John "Hook" Dillon (January 8, 1924 – January 18, 2004) was an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player. He played collegiately for the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

from 1945 to 1948. Prior to attending UNC, he previously played in the Savannah (GA) Ice Delivery city league and Benedictine Military Academy. Dillon earned All-America honors in 1946 and 1947. He was the leading scorer on the 1946 team, which was UNC's first team to ever reach the Final Four. He first started gaining national attention early in 1946 against

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

in Madison Square Garden when he scored 21 points, many on his deadly hook shot. After the game, the media declared his shot to be one of the best ever showcased in Madison Square Garden, and the nickname stuck. Because of his national accolades, Dillon's number 13 was honored by the University of North Carolina and currently hangs in the rafters of the

Dean Smith Center The Dean E. Smith Student Activities Center (commonly known as the Dean Smith Center, Smith Center, or the Dean Dome) is a multi-purpose arena in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, used primarily as the home for the University of North Carolina at Ch ...

. Dillon had a brief professional career with the Toronto Huskies and

Washington Capitols The Washington Capitols were a former Basketball Association of America (forerunner of the National Basketball Association) team based in Washington, D.C. from 1946 to 1951. The team was coached from 1946 to 1949 by NBA Hall of Famer Red Auerbac ...

of the NBA.NBA career statistics
/ref> He died on January 18, 2004.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

1924 births 2004 deaths All-American college men's basketball players Basketball players from Savannah, Georgia Chicago Stags draft picks Forwards (basketball) North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players Washington Capitols players American men's basketball players {{1920s-US-basketball-bio-stub