Wendell Ladner (October 6, 1948 – June 24, 1975) 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 most notable for his playing time in the American Basketball Association (ABA) from 1970 to 1975. Ladner was born in Necaise Crossing, Hancock County, Mississippi and played high school ball at Hancock North Central High School in Kiln, Mississippi. After attending the

University of Southern Mississippi The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...

, Ladner went undrafted in the 1970 ABA draft where he played five seasons with five different teams in the ABA, from

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

. A and forward, Ladner was one of the great "enforcers" of the American Basketball Association, protecting

Dan Issel Daniel Paul Issel (born October 25, 1948) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. An outstanding collegian at the University of Kentucky, Issel was twice named an All-American en route to a school-record 25.7 points per ...

of the Kentucky Colonels and

Julius Erving Julius Winfield Erving II (born February 22, 1950), commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is an American former professional basketball player. Erving helped legitimize the American Basketball Association (ABA), and he was the best-known player ...

of the

New York 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, ...

. Ladner regularly squared off with arguably the fiercest player in the ABA, Pittsburgh's John Brisker, once marching into the Condors' locker room and yelling, "Hey, John, you wanna fight right now or wait for the game?" (It was not unusual for Brisker and Ladner to beat each other bloody on the court, only to hang out together at a local bar afterwards.) Ladner was named to the 1971 ABA All-Rookie team, and selected to the ABA all-star game his rookie season. That year, on January 24, he set a career-high points total of 34 in a Memphis win over

The Floridians ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

. He was also an all-star the following season. Ladner died at the age of 26 in the June 24, 1975, crash of Eastern Air Lines Flight 66. He was identified by medical examiners because he was wearing his ABA championship ring. For many years, the Nets included his name and number in their list of retired numbers, though Ladner's no. 4 did not hang in the rafters with the other retired numbers. His number was also given to Rick Mahorn during his tenure with the Nets. In October 2013, a '' New York Daily News'' article explained that the number was never formally retired. However, out of respect to Ladner, Nets trainer Fritz Massmann had not issued No. 4 to other players for 17 years after Ladner's death. Erving called Ladner his wackiest teammate because he wanted to be Burt Reynolds with a basketball. ''

Semi-Pro ''Semi-Pro'' is a 2008 American sports comedy film. The film was directed by Kent Alterman in his directorial debut, written by Scot Armstrong, and produced by Jimmy Miller. It stars Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, André Benjamin and Maura Tier ...

'', a basketball comedy set in the 1970s and starring

Will Ferrell John William Ferrell (; born July 16, 1967) is an American actor, comedian, and producer. He first established himself in the mid-1990s as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy show '' Saturday Night Live'', where he performed from 1995 to 2 ...

, spoofs Ladner's Burt Reynolds persona in its trailer. Ladner also has a road in Perkinston, Mississippi, named after him in his honor.

References

External links

*ABA statistics a
Basketball Reference
* * Jim O'Brien

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ladner, Wendell 1948 births 1975 deaths Accidental deaths in New York (state) American men's basketball players Basketball players from Mississippi Carolina Cougars players Kentucky Colonels players Memphis Pros players Memphis Tams players New York Nets players People from Hancock County, Mississippi Small forwards Southern Miss Golden Eagles basketball players Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1975 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States

See also

References

External links