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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.
Neil Johnston
Career at a glance
Neil Johnston played 8 NBA regular seasons between 1951 and 1959, appearing in 516 games and averaging 19.4 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He spent his whole career with Philadelphia (1951–59, 516 games). His best scoring season was 1953–54 with Philadelphia: 24.4 points per game over 72 games.
He rebounded best in 1954–55 at 15.1 per game. The season table marks him as the league leader in scoring 3 times, field-goal percentage 3 times, rebounding once. Championship season: 1955–56 (Philadelphia).
In the playoffs he appeared in 4 postseason runs (23 games, 15.0 points per game). Multiplying each season’s games by its scoring average gives roughly 10,000 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, Johnston ranks No. 23 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 Neil Johnston
Donald Neil Johnston (February 4, 1929 – September 28, 1978) was an American basketball player and coach. A center, Johnston played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1951 to 1959. He was a member of the Philadelphia Warriors for his entire career. Known for his hook shot, Johnston was a six-time NBA All-Star; he led the NBA in scoring three times and led the league in rebounding once. He won an NBA championship with the Warriors in 1956. After his playing career ended due to a knee injury, Johnston coached in the NBA, in other professional basketball leagues, and at the collegiate level. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in 1990.
- Born
- February 4, 1929 Chillicothe, Ohio, U.S.
- Listed height
- 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
- Listed weight
- 210 lb (95 kg)
- Position
- Center
- High school
- Chillicothe (Chillicothe, Ohio)
- College
- Ohio State (1946–1948)
- NBA draft
- 1950: undrafted
- Playing career
- 1951–1959
Career highlights and awards
- NBA champion (1956)
- 6× NBA All-Star (1953–1958)
- 4× All-NBA First Team (1953–1956)
- All-NBA Second Team (1957)
- 3× NBA scoring champion (1953–1955)
- NBA rebounding leader (1955)
- EPBL champion (1966)
Career statistics
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951–52 | Philadelphia | 64 | 15.5 | .472 | .662 | 5.3 | 0.6 | 6.0 |
| 1952–53 | Philadelphia | 70 | 45.2* | .452* | .700 | 13.9 | 2.8 | 22.3* |
| 1953–54 | Philadelphia | 72 | 45.8* | .449 | .747 | 11.1 | 2.8 | 24.4* |
| 1954–55 | Philadelphia | 72 | 40.5 | .440 | .766 | 15.1* | 3.0 | 22.7* |
| 1955–56† | Philadelphia | 70 | 37.1 | .457* | .801 | 12.5 | 3.2 | 22.1 |
| 1956–57 | Philadelphia | 69 | 36.7 | .447* | .826 | 12.4 | 2.9 | 22.8 |
| 1957–58 | Philadelphia | 71 | 33.9 | .429 | .819 | 11.1 | 2.3 | 19.5 |
| 1958–59 | Philadelphia | 28 | 14.0 | .329 | .784 | 5.0 | 0.8 | 6.3 |
| Career | 516 | 35.5 | .444 | .768 | 11.3 | 2.5 | 19.4 | |
| All-Star | 6 | 22.0 | .429 | .696 | 8.6 | 1.0 | 11.7 |
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | Philadelphia | 3 | 10.7 | .500 | .750 | 3.3 | 0.3 | 5.3 |
| 1956† | Philadelphia | 10 | 39.7 | .408 | .707 | 14.3 | 5.1 | 20.3 |
| 1957 | Philadelphia | 2 | 42.0 | .321 | .667 | 17.5 | 4.5 | 19.0 |
| 1958 | Philadelphia | 8 | 23.6 | .385 | .818 | 8.6 | 1.8 | 10.9 |
| Career | 23 | 30.5 | .390 | .734 | 11.2 | 3.3 | 15.0 |
Per-game averages. † won an NBA championship · * led the league · ‡ NBA record (as marked).
Profile observation date unavailable.
- Height
- 6′ 8″
- Weight
- 210 lb
- Position
- Center
- Jersey
- Not listed
- Country
- USA
- School / last affiliation
- Not listed
- Draft year
- Undrafted (1950 class)
- Draft pick
- Undrafted / not listed
Height, Weight, Position, Country, Draft year: 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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