Morris Robert Becker (February 24, 1917 – January 9, 1996) 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. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Duquesne Dukes The Duquesne Dukes are the athletic teams of Duquesne University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Dukes compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association as members of the Atlantic 10 Conference. Football and bowling, however ...

. Barr played professionally for the

Pittsburgh Ironmen The Pittsburgh Ironmen were a charter member of the Basketball Association of America (a forerunner of the National Basketball Association). The team was based in Pittsburgh and played at Duquesne Gardens. They ended their only season in the BAA i ...

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), ...

and Detroit Falcons of the

Basketball Association of America The Basketball Association of America (BAA) was a professional basketball league in North America, founded in 1946. Following its third season, 1948–49, the BAA merged with the National Basketball League (United States), National Basketball Lea ...

(BAA) for 43 games during the 1946–47 season. Becker also played for the

Wilmington Blue Bombers The Wilmington Blue Bombers were an American basketball team based in Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina ...

Philadelphia Sphas The Philadelphia Sphas, also stylized SPHAs or SPHAS, were an American basketball franchise that existed as a professional, semi-professional, and exhibition team. They played their home games in the ballroom of Philadelphia's Broadwood Hotel. Th ...

and Baltimore Bullets of the American Basketball League, the

Youngstown Bears The Youngstown Bears were a professional basketball team based in Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in Mahoning County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, 11th-most populous city in Ohio with ...

of the National Basketball League, and the Atlanta Crackers of the Professional Basketball League of America.

College career

Becker formed a trio known as the "Iron Dukes" with Duquesne teammates Ed Milkovich and Paul Widowitz that led the team to a 51–10 record in three seasons.

Professional career

Becker served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

at the

Aberdeen Proving Ground Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) is a U.S. Army facility located adjacent to Aberdeen, Harford County, Maryland, United States. More than 7,500 civilians and 5,000 military personnel work at APG. There are 11 major commands among the tenant units, ...

during World War II. While at the facility, he played for teams in nearby Baltimore and Philadelphia.

Post-playing career

Becker returned to Pittsburgh after his playing career and served as a coach at Braddock High School. Moe also coached at Greensburg Salem High school. Becker died of complications from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

on January 9, 1996, in the Camelot Nursing Home in

Peoria, Arizona Peoria ( ) is a city in Maricopa and Yavapai counties in the U.S. state of Arizona. Most of the city is located in Maricopa County, while a portion of it in the north is in Yavapai County. It is a major suburb of Phoenix. As of the 2020 cens ...

BAA career statistics

Regular season

References

External links

* 1917 births 1996 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Pittsburgh Boston Celtics players Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in Arizona Detroit Falcons (basketball) players Duquesne Dukes men's basketball players Forwards (basketball) Guards (basketball) Pittsburgh Ironmen players Professional Basketball League of America players Youngstown Bears players {{1910s-US-basketball-bio-stub