Jack Stephens (basketball)

Jack Francis "Junior" Stephens (May 18, 1933 – August 31, 2011) was an American basketball player. He played one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA).[1]

Jack Stephens
Personal information
Born(1933-05-18)May 18, 1933
DiedAugust 31, 2011(2011-08-31) (aged 78)
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High schoolMount Carmel (Chicago, Illinois)
CollegeNotre Dame (1951–1955)
NBA draft1955: 2nd round, 7th overall pick
Selected by the St. Louis Hawks
PositionGuard / forward
Number15
Career history
1955–1956St. Louis Hawks
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference

Stephens, a guard from Mount Carmel High School in Chicago, played college basketball at the University of Notre Dame from 1951 to 1955. He was a standout for the Irish, raising his scoring average each year. In his senior season of 1954–55, Stephens averaged 20.9 points per game and was named an All-American by the United Press International (third team) and Collier's (second team).[2]

He tied the Irish single-game scoring record with 35 points against Marquette in his final career game for Notre Dame. Stephens served as captain of the '54–55 Irish. Stephens played on Irish teams that finished 19–5 and 22–3 and qualified for the NCAA Championships his sophomore and junior years, respectively. In 1953 he was named to the NCAA All-Mideast Regional team.[2]

Stephens also played one year of football for the Irish at halfback.[2] After graduation, Stephens was drafted by the St. Louis Hawks in the second round (7th pick overall) of the 1955 NBA draft. He played one season for the Hawks, averaging 10.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in 72 appearances.[1] Stephens later served as president of the University of Notre Dame Monogram Club from 1993 to 1994. On November 4, 2004, Stephens was named to the Irish All-Century Team.

Jack Stephens died on August 31, 2011, in Peoria, Illinois.[2]

Career statistics

edit
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Source[1]

Regular season

edit
Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1955–56 St. Louis 72 30.8 .386 .692 5.2 2.9 10.3

Playoffs

edit
Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1956 St. Louis 7 16.6 .293 .600 3.3 1.3 5.6

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c "Jack Stephens NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d Former ND basketball All-American "Junior" Stephens dies archived January 5, 2013 at archive.today from the original Retrieved September 3, 2011
edit