Wayne Edward Yates (November 7, 1937August 16, 2022) 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 Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player who played 37 games for the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

in one

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) season in 1961–62. He later worked as a

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

coach, most notably at Memphis State University (now the

University of Memphis } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

Early life

Yates was born in

Gurdon, Arkansas Gurdon is a city in Clark County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 2,212 at the 2010 census. __TOC__ History The town was founded in the late nineteenth century as a railroad town for the timber industry on the St. Louis, Iron Mou ...

, on November 7, 1937. He attended

North Little Rock High School North Little Rock High School is a public school in North Little Rock, Arkansas, that is administered by the North Little Rock School District. As of the 2016–17 school year, the high school consists of one campus, which holds 9th - 12th grade. ...

in nearby

North Little Rock North Little Rock is a city in Pulaski County, Arkansas, across the Arkansas from Little Rock in the central part of the state. The population was 64,591 at the 2020 census. In 2019 the estimated population was 65,903, making it the seventh-mo ...

, and played basketball for its school team. He initially studied at

New Mexico State University New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's tw ...

(NMSU), where he played for the Aggies and received first team all-

Border Conference The Border Conference, officially known as the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association, was an National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA-affiliated college athletic conference founded in 1931 that disbanded following the 1961–62 season. ...

honors as a sophomore in 1957–58. After two years at NMSU, he transferred to

Memphis State University } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

. He consequently sat out the 1958–59 season per

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

transfer rules, before averaging 5.3 points and 4.0

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 with the

Memphis Tigers The Memphis Tigers are the Sport, athletic teams that represent the University of Memphis, located in Memphis, Tennessee. The teams compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level as a member of ...

during his

junior year A junior is person in the third year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In United States high schools, a junio ...

. He then led the team with 17.5 points and 14.4 rebounds as a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

, and helped the Tigers to a berth in the

1961 National Invitation Tournament The 1961 National Invitation Tournament was the 1961 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. Selected teams Below is a list of the 12 teams selected for the tournament. * Army * Colorado State * Dayton * DePaul * Detroit * ...

. At the end of the season, Yates earned first-team

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

honors from ''

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'', as well as an honorable mention from

Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...

Professional career

After finishing his college career at Memphis State, Yates was selected in the first round (fifth overall selection) of the

1961 NBA Draft The 1961 NBA draft was the 15th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on March 27, 1961, before the 1961–62 season. In this draft, nine NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball playe ...

by the

. He made his NBA debut on October 27, 1961, recording one rebound and attempting one

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against 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 ...

. He ultimately played only one season in the NBA, backing up All-Star

Rudy LaRusso Rudolph A. LaRusso (November 11, 1937 – July 9, 2004) was an American professional basketball player who was a five-time All-Star in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was nicknamed "Roughhouse Rudy." Early life LaRusso was Jewish ...

1961–62 NBA season The 1961–62 NBA season was the 16th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning their 4th straight NBA title, beating the Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals. Notable occurren ...

. He averaged 1.9 points and 2.5 rebounds in 37 games in a season shortened by injury. In the offseason, he was traded to the Saint Louis Hawks for future draft picks. Instead of reporting to the Hawks, Yates signed with the Oakland Oaks of the fledgeling American Basketball League. While Yates found a productive role with the team, averaging 10.7 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, the league folded before the season ended. He was subsequently invited to 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 ...

training camp prior to the

1963–64 NBA season The 1963–64 NBA season was the 18th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning their 6th straight NBA Championship, beating the San Francisco Warriors 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals. Notabl ...

. However, he did not make the team.

Coaching career

Yates returned to his alma mater, Memphis State, as an assistant to head coach

Moe Iba Henry W. "Moe" Iba (born May 31, 1939) is an American former basketball coach. He served as the head men's basketball coach at Memphis State University, now known as the University of Memphis, from 1966 to 1970, Nebraska from 1980 to 1986, and Te ...

in 1969. When Iba was dismissed in 1970, new coach

Gene Bartow Bobby Gene Bartow (August 18, 1930 January 3, 2012) was an American men's college basketball coach. The Browning, Missouri, native coached 36 years at six universities after coaching two high schools in Missouri for six years. In 1972 Bartow coac ...

retained Yates as an assistant. Yates helped Memphis State to their first Final Four, as the upstart Tigers made it all the way to the 1973 NCAA tournament final, losing to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. After one more season, Bartow left for Illinois and Yates was elevated to head coach. The young coach had a successful tenure at Memphis State, leading the Tigers to three straight postseason appearances and four straight 19+ win seasons. However, a subpar 1978–79 season, allegations of NCAA violations, and the academic suspension of Tigers star Tony Rufus all led to Yates announcing his resignation on February 8, 1979. He was eventually replaced by Dana Kirk at the conclusion of the season. His final record in five seasons at Memphis was 111–49. After a year off from coaching, Yates was named head coach at Northwestern Louisiana (now

Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSU) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Polk and Alexandria. It is a part of the Univer ...

) in 1980. He coached there for five seasons, finishing with a 48–67 record at the school. Yates resigned following a 3–25 season in 1984–85.

Personal life

Yates was married to Harriet Ardala "Dala" Harding Yates until her death. Together, they had four children. Yates died on August 16, 2022, in

Natchitoches, Louisiana Natchitoches ( ; french: link=no, Les Natchitoches) is a small city and the parish seat of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, United States. Established in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis as part of French Louisiana, the community was named ...

. He was 84 years old.

Head coaching record

Source:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yates, Wayne 1937 births 2022 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Arkansas Basketball players from Arkansas Centers (basketball) College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Los Angeles Lakers players Memphis Tigers men's basketball coaches Memphis Tigers men's basketball players New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball players Northwestern State Demons basketball coaches Oakland Oaks players People from North Little Rock, Arkansas