Ralph Beard facts for kids
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| Personal information | |||||||||||
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| Born | December 2, 1927 Hardinsburg, Kentucky, U.S. |
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| Died | November 29, 2007 (aged 79) Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. |
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| High school | Louisville Male (Louisville, Kentucky) |
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| Listed height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||||
| Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| College | Kentucky (1945–1949) | ||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 1949 / Round: 2 / Pick: 22nd overall | ||||||||||
| Selected by the Chicago Stags | |||||||||||
| Pro career | 1949–1951 | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
| 1949–1951 | Indianapolis Olympians | ||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
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| Career statistics | |||||||||||
| Points | 2,006 (15.9 ppg) | ||||||||||
| Rebounds | 251 (3.8 rpg) | ||||||||||
| Assists | 551 (4.4 apg) | ||||||||||
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Medals
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Ralph Milton Beard Jr. (December 2, 1927 – November 29, 2007) was an American collegiate and professional basketball player. He won two NCAA national basketball championships at the University of Kentucky and played two years in the National Basketball Association prior to being barred for life for his participation in the 1951 point shaving scandal.
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Early life
Beard was born in Hardinsburg, Kentucky. Beard grew up in Louisville and attended Louisville Male High School. He later cited the family's finances as a reason he took money from gamblers. His mother worked as a cleaning lady after his father left the family.
College career
He was a member of Adolph Rupp's "Fabulous Five" University of Kentucky basketball team, with Alex Groza, Wallace Jones, Cliff Barker, and Kenny Rollins. Beard won a gold medal in the 1948 Summer Olympics with the Fabulous Five and the Phillips 66ers.
Professional career
Indianapolis Olympians (1949–1951)
Taken in the second round of the 1949 NBA draft, Beard played two seasons with the Indianapolis Olympians and averaged 15.9 points and 4.4 assists per game.
NBA career statistics
| 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 |
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949–50 | Indianapolis | 60 | – | .363 | .762 | – | 3.9 | 14.9 |
| 1950–51 | Indianapolis | 66 | – | .368 | .775 | 3.8 | 4.8 | 16.8 |
| Career | 126 | – | .366 | .770 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 15.9 | |
| All-Star | 1 | – | .375 | .000 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 6.0 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Indianapolis | 5 | – | .314 | .786 | – | 4.4 | 13.2 |
| 1951 | Indianapolis | 3 | – | .443 | .706 | 4.0 | 4.3 | 22.0 |
| Career | 8 | – | .374 | .756 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 16.5 | |
Personal life
Later in life, the University of Kentucky welcomed Beard back. The school retired his jersey and invited him to speak to players about point shaving.
In 1985, he was inducted into the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame.
Beard died on November 29, 2007, at his Louisville, Kentucky home.
