Norm Baker
Personal information | |
---|---|
Born | Victoria, British Columbia | February 17, 1923
Died | April 23, 1989 Victoria, British Columbia | (aged 66)
Nationality | Canadian |
Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
Listed weight | 180 lb (82 kg) |
Career information | |
Playing career | 1946–1948 |
Position | Guard |
Number | 16 |
Career history | |
1946 | Chicago Stags |
1946–1948 | Vancouver Hornets |
Stats ![]() | |
Stats ![]() | |
Norman Henry Baker (February 17, 1923 – April 23, 1989) was a Canadian professional basketball and lacrosse player.
Early life and career[]
Baker started his career at the age of ten while playing for the Nanaimo Mosquitoes.[1] He became the youngest player to win a Canadian senior national championship as the team won in 1939.[1] As a sixteen-year-old, Baker led the Mosquitoes to a win over the Harlem Globetrotters and was called "one of the greatest natural players I have ever seen" by Globetrotters founder Abe Saperstein.[2]
Baker won two more championships with the Mosquitoes in 1942 and 1946.[1] While serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force, he won another championship in 1943 for the Pat Bay Gremlins.[1] Baker set a league scoring record with the Gremlins when he posted 38 points in a game against Windsor.[1]
Professional career[]
Baker became professional in 1946 when he played for the Chicago Stags of the Basketball Association of America (BAA).[1] He was released after only four games with the team.[3] Baker stated that the main reason he did not stay was because he had trouble with his contract and was only offered $900 a month.[4]
Baker played lacrosse for the Westminster Adanacs in 1947.[1]
Baker played 70 games for the Vancouver Hornets of the Pacific Coast Professional Basketball League from 1947 to 1948 and averaged 28.0 points per game.[1] He joined the New York Celtics, Stars of America and Boston Whirlwinds as the touring opponent of the Harlem Globetrotters.[4] He played for the Whirlwinds in the 1950–51 and 1952–53 seasons.[1]
Baker was the only non-American player on a basketball team billed as "The Stars of the World" that toured thirteen countries in Europe and Africa in 1950.[1]
After his playing career ended, Baker worked as a police officer.[3] He coached basketball and lacrosse.[3]
Legacy[]
Baker was voted as Canada's "Most Outstanding Player of the Century" in 1950.[1]
He was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 1966,[1] Canadian Sports Hall of Fame in 1978,[4] Canada Basketball Hall of Fame in 1979,[5] and Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame in 1991.[2]
BAA career statistics[]
Legend | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | Games played | ||||
FG% | Field-goal percentage | ||||
FT% | Free-throw percentage | ||||
APG | Assists per game | ||||
PPG | Points per game |
Regular season[]
Year | Team | GP | FG% | FT% | APG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1946–47 | Chicago | 4 | .000 | .000 | .0 | .0 |
Career | 4 | .000 | .000 | .0 | .0 |
References[]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Norm Baker". BC Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ^ a b "Norm Baker (1991)". Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ^ a b c "Norm Baker". Pro Basketball Encyclopedia. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ^ a b c "Catch You on the Rebound: Norm Baker". Basketball Canada. April 17, 2015. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ^ "Norm Baker". Canada Basketball. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
External links[]
- Career statistics and player information from NBA.com
and Basketball-Reference.com
- 1923 births
- 1989 deaths
- Basketball people from British Columbia
- Canadian expatriate basketball people in the United States
- Canadian men's basketball players
- Canadian police officers
- Chicago Stags players
- Guards (basketball)
- National Basketball Association players from Canada
- Royal Canadian Air Force personnel of World War II
- Sportspeople from Victoria, British Columbia