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Game state source: whynba · Retrieved Oct 9, 5:36 pm EDTNBA legend. Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Biography, honors and career statistics below.
Gus Johnson
Career at a glance
Gus Johnson played 10 professional regular seasons (1 in the ABA, 9 in the NBA) between 1963 and 1973, appearing in 631 games and averaging 16.2 points, 12.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He played for 3 teams: Baltimore (1963–72, 560 games), Phoenix (1972–73, 21 games), Indiana (ABA) (1972–73, 50 games). His best scoring season was 1966–67 with Baltimore: 20.7 points per game over 73 games.
He rebounded best in 1970–71 at 17.1 per game. Championship season: 1972–73 (Indiana (ABA)). In the playoffs he appeared in 6 postseason runs (51 games, 9.7 points per game).
Multiplying each season’s games by its scoring average gives roughly 10,200 regular-season points (an estimate from per-game figures, not an official total). Among the 404 players with at least 200 NBA games profiled on whynba, Johnson ranks No. 16 in rebounds per game.
whynba analysis of the season-by-season statistics below (Wikipedia revision, CC BY-SA 4.0). Totals are estimates from per-game averages.
About Gus Johnson
Gus "Honeycomb" Johnson Jr. (December 13, 1938 – April 29, 1987) was an American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the American Basketball Association (ABA). Often playing as a power forward, Johnson spent nine seasons with the Baltimore Bullets before he split his final campaign between the Phoenix Suns and Indiana Pacers.
In his hometown of Akron, Johnson won a city championship for Central-Hower High School and was at one point called the best player to come out of the city. Not intending to go to college, he played in the Amateur Athletic Union and industrial leagues before being recruited to play at Boise Junior College in 1961 at the age of 23. He transferred to the University of Idaho in 1962, where he averaged 19 points and 20 rebounds per game in his only season. He was selected in the second round as the 11th pick for the 1963 NBA draft by the Chicago Zephyrs (who relocated to become the Baltimore Bullets prior to the start of the 1963–64 season). He averaged 17 points with 13 rebounds to finish second in Rookie of the Year voting while being named to the All-Rookie Team. He quickly became known as a lethal inside scorer (including shattering three backboards in his NBA career) and a key defender, which saw him named to the NBA All-Star Game five times with four selections to the All-NBA Second Team and two All-Defensive First Team.
Knee injuries started to take their toll on him by 1970. He tried to play through injuries as the Bullets reached the NBA Finals in 1971 and lost in a sweep. After undergoing surgery on both knees, he was traded in June 1972 to the Phoenix Suns, playing 21 games before being released. He was picked up by the Indiana Pacers in December 1972 as a veteran presence and averaged six points in 50 games as the team advanced all the way to the ABA Finals. In his final game in Game 7, he played 13 minutes and grabbed six rebounds as the Pacers won the game, delivering Johnson's only championship. His number 25 jersey was retired by the Bullets franchise in 1986, months before his death.
- Born
- December 13, 1938 Akron, Ohio, U.S.
- Listed height
- 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
- Listed weight
- 230 lb (104 kg)
- Position
- Power forward / small forward
- High school
- Central (Akron, Ohio)
- College
- Boise State (1961–1962) Idaho (1962–1963)
- NBA draft
- 1963: 2nd round, 10th overall pick
- Playing career
- 1963–1973
Career highlights and awards
- ABA champion (1973)
- 5× NBA All-Star (1965, 1968–1971)
- 4× All-NBA Second Team (1965, 1966, 1970, 1971)
- 2× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1970, 1971)
- NBA All-Rookie First Team (1964)
- No. 25 retired by Washington Wizards
- No. 43 retired by Idaho Vandals
Career statistics
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963–64 | Baltimore | 78 | – | 36.5 | .430 | – | .658 | 13.6 | 2.2 | – | – | 17.3 |
| 1964–65 | Baltimore | 76 | – | 38.1 | .418 | – | .676 | 13.0 | 3.6 | – | – | 18.6 |
| 1965–66 | Baltimore | 41 | – | 31.3 | .413 | – | .736 | 13.3 | 2.8 | – | – | 16.5 |
| 1966–67 | Baltimore | 73 | – | 36.0 | .450 | – | .708 | 11.7 | 2.7 | – | – | 20.7 |
| 1967–68 | Baltimore | 60 | – | 37.9 | .467 | – | .667 | 13.0 | 2.7 | – | – | 19.1 |
| 1968–69 | Baltimore | 49 | – | 34.1 | .459 | – | .717 | 11.6 | 2.0 | – | – | 17.9 |
| 1969–70 | Baltimore | 78 | – | 37.4 | .451 | – | .724 | 13.9 | 3.4 | – | – | 17.3 |
| 1970–71 | Baltimore | 66 | – | 38.5 | .453 | – | .738 | 17.1 | 2.9 | – | – | 18.2 |
| 1971–72 | Baltimore | 39 | – | 17.1 | .383 | – | .683 | 5.8 | 1.3 | – | – | 6.4 |
| 1972–73 | Phoenix | 21 | – | 19.9 | .381 | – | .694 | 6.5 | 1.5 | – | – | 7.8 |
| 1972–73† | Indiana (ABA) | 50 | – | 15.1 | .441 | .190 | .738 | 4.9 | 1.2 | – | – | 6.0 |
| Career | 631 | – | 33.1 | .440 | .190 | .700 | 12.1 | 2.5 | – | – | 16.2 | |
| All-Star | 5 | 0 | 19.8 | .429 | – | .760 | 7.0 | 1.2 | – | – | 13.4 |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | Baltimore | 10 | – | 37.7 | .358 | – | .739 | 11.1 | 3.4 | – | – | 15.8 |
| 1966 | Baltimore | 1 | – | 8.0 | .250 | – | – | .0 | .0 | – | – | 2.0 |
| 1970 | Baltimore | 7 | – | 42.6 | .459 | – | .794 | 11.4 | 1.3 | – | – | 18.4 |
| 1971 | Baltimore | 11 | – | 33.2 | .422 | – | .745 | 10.4 | 2.7 | – | – | 13.0 |
| 1972 | Baltimore | 5 | – | 15.4 | .300 | – | 1.000 | 5.0 | .6 | – | – | 4.0 |
| 1973† | Indiana (ABA) | 17 | – | 10.8 | .254 | .000 | .750 | 4.1 | .9 | – | – | 2.5 |
| Career | 51 | – | 25.7 | .380 | .000 | .759 | 7.8 | 1.8 | – | – | 9.7 |
Per-game averages. † won an ABA or NBA championship · * led the league · ‡ league record (as marked).
Profile observation date unavailable.
- Height
- 6′ 6″
- Weight
- 230 lb
- Position
- Power forward / small forward
- Jersey
- Not listed
- Country
- USA
- School / last affiliation
- Not listed
- Draft year
- 1963
- Draft pick
- Round 2 · Pick 10
Height, Weight, Position, Country, Draft year, Draft pick: blank in the NBA.com profile, filled from the Wikipedia infobox credited in the About section above.
Roster observations
These dates show when our saved NBA directory observations listed this player with a team. They are not signing, trade or contract dates, and this is not a complete career history.
No roster observations are stored for this player. Historical profile details above do not establish a current team assignment.
Profile source
Biographical fields reflect the saved official profile at the check time shown above. Team assignments use the dated directory evidence in Roster observations. Offseason rosters and jersey numbers can change.
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