John Joseph Mandic (October 3, 1919 – June 22, 2003) 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 court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player of Croatian origin.Croatians in America
by Adam Eterovich He played college basketball for the

Oregon State Beavers The Oregon State Beavers are the athletic teams that represent Oregon State University, located in Corvallis, Oregon. The Beavers compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I ( Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for ...

from 1939 to 1942. He played for the

Portland Indians The Portland Indians were a professional basketball team in Portland, Oregon. They were a member of the Pacific Coast Professional Basketball League for the duration of the league, which only lasted two seasons: 1946–47 and 1947–48. They play ...

of the

Pacific Coast Professional Basketball League The Pacific Coast Professional Basketball League was a professional basketball league with teams from the Pacific Northwest in the United States and Canada. The league existed for two seasons, 1946-47 and 1947-48. Teams Three teams played in both ...

in the team's debut season in 1946–47, and was drafted by the

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 ...

in the 1947 BAA draft after the season had finished. Instead of playing for the Capitols, he instead signed with the

Rochester Royals The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

of the National Basketball League and played for the team for one season. He joined the

Indianapolis Jets The Indianapolis Jets were a Basketball Association of America (BAA) team based in Indianapolis. They were founded as the Indianapolis Kautskys and used that name until the team joined the BAA. They played for one year in the BAA and then ceased o ...

for the

1948–49 BAA season The 1948–49 BAA season was the third and final season of the Basketball Association of America. The 1949 BAA Playoffs ended with the Minneapolis Lakers winning the BAA Championship, beating the Washington Capitols 6 games in the BAA Finals. Th ...

. He was sold to the Capitols, the team that had drafted him two years prior, on August 13, 1949.John Mandic Stats
Basketball Reference. Accessed on June 8, 2017. After playing 22 games with the Capitols, he was waived, and signed with the Baltimore Bullets, but only managed three games with the team before retiring from playing basketball.

BAA/NBA career statistics

Regular season

References

External links

1919 births 2003 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players American people of Croatian descent Baltimore Bullets (1944–1954) players Basketball players from Los Angeles Centers (basketball) Indianapolis Jets players Oregon State Beavers men's basketball players Power forwards (basketball) Washington Capitols draft picks Washington Capitols players {{1910s-US-basketball-bio-stub