Curly Armstrong
Paul Carlyle "Curly" Armstrong (November 1, 1918 – June 6, 1983) was an American professional basketball player and coach.[1][2]
Personal information | |
---|---|
Born | Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. | November 1, 1918
Died | June 6, 1983 64) Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. | (aged
Listed height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
Listed weight | 170 lb (77 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | Central (Fort Wayne, Indiana) |
College | Indiana (1938–1941) |
Playing career | 1941–1951 |
Position | Forward / guard |
Number | 31, 3 |
Career history | |
As player: | |
1941–1943, 1945–1951 | Fort Wayne Pistons |
As coach: | |
1947 | Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons (interim HC) |
1948–1949 | Fort Wayne Pistons |
1951–1953 | Wabash |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com | |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
A 5'11" guard/forward, Armstrong starred at Central High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he reached two state championship games while leading his team to a 50–6 record. In the late 1930s and early 1940s, Armstrong attended Indiana University, earning All-Big Ten Conference honors during his junior year. He then played, and briefly coached, for the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons professional basketball team (today's Detroit Pistons). In 1943, he was named the World Professional Basketball Tournament's Most Valuable Player.[3] He was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 1980.
He was head basketball coach at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana, for two seasons. His record in 1951–52 was 10 wins and 10 losses. His record in 1952–53 was 9 wins and 10 losses.
BAA/NBA career statistics
Legend | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | Games played | FG% | Field-goal percentage | ||
FT% | Free-throw percentage | RPG | Rebounds per game | ||
APG | Assists per game | PPG | Points per game | ||
Bold | Career high | ||||
Regular season
Year | Team | GP | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1948–49 | Fort Wayne | 52 | .306 | .698 | – | 2.0 | 7.3 |
1949–50 | Fort Wayne | 63 | .279 | .705 | – | 2.8 | 7.3 |
1950–51 | Fort Wayne | 38 | .310 | .644 | 2.3 | 2.0 | 5.3 |
Career | 153 | .295 | .692 | 2.3 | 2.3 | 6.8 | |
Playoffs
Year | Team | GP | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1950 | Fort Wayne | 3 | .182 | .250 | – | 2.0 | 3.0 |
1951 | Fort Wayne | 3 | .368 | 1.000 | 2.3 | 1.7 | 5.0 |
Career | 6 | .268 | .400 | 2.3 | 1.8 | 4.0 | |
References
- "Former IU star, Pistons coach 'Curly' Armstrong dies at 64". The Courier-Journal. 7 June 1983. p. 11. Retrieved 12 November 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Curly's company". News-Sentinel. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
- "Washington takes crown in pro meet". Vidette-Messenger of Porter County. 18 March 1943. p. 8. Retrieved 6 April 2022 – via Newspapers.com.