Frank Ramsey (basketball)
Encyclopedia
Frank Vernon Ramsey, Jr. (born July 13, 1931 in Corydon, Kentucky
) is a former professional basketball
player and coach. A 6-3 guard, he played his entire nine-year (1954
–1964
) NBA career with the Boston Celtics
and played a major role in the early part of their dynasty
, winning seven championships. Ramsey was also a head coach for the Kentucky Colonels
of the ABA
during the 1970
–1971
season.
, Ramsey was a multi-sport athlete at the University of Kentucky
, playing baseball
as well as basketball. Playing under legendary coach Adolph Rupp
, Ramsey, as a sophomore in 1951
, helped Kentucky win the NCAA Championship with a 68-58 victory over Kansas State
.
In the fall of 1952, a point shaving
scandal involving four Kentucky players (one of whom was a teammate of Ramsey on Kentucky’s 1951 NCAA champions) over a four-year period forced Kentucky to forfeit its upcoming season, Ramsey’s senior year, as well as that of Cliff Hagan
and Lou Tsioropoulos
. The suspension of the season made Kentucky's basketball team, in effect, the first college sports team to get the "death penalty.", although it was nothing more than the NCAA asking members schools not to schedule Kentucky, and not mandating it.
Ramsey, Hagan and Tsioropoulos all graduated from Kentucky in 1953 and, as a result, became eligible for the NBA Draft
. All three players were selected by the Boston Celtics
—Ramsey in the first round, Hagan in the third, and Tsioropoulos in the seventh. All three also returned to Kentucky for one more season despite graduating. After finishing the regular season (one in which Ramsey averaged 19.6 points per game) with a perfect 25-0 record and a #1 ranking in the Associated Press
, Kentucky had been offered a bid into the NCAA Tournament
. However, then-existing NCAA rules prohibited graduate students from participating in post-season play; the Wildcats declined the bid because their participation would have forced them to play without Ramsey, Hagan and Tsioropoulos, thus jeopardizing their perfect season.
Upon completion of his college career, Ramsey scored 1344 points, which at the time ranked him fourth in the school's history, and grabbed 1038 rebounds, a school record later surpassed by one of his future Kentucky Colonel players, Dan Issel
.
), Ramsey spent one year in the military before rejoining the team. In the eight seasons he played after military service, he was a member of seven championship teams (1957
, 1959
-1964
). He was a major contributor of the Celtics dynasty, playing behind the duo of Bob Cousy
and Bill Sharman
and playing with Bill Russell
, Sam Jones
, K. C. Jones
, Tom Heinsohn and John Havlicek
. In his 623 NBA games Ramsey scored 8378 points for an average of 13.4 points per game. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1981
. His #23 is retired by the Celtics.
Ramsey's best statistical season was 1958; he averaged 16.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. It was also his only post-military season in which the Celtics did not win the NBA championship; the Bob Pettit
-led St. Louis Hawks
(which also featured Cliff Hagan, Ramsey's ex-college teammate) defeated them in the NBA Finals
.
, who were led two former Kentucky Wildcats - Issel, a rookie, and Louie Dampier
. Ramsey was named coach 17 games into an 84-game season (which began with Gene Rhodes
coaching the first 15 games and fellow Kentucky alum Alex Groza
coaching the next two) and, though he had a 32-35 record, coached the Colonels into the playoffs. The Colonels lost to the Utah Stars
(who were coached by Sharman, Ramsey's ex-Celtic teammate) in the 1971 ABA Finals, 4 games to 3. Joe Mullaney replaced Ramsey as coach the following season.
Prior to coaching in the ABA, Ramsey had been Red Auerbach
's first choice to replace his mentor as Celtics coach after Auerbach retired at the end of the 1965-66 season. However, Ramsey decided to move back to Madisonville; his father, Frank Sr., wasn't in good health and Frank Jr. had three children to raise. http://celticspride.pixnet.net/blog/post/24638691
. Though Ramsey was one of the Celtics' best players, he felt more comfortable coming off the bench and Auerbach wanted him fresh and in the lineup at the end of close games. Ramsey was the first in a series of sixth men who won championship rings with the Celtics. In the championships the Celtics won after Ramsey's retirement, they have had successful sixth men such as Havlicek, Paul Silas
, Kevin McHale
, Bill Walton
and James Posey
.
