Adolph Schayes ( ; May 19, 1928 – December 10, 2015) was an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player and coach in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). A top scorer and rebounder, he was a 12-time

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Traditionally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...

and a 12-time

All-NBA The All-NBA Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The voting is conducted by a global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. The team has been sel ...

selection. Schayes won an

NBA championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

with the

Syracuse Nationals The Philadelphia 76ers are an American basketball team currently playing in the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 76ers are third in NBA ...

in 1955. He was named one of the

50 Greatest Players in NBA History The 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, also referred to as NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, were chosen in 1996 to honor the 50th anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was the third anniversary team ...

, and was also named to the

NBA 75th Anniversary Team The NBA 75th Anniversary Team, also referred to as the NBA 75, was chosen in 2021 to honor the 75th anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was the fourth and most recent anniversary team in the league. S ...

in 2021. He was inducted into the

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...

in 1973. Schayes played his entire career with the Nationals and their successor, the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

, from 1948 to 1964. In his 16-year career, he led his team into the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

15 times. After the Nationals moved to Philadelphia, Schayes became

player-coach A player–coach (also playing coach, captain–coach, or player–manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. Player–coaches may be head coaches or assistant coaches, and they may make chang ...

of the newly minted 76ers. He ended his playing career after the 1963–64 season and stayed on as coach for two more seasons, earning

NBA Coach of the Year The National Basketball Association's Coach of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1962–63 NBA season. The winner receives the Red Auerbach Trophy, which is named in honor of the head coach who l ...

honors in 1966. He briefly coached with the

Buffalo Braves The Buffalo Braves were an American professional basketball team based in Buffalo, New York. The Braves competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference ...

Early life

Adolph Schayes was born on May 19, 1928, in

the Bronx, New York City The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, the son of Tina (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Michel), a homemaker, and Carl Schayes, a truck driver for Consolidated Laundries. His parents were Romanian-Jewish immigrants. He grew up on Davidson Avenue and 183rd Street, near

Jerome Avenue Jerome Avenue is one of the longest thoroughfares in the New York City borough of the Bronx, New York, United States. The road is long and stretches from Concourse to Woodlawn. Both of these termini are with the Major Deegan Expressway whi ...

University Heights, Bronx University Heights is a neighborhood of the West Bronx in New York City. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are: West Fordham Road to the north, Jerome Avenue to the east, West Burnside Avenue to the south and the Har ...

. Schayes attended Creston Junior High School 79 and

DeWitt Clinton High School DeWitt Clinton High School is a public high school located since 1929 in the Bronx borough of New York City. Opened in 1897 in Lower Manhattan as an all-boys school, it maintained that status for 86 years before becoming co-ed in 1983. From i ...

in the Bronx, where he excelled in

, playing for the basketball team and led it to a borough championship. At 6-foot-8, Dolph Schayes was agile and possessed great finesse around the basket. From 1944 to 1948, Schayes popularized the city game while starring under Hall of Fame coach Howard Cann at New York University

College career

Schayes played his college basketball at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

(NYU) in 1944–48. In 1945, as a 16-year-old freshman, Schayes helped NYU reach the NCAA final. Schayes earned an

aeronautical engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

degree, was an All-American in basketball and won the

Haggerty Award __NOTOC__ The Lt. Frank J. Haggerty Award is given to the top men's college basketball player from an NCAA Division I school in the New York metropolitan area. The Haggerty Award is presented by the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MB ...

in his final year. His NYU coach,

Howard Cann Howard Goodsell Cann (October 11, 1895 – December 18, 1992) was an American sportsman best known as the long-time men's basketball coach at New York University. He was also an Olympic shot putter and a college basketball and football player. ...

, said of him: "He was in the gym practicing every spare minute. We had to chase him out."

Professional career

Syracuse Nationals / Philadelphia 76ers (1948–1964)

Schayes was drafted by both the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

in the

1948 BAA draft The 1948 BAA draft was the second annual draft of the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which later merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) to become the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 10, 1948, ...

(1st round; 4th pick overall), and by the

Tri-Cities Blackhawks Tri-Cities most often refers to: *Tri-Cities, Tennessee, United States *Tri-Cities, Washington, United States Tri-City, Tricity or Tri-Cities may also refer to: Populated places Americas Canada * Tri-Cities (British Columbia), consisting of C ...

in the NBL draft. The Blackhawks traded his rights to the

, who then offered him a contract worth $7,500 (worth $ today), 50% more than the Knicks, influencing his decision to go to Syracuse. Schayes played one season in the NBL and was named the league's Rookie of the Year. The following season ( 1949–50), the Nationals moved to the newly formed

as part of the merger between the BAA and NBL. Although tall for his era at , Schayes was especially known for his deadly, high-arcing, outside set-shot. It arced so high that his teammates came to call it the "

Sputnik Sputnik 1 (, , ''Satellite 1''), sometimes referred to as simply Sputnik, was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space progra ...

