John Arec Gianelli (born June 10, 1950) is an American former 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 (appr ...

player. At a height of 6'10" (2.08 m ) tall, he played at the

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers. When on Of ...

and

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 eccentricity ...

positions. He played eight seasons (1972–1980) in the

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

(NBA) with 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 New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

Buffalo Braves The Buffalo Braves were an American professional basketball franchise based in Buffalo, New York. The Braves competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division from 1970 ...

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

, and

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

College career

Gianelli graduated from Edison High School in 1968. He matriculated at the University of the Pacific where he was a three-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

with the Tigers men's basketball team in 1970, 1971 and 1972.John Gianelli – University of the Pacific Athletics Hall of Fame.
Retrieved September 30, 2022. He averaged 21.5 points and 17.2 rebounds in his senior year, the latter ranked second in the nation."Personalities: Knicks Obtain a 6–10 Forward," ''The New York Times'', Wednesday, September 20, 1972.
Retrieved September 29, 2022. His uniform number 23 was retired in May 1973, the second in Pacific's men's basketball history. He was inducted into the university's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1986.

Professional career

Gianelli was selected by the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

twentieth overall in the second round of the 1972 NBA draft. After not agreeing to contract terms with the Rockets, his NBA negotiation rights were obtained by the

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 New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

on September 19, 1972. He was involved in four other transactions during his NBA career, the first two within a year of each other. He was traded along with $3.3 million from the Knicks to the

Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

for

Bob McAdoo Robert Allen McAdoo Jr. ( ; born September 25, 1951) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a five-time NBA All-Star and named the NBA Most ...

and

Tom McMillen Charles Thomas McMillen (born May 26, 1952) is an American politician, businessman, and retired professional basketball player. A Rhodes Scholar, McMillen represented Maryland's 4th congressional district from January 3, 1987 to January 3, 1993 ...

on December 9, 1976. Gianelli was sent from the Braves to the

Bucks Bucks may refer to: Places * Buckinghamshire, England, abbreviated Bucks * Bucks, Alabama, United States, an unincorporated community * Bucks, Illinois, United States, an unincorporated community * Bucks, Michigan, an unincorporated community ...

for a first-round pick in the 1979 NBA draft (eventually dealt to the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

) and cash nine months later on September 2, 1977.1979 NBA Draft Pick Transactions, June 25 – Pro Sports Transactions.
Retrieved September 29, 2022. The final two transactions happened within five months of each other. He was traded along with the eighth overall selection in the first round of the 1979 NBA draft (

Calvin Natt Calvin Leon Natt (born January 8, 1957) is an American retired professional basketball player. A 6'6" (1.98 m) forward, Natt played at Northeast Louisiana University under coach Lenny Fant. After college, he played 11 NBA seasons ( 1979–199 ...

) from the Bucks to the

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

for

Harvey Catchings Harvey Lee Catchings (born September 2, 1951) is an American former professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1974 to 1985 as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, ...

on May 31, 1979. He never appeared in a game with the Nets, as he was dealt along with

Bernard King Bernard King (born December 4, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player at the small forward position in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 14 seasons with the New Jersey Nets, Utah Jazz, Golden State Warriors ...

and

Jim Boylan Jim Boylan (born April 28, 1955) is an American basketball coach. He served as the interim head coach for the Chicago Bulls for part of the 2007–08 NBA season. He also served as an interim coach for the Milwaukee Bucks for part of the 2012– ...

to the

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

for

Rich Kelley Richard Ryland Kelley (born March 23, 1953) is an American retired basketball player. Kelley played college basketball at Stanford University and was the first round pick (7th pick overall) of the New Orleans Jazz in the 1975 NBA draft. Kelley ...

and cash on October 2. He averaged 7.8 points and 5.9

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

per game in his NBA career, and won a league championship with New York in 1973. He also played professionally in Italy for three years, with

Olimpia Milano Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano, commonly known as Olimpia Milano or as EA7 Emporio Armani Milan after its title sponsor, is an LBA Italian professional basketball team, based in Milan, Italy. Its colors are white and red, and the team is sometimes ...