Ramsey was mentioned in an episode of Married with Children. Bud asked Al
the trivia question, "Who was known as the best sixth man in basketball? He played for the Celtics," to which Al nonchalantly replied, "Frank Ramsey". However, little did Al know that Bud was answering a $100 trivia question from the television.
that hit his residence in Madisonville. One of his plaques was found miles away from his home, and Ramsey himself was found unhurt.
As of 2008, Ramsey was a bank president in Dixon, Kentucky
. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/02/sports/sp-oldceltics2
Corydon, Kentucky
Corydon is a city in Henderson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 744 at the 2000 census. Settled in 1848, the city is named for the hero of the song Pastoral Elegy.-Geography:Corydon is located at ....
) is a former professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player and coach. A 6-3 guard, he played his entire nine-year (1954
1954 in sports
1954 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:* NFL Championship – Cleveland Browns win 56-10 over the Detroit Lions* Ohio State Buckeyes - college football champions.-Artistic gymnastics:* 1954 World Championships...
–1964
1964 in sports
1964 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Men's Olympic Gold Medal:** Downhill: Egon Zimmermann, Austria** Slalom: Josef Stiegler, Austria** Giant Slalom: François Bonlieu, France* Women's Olympic Gold Medal:...
) NBA career with the Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
and played a major role in the early part of their dynasty
Dynasty (sports)
A sports dynasty is a team that dominates their sport or league for multiple seasons or years. Such dominance is often only realized in retrospect...
, winning seven championships. Ramsey was also a head coach for the Kentucky Colonels
Kentucky Colonels
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did...
of the ABA
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association was a professional basketball league founded in 1967. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976.-League history:...
during the 1970
1970 in sports
1970 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion – Karl Schranz, Austria** Women's overall season champion – Michèle Jacot, France-American football:...
–1971
1971 in sports
1971 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Gustav Thöni, Italy** Women's overall season champion: Annemarie Pröll, Austria-American football:...
season.
University of Kentucky
Raised in Madisonville, KentuckyMadisonville, Kentucky
Madisonville is a city in Hopkins County, Kentucky, United States of the Western Coal Field region, located along US 41 and The Pennyrile Parkway. The population was 19,307 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hopkins County. The city was named in honor of U.S...
, Ramsey was a multi-sport athlete at the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
, playing baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
as well as basketball. Playing under legendary coach Adolph Rupp
Adolph Rupp
Adolph Frederick Rupp was one of the most successful coaches in the history of American college basketball. Rupp is fourth in total victories by a men's NCAA Division I college coach, winning 876 games in 41 years of coaching...
, Ramsey, as a sophomore in 1951
1951 in sports
1951 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:* January 14 – The National Football League has its first Pro Bowl Game ....
, helped Kentucky win the NCAA Championship with a 68-58 victory over Kansas State
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
.
In the fall of 1952, a point shaving
Point shaving
In organized sports, point shaving is a type of match fixing where the perpetrators try to prevent a team from covering a published point spread. Unlike other forms of match fixing, sports betting invariably motivates point shaving. A point shaving scheme generally involves a sports gambler and one...
scandal involving four Kentucky players (one of whom was a teammate of Ramsey on Kentucky’s 1951 NCAA champions) over a four-year period forced Kentucky to forfeit its upcoming season, Ramsey’s senior year, as well as that of Cliff Hagan
Cliff Hagan
Clifford Oldham Hagan is an American former professional basketball player. A 6-4 forward who excelled with the hook shot, Hagan, nicknamed "Li'l Abner," played his entire 10-year NBA career with the St. Louis Hawks...
and Lou Tsioropoulos
Lou Tsioropoulos
Louis "Lou" C. Tsioropoulos is a retired Greek-American professional basketball player who played for the NBA's Boston Celtics for three seasons from 1956-1959....
. The suspension of the season made Kentucky's basketball team, in effect, the first college sports team to get the "death penalty.", although it was nothing more than the NCAA asking members schools not to schedule Kentucky, and not mandating it.
