George A. Kaftan (February 22, 1928 – October 6, 2018) 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. George grew up in New York City and went to Xavier in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

before going to Holy Cross for college. Though just 6'3", Kaftan was the starting center for the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private, Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, about 40 miles (64 km) west of Boston. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest ...

team that won the

1947 NCAA basketball tournament The 1947 NCAA basketball tournament involved eight schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 19, 1947, and ended with the championship game on Ma ...

. In 1947 Kaftan also won Most Outstanding Player honors after averaging 21 points per game in three games. Kaftan was selected in the second round of the 1949 BAA Draft. Kaftan later played professionally for the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

(1949–1950),

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 ...

(1950–1952) and Baltimore Bullets (1952–1953). He averaged 7.5 points per game in his BAA/NBA career. Kaftan is a member of the New England Basketball Hall of Fame and the Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame.Hall of Fame Inductees
Retrieved on March 1, 2008.

Personal

Kaftan was of Greek descent. His family's original name was Kaftagouras.

BAA/NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

1928 births 2018 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players American people of Greek descent Baltimore Bullets (1944–1954) players Basketball coaches from New York (state) Basketball players from New York City Boston Celtics draft picks Boston Celtics players College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Holy Cross Crusaders men's basketball players LIU Post Pioneers men's basketball coaches New York Knicks players Small forwards Xavier High School (New York City) alumni {{1920s-US-basketball-bio-stub