John W. Bunn (September 26, 1898 – August 13, 1979) 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 Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
coach and key contributor to the game of basketball. The
Wellston, Ohio
Wellston is a city in Jackson County, Ohio, United States, in the southeastern part of the state. The population was 5,663 at the 2010 census.
History
Wellston was laid out and founded in 1873 on land owned by Harvey Wells. Wells constructed a ...
native played three seasons under coach
Phog Allen
Forrest Clare "Phog" Allen (November 18, 1885 – September 16, 1974) was an American basketball coach. Known as the "Father of Basketball Coaching,"[University of Kansas
The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...]
while earning his bachelor's degree (1917–21). He later became an assistant to Allen for nine seasons (1921–30). His In 1930, he became men's basketball head coach at
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, where he coached college all-time great
Hank Luisetti
Angelo-Giuseppi "Hank" Luisetti (June 16, 1916 – December 17, 2002) was an American college men's basketball player. He is considered to be one of the great innovators of the sport. In an era that featured the traditional two-handed set shot, ...
. His
1936–37 team finished the season with a 25–2 record
and was retroactively named the national champion by the
Helms Athletic Foundation
The Helms Athletic Foundation, founded in 1936, was a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to the promotion of athletics and sportsmanship. Paul H. Helms was the organization's founder and benefactor, funding the foundation via his ownership ...
and the
Premo-Porretta Power Poll
The Premo-Porretta Power Poll is a retroactive end-of-year ranking for American college basketball teams competing in the 1895–96 through the 1947–48 seasons.
The Premo-Porretta Polls are intended to serve collectively as a source of informa ...
.
After he left Stanford, Bunn went on to coach
Springfield College
Springfield College is a private college in Springfield, Massachusetts. It confers undergraduate and graduate degrees.
It is known as the birthplace of basketball because the sport was invented there in 1891 by Canadian-American instructor J ...
(1946–56) and
Colorado State College
The University of Northern Colorado (UNC) is a public university in Greeley, Colorado. The university was founded in 1889 as the State Normal School of Colorado and has a long history in teacher education. The institution has officially changed ...
(now the University of Northern Colorado) (1956–63).
Bunn served as chairman of the
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 ...
from 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.
Bunn died on August 13, 1979, in
Newbury Park, California
Newbury Park is a populated place and townReal Estate Communications, Inc. (1984). ''California Real Estate Directory''. Page 201. in Ventura County, California, United States.
Most of it lies within the western Thousand Oaks city limits, while ...
.
Head coaching record
Basketball
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bunn, John
1898 births
1979 deaths
American football halfbacks
American football quarterbacks
American men's basketball players
Baseball coaches from Ohio
Baseball players from Ohio
Basketball coaches from Ohio
Basketball players from Ohio
Forwards (basketball)
Guards (basketball)
Kansas Jayhawks baseball coaches
Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball coaches
Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball players
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
Northern Colorado Bears men's basketball coaches
People from Wellston, Ohio
Players of American football from Ohio
Springfield Pride baseball coaches
Springfield Pride men's basketball coaches
Stanford Cardinal men's basketball coaches