". Defenders who attempted to deny him the outside shot were confronted by his powerful drive to the basket. These two offensive weapons served him well, even as the NBA was transitioning from basketball's traditional

set shot A set shot in Australian rules football is a kick for goal in which the player can "set" themselves, rather than have to quickly react during the play. A set shot occurs when a player has been awarded a free kick, or has taken a mark within ...

into a league of jump-shooters. Early in Schayes' career, he broke his right arm and played almost an entire season in a cast. Oddly, this injury became a seminal point in his development: he learned to shoot with his off-hand, making him especially difficult to guard. He was one of the best—and the last—to use a two-handed set-shot with feet planted on the floor, before the game changed to one-handed jump shots. Dolph Schayes 1951

In the 1949–50 season, Schayes was sixth in the league in assists, with 259. He led the NBA in rebounding in 1950–51 (in which he also had 10 of the top 14 individual rebounding games), with 1,080 and a 16.4-per-game average. He was third in the league in rebounding in 1952–53, with 920. In 1953–54, his 12.3 rebounds per game were fourth-best in the NBA. In 1954–55, Schayes led his team to the NBA championship. In 1956–57, he led the league in minutes-per-game (39.6) and free throws (625), while grabbing 1,008 rebounds (3rd in the league) and averaging 22.6 points per game (4th in the league). In 1957, he set an NBA consecutive free throw record in a single game with 18. In 1957–58 he again led the league in minutes-per-game (40.5), and averaged a career-high 24.9 points per game, second in the league, while averaging 14.2 rebounds per game (fourth in the NBA). Schayes led the NBA in free throw percentage three times: in 1958 (.904), 1960 (.892) and 1962 (.896). In 1959, he scored a career-high 50 points in a game against the Celtics. In the NBA, he didn't miss a single game from February 17, 1952, to December 26, 1961, an NBA-record streak of 706 games. In 1960–61, he again led the league in free throws (with 680). In 1961, he became the first player in NBA history to amass 30,000 career total PRA (Points + Rebounds + Assists).

NBA career achievements

Schayes was the first person in the NBA to ever surpass 15,000 points and 10,000 rebounds. upSchayes ca. 1957 A 12-time

, Schayes was a six-time

First Team honoree, and was also selected to the All-NBA Second Team six times. He came in second in MVP voting in 1958, and 5th in both 1956 and 1957. When he retired in 1964, he held the NBA records for games played (996), foul shots made (6,712), attempted (7,904), personal fouls (3,432) and was second to

Bob Pettit Robert E. Lee Pettit Jr. ( ; born December 12, 1932) is an American former professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association, NBA, all with the Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks (1954–1965). In ...

in scoring (18,438) and third in rebounds (11,256).

Coaching career and referee supervisor

Philadelphia 76ers (1963–1966)

When the Nationals moved to Philadelphia in 1963 as the

, Schayes became player-coach. However, his playing career had all but ended; he only played in 24 games, the only time in his career in which he played in fewer than 50 games. He didn't play at all during the playoffs. Schayes retired as a player after the season but stayed on as coach for three more seasons. He was named

in 1966. That season, he led the Sixers to the Eastern Division regular-season title, ending a nine-year reign by the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

. However, the Celtics ousted the Sixers in a five-game Eastern final, and Schayes was fired. He was succeeded by his predecessor with the Nats,

Alex Hannum Alexander Murray Hannum (July 19, 1923 – January 18, 2002) was an American professional basketball player and coach. As a player, Hannum played for six different teams, most notably with the Milwaukee (later St. Louis) Hawks, where he played ...

, who led the team to the best record in league history at the time and an NBA title. From 1966 to 1970, Schayes was the supervisor of NBA referees. He was named the first coach of the

in 1970, but was fired one game into his second season after a 123-90 loss to the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly shortened to Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Division (1967–1970), and ...

Maccabiah Games coach

Schayes coached the US

Maccabiah Games The Maccabiah Games (, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics") is an international multi-sport event with summer and winter sports competitions featuring Jews and Israelis regardless of religion ...

basketball team to an upset win to take the gold medal in the

1977 Maccabiah Games At the 10th Maccabiah Games in Israel, more than 2,800 athletes from 34 countries participated in 26 different sports, including chess and bridge and for the first time badminton. The opening ceremonies were held on July 12, 1977, in Ramat Gan S ...

