John W. Bunn was an American 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...

 coach and key contributor to the game of basketball. The Wellston, Ohio

Wellston, Ohio

Wellston is a city in Jackson County, Ohio, United States, in the southeastern part of the state. Founded in 1873 as an iron and coal producing center, the city was named after founder Harvey Wells, a member of the Ohio Constitutional Convention. The city was incorporated in 1876. The population...

 native played three seasons under coach Phog Allen

Phog Allen

Forrest Clare "Phog" Allen was an American basketball and baseball player, coach of American football, basketball, and baseball, college athletics administrator, and osteopathic physician...

 at University of Kansas

University of Kansas

The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...

 while earning his bachelors degree (1917–21). He later became an assistant to Allen for nine seasons (1921–30). In 1930 he became men's basketball head coach at Stanford University

Stanford University

The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...

, where he coached college all-time great Hank Luisetti

Hank Luisetti

Angelo "Hank" Luisetti was an American college men's basketball player and one of the great innovators of the game. In an era that featured the traditional two-handed set shot, Luisetti developed the running one-handed shot...

. After he left Stanford, Bunn went on to coach Springfield College

Springfield College

Springfield College is a private, coeducational university located in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts. Springfield College is most famous as the site where the sport of basketball was invented...

 (1946–56) and Colorado State College

University of Northern Colorado

-Organization:The University of Northern Colorado offers 100 undergraduate programs and more than 100 graduate programs. The university has a satellite campus in Denver, Colorado...

 (now the University of Northern Colorado) (1956–63).

Bunn served as Chairman of the Basketball Hall of Fame

Basketball Hall of Fame

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...

 form 1949 to 1963. On October 1, 1964, Bunn was inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor. For his contribution, the Basketball Hall of Fame annually presents an award in his name

John Bunn Award

The John Bunn Award is an annual basketball award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to an individual who has contributed significantly to the sport of basketball...

.