Alex Hannum (2001) - USC Athletics Hall of Fame

Alex Hannum

Induction:
2001
Class:
1948

Alex Hannum, one of the great coaches in NBA history, began his career as an outstanding basketball player at USC. A 4-year letterman (1943-46-47-48), he was an All-Southern Division first teamer as a senior in 1948 when he was named USC’s team MVP, Most Inspirational Player and team captain. He led the Trojans in scoring that season (11.4 average). He also was a member of USC’s 1943 conference champs. He then played with 7 teams in the National Basketball League and NBA from 1949 to 1957. It was as a 16-year head coach of 5 NBA teams (St. Louis Hawks, Syracuse Nationals, San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers and San Diego Rockets) and 2 ABA teams (Oakland Oaks and Denver Rockets/Nuggets) that earned him enshrinement into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998. He is the only coach in pro basketball history to win titles in the NBA (1958 with St. Louis and 1967 with Philadelphia) and ABA (1969 with Oakland). He coached 12 future Hall of Famers, including Wilt Chamberlain and Rick Barry. He was the 1964 NBA Coach of the Year and 1969 ABA Coach of the Year. After leaving coaching, he owned a construction firm. He died on Jan. 18, 2002, at age 78.