By Clyde Lovellette & Lew Freedman

One of basketball’s all-time greats at every level of the game, Clyde Lovellette grew up in Terre Haute, Indiana to become the first player in history to win an NCAA title, an Olympic gold medal, and an NBA championship.

A star at every level of the sport, Lovellette has been selected into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, the College Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City, the Kansas University Hall of Fame, the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, and the Helms Foundation Hall of Fame.

In high school Lovellette was twice named All-State in Indiana. After high school, Lovellette was the object of one of the first high-profile recruiting battles in college basketball history. Lovellette was persuaded to enroll at Kansas University and play for legendary Coach Phog Allen.

With the Jayhawks, Lovellette led the Big Seven Conference three times in scoring and led them to the 1952 NCAA title. He lead the U.S. Olympic squad in scoring to help win the 1952 Gold Medal in Helsinki, Finland.