Ramsey, Hagan and Tsioropoulos all graduated from Kentucky in 1953 and, as a result, became eligible for the NBA Draft
NBA Draft
The NBA Draft is an annual event in which the thirty teams from the National Basketball Association can draft players who are eligible and wish to join the league. These players are usually amateur U.S. college basketball players, but international players are also eligible to be drafted...
. All three players were selected by the Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
—Ramsey in the first round, Hagan in the third, and Tsioropoulos in the seventh. All three also returned to Kentucky for one more season despite graduating. After finishing the regular season (one in which Ramsey averaged 19.6 points per game) with a perfect 25-0 record and a #1 ranking in the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, Kentucky had been offered a bid into the NCAA Tournament
1954 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1954 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 24 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 8, 1954, and ended with the championship game on March 20 in Kansas City, Missouri...
. However, then-existing NCAA rules prohibited graduate students from participating in post-season play; the Wildcats declined the bid because their participation would have forced them to play without Ramsey, Hagan and Tsioropoulos, thus jeopardizing their perfect season.
Upon completion of his college career, Ramsey scored 1344 points, which at the time ranked him fourth in the school's history, and grabbed 1038 rebounds, a school record later surpassed by one of his future Kentucky Colonel players, Dan Issel
Dan Issel
Daniel Paul Issel is a retired American Hall of Fame professional basketball player and coach.-Collegiate playing career:...
.
Boston Celtics
After playing his rookie season with the Celtics (1954–19551954-55 NBA season
The 1954–55 NBA season was the 9th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Syracuse Nationals winning the NBA Championship, beating the Fort Wayne Pistons 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals.- Notable occurrences :...
), Ramsey spent one year in the military before rejoining the team. In the eight seasons he played after military service, he was a member of seven championship teams (1957
1956-57 NBA season
The 1956–57 NBA season was the 11th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning the NBA Championship , beating the St...
, 1959
1958-59 NBA season
The 1958–59 NBA Season was the 13th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning the NBA Championship , beating the Minneapolis Lakers 4 games to 0 in the NBA Finals....
-1964
1963-64 NBA season
The 1963–64 NBA season was the 18th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning their 6th straight NBA Championship, beating the San Francisco Warriors 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals....
). He was a major contributor of the Celtics dynasty, playing behind the duo of Bob Cousy
Bob Cousy
Robert Joseph "Bob" Cousy is a retired American professional basketball player. The 6'1" , 175-pound Cousy played point guard with the National Basketball Association's Boston Celtics from 1951 to 1963 and briefly with the Cincinnati Royals in the 1969–70 season...
and Bill Sharman
Bill Sharman
William Walton "Bill" Sharman is a former professional basketball player and coach. Sharman completed high school in the rural city of Porterville, California and is mostly known for his time with the Boston Celtics in the 1950s, partnering with Bob Cousy in what some consider the greatest...
and playing with Bill Russell
Bill Russell
William Felton "Bill" Russell is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association...
, Sam Jones
Sam Jones (basketball)
Samuel Jones is a retired American professional basketball player at shooting guard and a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was known for his quickness and game-winning shots, especially during the NBA Playoffs...
, K. C. Jones
K. C. Jones
K. C. Jones is a retired American professional basketball player and coach. K. C. Jones is his full name.-Playing career:...
, Tom Heinsohn and John Havlicek
John Havlicek
John J. "Hondo" Havlicek is a retired American professional basketball player who competed for 16 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning eight NBA titles, half of them coming in his first four seasons....
. In his 623 NBA games Ramsey scored 8378 points for an average of 13.4 points per game. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1981
1982 in sports
1982 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup:** Men's overall season champion: Phil Mahre, United States** Women's overall season champion: Erika Hess, Switzerland-American football:...
. His #23 is retired by the Celtics.
Ramsey's best statistical season was 1958; he averaged 16.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. It was also his only post-military season in which the Celtics did not win the NBA championship; the Bob Pettit
Bob Pettit
Robert Lee "Bob" Pettit Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks . He was the first recipient of the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970...
-led St. Louis Hawks
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association .-The first years:...
(which also featured Cliff Hagan, Ramsey's ex-college teammate) defeated them in the NBA Finals
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....
.
Brief coaching career
Ramsey was also a head coach for one season (1970–71) in the ABA with the Kentucky ColonelsKentucky Colonels
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did...