. He also coached the U.S. Masters basketball team at the

1993 Maccabiah Games The 14th Maccabiah Games brought 5,100 athletes to Israel from 48 nations. Jewish athletes from Poland, Bulgaria, and Czechoslovakia participated for the first time after World War II, after the fall of the Iron Curtain. Athletes from eight Repu ...

. He also played an active role raising money for the Maccabiah Games.

Personal life

Schayes settled in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. With a population of 148,620 and a Syracuse metropolitan area, metropolitan area of 662,057, it is the fifth-most populated city and 13 ...

, in 1948, where he first played in the NBA, and where he was a real estate developer after his playing days. Schayes' son is retired NBA

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

Danny Schayes Daniel Leslie Schayes (born May 10, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player who played for Syracuse University and played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), from 1981 until 1999. At 6' 11" and 235 pounds ...

, who played for Jamesville-DeWitt High School, in

DeWitt, New York DeWitt is a town in Onondaga County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 26,074. The town is named after major Moses DeWitt, a judge and soldier. An eastern suburb of Syracuse, DeWitt also is the site of most o ...

;

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

; and in the NBA for 18 seasons. His granddaughters Abi, Carla, and Rachel Goettsch won silver medals for the United States volleyball team at the

2001 Maccabiah Games The 16th Maccabiah Games (), the Opening Ceremony was held in Jerusalem at Teddy Stadium, while the re-building process of the Maccabiah bridge collapse, collapsed bridge and investigations into the collapse continued. The 16th Maccabiah attracted ...

, and his grandson Mickey Ferri won a gold medal in the 4 × 100 metres relay at the

2005 Maccabiah Games The 17th Maccabiah Games (), held in Israel, were an incarnation of the 'Jewish Olympics.' They attracted the largest attendance of any Maccabiah Games, including more than 900 representatives from the United States, almost 500 from Australia, and ...

. Schayes died of cancer on December 10, 2015, at the age of 87. He was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in Syracuse.

Legacy

In 1970, Schayes was elected to the

NBA 25th Anniversary Team The NBA 25th Anniversary Team was chosen on December 11, 1971, to honor the 25th anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association (NBA) as the Basketball Association of America (BAA) in 1946. It was the first anniversary team ...

as one of the top 12 retired players. In 1972, Schayes was elected to the

. He is also a member of the

International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame (IJSHOF) () is the international hall of fame for Jewish athletes and special contributors to the world of sport. The purpose of the IJSHOF is to honor Jewish individuals, worldwide, who have accompli ...

, the US

National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, in Commack, New York, is dedicated to honoring American Jewish figures who have distinguished themselves in sports. Its objective is to foster Jewish identity through athletics, and to commemo ...

, and the National Jewish American Sports Hall of Fame. In 1996, Schayes was selected as one of the

. In May 2015, Schayes was inducted into the Bronx Walk of Fame, where he received a street named in his honor, called "Dolph Schayes Street". The 76ers retired Schayes' jersey on March 12, 2016, while the

Syracuse Crunch The Syracuse Crunch are a professional ice hockey team based in Syracuse, New York. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's Tampa Bay Lightning. They play in they home games at the Upstate Medical Univer ...

retired it on March 26, 2016. In 2021, Schayes was elected to the

. To commemorate the NBA's 75th Anniversary ''

The Athletic ''The Athletic'' is a subscription-based sports journalism department of ''The New York Times''. It provides national and local coverage in 47 North American cities as well as the United Kingdom. ''The Athletic'' also covers national stories ...

'' ranked their top 75 players of all time, and named Schayes as the 61st greatest player in NBA history.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

Dolph Schayes biography
at NBA Encyclopedia
Dolph Schayes grave
at Woodlawn Cemetery (Syracuse, New York) {{DEFAULTSORT:Schayes, Dolph 1928 births 2015 deaths 21st-century American Jews American men's basketball players American people of Romanian-Jewish descent Basketball coaches from New York (state) Basketball players from the Bronx Basketball players from Syracuse, New York Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Syracuse, New York) Buffalo Braves head coaches Centers (basketball) Deaths from cancer in New York (state) DeWitt Clinton High School alumni Jewish American basketball players Jews from New York (state) Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees NBA All-Stars NBA players with retired numbers National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame inductees New York Knicks draft picks NYU Violets men's basketball players Sportspeople from DeWitt, New York Philadelphia 76ers head coaches Philadelphia 76ers players Basketball player-coaches Power forwards Syracuse Nationals players