Hurler". Daily Illini. Associated Press. March 18, 1944. p. 4. Retrieved June 21, 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 Larson, Lloyd (July 11, 1946). "Indian Star Headed for Majors". Milwaukee Sentinel. part 2, p. 4. Retrieved June 21, 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 Conner, Floyd (2001). Basketball's Most Wanted: The Top 10 Book of Hoops' Outrageous Dunkers, Incredible Buzzer-Beaters, and Other Oddities. Brassey's. pp. 85–86. ISBN 1574883615.

External links

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