, who were led two former Kentucky Wildcats - Issel, a rookie, and Louie Dampier
Louie Dampier
Louis "Louie" Dampier is a retired American professional basketball player.A 6-foot-tall guard, Dampier is one of only a handful of men to play all nine seasons in the American Basketball Association , all with the Kentucky Colonels...
. Ramsey was named coach 17 games into an 84-game season (which began with Gene Rhodes
Gene Rhodes
Eugene Stephen Rhodes is a retired American basketball player and coach.Rhodes played college basketball at Western Kentucky University...
coaching the first 15 games and fellow Kentucky alum Alex Groza
Alex Groza
Alex John Groza was an American professional basketball player from Martins Ferry, Ohio who was banned from the NBA for life in 1951 for point shaving...
coaching the next two) and, though he had a 32-35 record, coached the Colonels into the playoffs. The Colonels lost to the Utah Stars
Utah Stars
The Utah Stars was an American Basketball Association team based in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.Under head coach Bill Sharman the Stars were the first major professional basketball team to use a pre-game shootaround.-History:...
(who were coached by Sharman, Ramsey's ex-Celtic teammate) in the 1971 ABA Finals, 4 games to 3. Joe Mullaney replaced Ramsey as coach the following season.
Prior to coaching in the ABA, Ramsey had been Red Auerbach
Red Auerbach
Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach was an American basketball coach of the Washington Capitols, the Tri-Cities Blackhawks and the Boston Celtics. After he retired from coaching, he served as president and front office executive of the Celtics until his death...
's first choice to replace his mentor as Celtics coach after Auerbach retired at the end of the 1965-66 season. However, Ramsey decided to move back to Madisonville; his father, Frank Sr., wasn't in good health and Frank Jr. had three children to raise. http://celticspride.pixnet.net/blog/post/24638691
The NBA's first sixth man
Auerbach is often credited throughout basketball with creating the sixth manSixth man
The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a...
. Though Ramsey was one of the Celtics' best players, he felt more comfortable coming off the bench and Auerbach wanted him fresh and in the lineup at the end of close games. Ramsey was the first in a series of sixth men who won championship rings with the Celtics. In the championships the Celtics won after Ramsey's retirement, they have had successful sixth men such as Havlicek, Paul Silas
Paul Silas
Paul Theron Silas is a retired American professional basketball player and current head coach of the Charlotte Bobcats. He attended Creighton University, where he set an NCAA record for the most rebounds in three seasons and averaged 20.6 rebounds per game in 1963...
, Kevin McHale
Kevin McHale
Kevin Edward McHale is a retired American professional basketball player and current head coach of the Houston Rockets. After his playing career, he worked for the Minnesota Timberwolves as the team's general manager and later its coach. He was fired as coach in June 2009...
, Bill Walton
Bill Walton
William Theodore "Bill" Walton III is a retired American basketball player and television sportscaster. The "Big Red-Head", as he was called, achieved superstardom playing for John Wooden's powerhouse UCLA Bruins in the early '70s, winning three straight College Player of the Year Awards, while...
and James Posey
James Posey
James Mikely Mantell Posey, Jr. is an American professional basketball player, currently a small forward for the Indiana Pacers of the NBA.-Early life:...
.
Ramsey was mentioned in an episode of Married with Children. Bud asked Al
Al Bundy
Al Bundy is a fictional character from the U.S. television series Married... with Children. He was played by Ed O'Neill.-Character history:...
the trivia question, "Who was known as the best sixth man in basketball? He played for the Celtics," to which Al nonchalantly replied, "Frank Ramsey". However, little did Al know that Bud was answering a $100 trivia question from the television.
Personal life
On November 15th, 2005, Ramsey's house was destroyed in a tornadoTornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
that hit his residence in Madisonville. One of his plaques was found miles away from his home, and Ramsey himself was found unhurt.
As of 2008, Ramsey was a bank president in Dixon, Kentucky
Dixon, Kentucky
Dixon is a city in Webster County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 632 at the 2000 census. Dixon, the county seat of Webster county, is located at the junction of US 41A and KY 132. It was established in 1860 when the county was formed...
. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/02/sports/sp-oldceltics2