George Mikan

**George Mikan**
Personal information
	Birth June 18, 1924 ; Joliet, Illinois
	Death June 1, 2005 (aged 80) ; Scottsdale, Arizona
	Nationality American
	Listed height 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
	Listed weight 245 lb (111 kg)
	High school Quigley Prep (Chicago, IL)
	College DePaul (1942–1946)
	NBA Draft / Round: / Pick:
	Selected by the Minneapolis Lakers
	Playing career 1946–1956 (10 years)
	Coaching career 1957–1958 (1 years)
	As player
	1942–1946 DePaul Blue Demons
	1946–1947 Chicago American Gears
	1947–1954, 1956 Minneapolis Lakers
	As coach
	1957–1958 Minneapolis Lakers
	5× BAA/NBA champion (1949–1950, 1952–1954) ; 2× NBL champion (1947–1948) ; NBL Most Valuable Player (1948) ; 4× NBA All-Star (1951–1954) ; NBA All-Star Game MVP (1953) ; 6× All-BAA/NBA First Team (1949–1954) ; NBL Rookie of the Year Award (1946) ; 2× NBL season scoring champion (1947–48) ; 3× NBA season scoring champion (1949–51) ; Greatest Player of the First Half-Century (1950) ; NBA 25th Anniversary Team (1970) ; NBA 35th Anniversary Team (1980) ; NBA 50 Greatest Players (1996) ; No. 99 honored by the Los Angeles Lakers ;
NBA.com profile	[http://www.nba.com/playerfile/ george_mikan profile; [http://stats.nba.com/player/#!/ "player code" (ex: 123) profile

George Lawrence Mikan, Jr. (June 18, 1924 - June 1, 2005) nicknamed "Mr. Basketball", was a American basketball player for the Chicago American Gears of the National Basketball League (NBL) and the Minneapolis Lakers of the NBL, the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Mikan is seen as one of the pioneers of professional basketball, redefining it as a game of so-called big men with his prolific rebounding, shot blocking, and his talent to shoot over smaller defenders with his ambidextrous hook shot, the result of his namesake Mikan Drill. He also utilized the underhanded free-throw shooting technique long before Rick Barry made it his signature shot.

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