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Andy Phillip

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Andy Phillip
Personal information
Born(1922-03-07)March 7, 1922
Granite City, Illinois
DiedApril 29, 2001(2001-04-29) (aged 79)
Rancho Mirage, California
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High schoolGranite City (Granite City, Illinois)
CollegeIllinois (1941–1943, 1946–1947)
NBA draft1947: -- round, --
Selected by the Chicago Stags
Playing career1947–1958
PositionGuard / Forward
Number19, 7, 4, 14, 17
Career history
As player:
1947–1950Chicago Stags
1950–1952Philadelphia Warriors
1952–1956Fort Wayne Pistons
1956–1958Boston Celtics
As coach:
1958St. Louis Hawks
Career highlights and awards
Career statistics
Points6,384 (9.1 ppg)
Rebound2,395 (4.4 rpg)
Assists3,759 (5.4 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference
Basketball Hall of Fame
Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame

Andrew Michael "Handy Andy"[1] Phillip (March 7, 1922 – April 29, 2001) was an American guard/forward who had an 11-year career professional basketball career from 1948 to 1958. Born in Granite City, Illinois, Andy Phillip played for the Chicago Stags of the Basketball Association of America and the Philadelphia Warriors, Fort Wayne Pistons and Boston Celtics, all of the National Basketball Association.

Phillip led his high school, Granite City, to the Illinois state championship in 1940. He attended the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign where he earned renown for his talents and for the Fighting Illini's success during war-interrupted, non-consecutive seasons, 1941–1943 and 1946–1947, .[2] He was a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity. Phillip served as a First Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps in World War II at Iwo Jima.[3] [4]

Phillip played in the first five NBA All-Star Games, and was twice named to the All-NBA Second Team. He was the first player to record 500 assists in a season, and led the NBA in assists during the 1950–51 and 1950–52 seasons. Phillip's teams made it to the NBA Finals during his final four seasons — twice with Fort Wayne and twice with Boston. The 1957 Boston team won the NBA Championship.

Phillip was alleged by one of his Fort Wayne Pistons teammates, George Yardley, to have conspired with gamblers to throw the 1955 NBA Finals to the Syracuse Nationals.[5] In the decisive seventh game, Phillip turned the ball over with three seconds remaining in the game, enabling Syracuse to win by one point, 92-91.[6]

He coached the St. Louis Hawks for 10 games in 1958, posting a 6-4 record.

Phillip later coached the Chicago Majors of the American Basketball League.[7]

Phillip was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1961.

He was elected to the Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team in January 2005. In 2007, Phillip was voted one of the "100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament", recognizing his superior performance in his appearance in the tournament.[8]

Phillip died at his home in Rancho Mirage, California on April 29, 2001. He was 79 years old.

Sports writer Dan Manoyan writes about Phillip and his Granite City High School basketball teammates in Men of Granite. Hollywood Producer Valerie McCaffrey is planning a film based on this non-fiction work; she plans to begin filming in Spring 2012 with Granite City, Illinois as the chosen filming location.[9]

Notes and sources

  1. ^ "Sport: Whiz Kids". Time. March 15, 1943.
  2. ^ [1][permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ "Sport: Whiz Kids, Grown Up". Time. December 23, 1946.
  4. ^ Lamothe, Dan (2009-04-29). "Corps to induct 4 into Sports Hall of Fame". Marine Corps Times. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
  5. ^ The Wizard of Odds: How Jack Molinas Almost Destroyed the Game of Basketball. By Charley Rosen. p. 154. 2001 Seven Stories Press. ISBN 1-58322-268-5
  6. ^ "City Hails Nats' World Title Triumph", Syracuse Herald Journal, April 11, 1955, pp. 1, 45.
  7. ^ Association for Professional Basketball Research American Basketball League page
  8. ^ IHSA 100 Legends of Boys Basketball
  9. ^ http://www.ksdk.com/news/article/400982/3/Granite-City-getting-Hollywood-treatment[permanent dead link‍]
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