. He was the starting center and one of two foreign players on the Olimpia Milano team that captured the 1981–82

Lega Basket Serie A The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club basketball league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). It is the highest-tier le ...

championship; the other foreigner was starting

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...

Mike D'Antoni Michael D'Andrew D'Antoni (born May 8, 1951) is an Italian-American professional basketball coach and former player who is a coaching advisor for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). While head coach of the Ph ...

.Vecsey, George. "Sports of The Times; An Ex-Knick Still Winning," ''The New York Times'', Sunday, May 9, 1982.
Retrieved September 29, 2022.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", 1972–73† , align="left" ,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, 52 , , - , , 9.9 , , .451 , , - , , .697 , , 2.9 , , 0.5 , , - , , - , , 3.5 , - , align="left" , 1973–74 , align="left" ,

, 70 , , - , , 20.3 , , .479 , , - , , .760 , , 4.9 , , 1.1 , , 0.3 , , 0.6 , , 7.3 , - , align="left" , 1974–75 , align="left" ,

, 80 , , - , , 35.0 , , .472 , , - , , .692 , , 8.6 , , 2.0 , , 0.5 , , 1.5 , , 10.3 , - , align="left" , 1975–76 , align="left" ,

, 82 , , - , , 28.4 , , .473 , , - , , .713 , , 6.7 , , 1.4 , , 0.3 , , 0.8 , , 9.3 , - , align="left" , 1976–77 , align="left" ,

, 19 , , - , , 33.2 , , .473 , , - , , .729 , , 9.4 , , 1.4 , , 0.7 , , 1.5 , , 10.9 , - , align="left" , 1976–77 , align="left" , Buffalo , 57 , , - , , 22.5 , , .431 , , - , , .714 , , 5.2 , , 1.0 , , 0.4 , , 1.2 , , 7.0 , - , align="left" , 1977–78 , align="left" ,

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

, 82 , , - , , 28.4 , , .488 , , - , , .642 , , 6.2 , , 2.3 , , 0.7 , , 1.1 , , 8.5 , - , align="left" , 1978–79 , align="left" ,

, style="background:#cfecec;", 82* , , - , , 25.1 , , .486 , , - , , .706 , , 5.0 , , 2.0 , , 0.5 , , 0.7 , , 7.1 , - , align="left" , 1979–80 , align="left" ,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, 17 , , - , , 16.8 , , .348 , , .000 , , .563 , , 3.6 , , 1.0 , , 0.4 , , 0.4 , , 3.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 541 , , - , , 25.2 , , .470 , , .000 , , .702 , , 5.9 , , 1.5 , , 0.5 , , 1.0 , , 7.8

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", 1972–73† , align="left" ,

, 7 , , - , , 7.9 , , .550 , , - , , .429 , , 1.9 , , 0.1 , , - , , - , , 3.6 , - , align="left" , 1973–74 , align="left" ,

, 12 , , - , , 28.2 , , .407 , , - , , .720 , , 7.3 , , 1.9 , , 0.3 , , 0.5 , , 7.3 , - , align="left" , 1974–75 , align="left" ,

, 3 , , - , , 31.0 , , .458 , , - , , 1.000 , , 4.7 , , 0.7 , , 0.0 , , 1.3 , , 8.3 , - , align="left" , 1977–78 , align="left" ,

, 9 , , - , , 32.2 , , .424 , , - , , .769 , , 6.4 , , 1.6 , , 0.9 , , 1.2 , , 7.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 31 , , - , , 25.0 , , .434 , , - , , .721 , , 5.6 , , 1.3 , , 0.5 , , 0.9 , , 6.7

References

External links

* 1950 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Italy American men's basketball players Basketball players from Stockton, California Buffalo Braves players Centers (basketball) Houston Rockets draft picks Milwaukee Bucks players New York Knicks players Olimpia Milano players Pacific Tigers men's basketball players Power forwards (basketball) Utah Jazz players {{1950s-US-basketball-bio-stub