Greer, "Hal" (Harold E.)
Basketball
b. June 26, 1936, Huntington, WV
The first black to play at Marshall University in West Virginia, Greer captained the team and averaged 23.6 points a game in his senior year, 1957-58. He played for Jules Rivlin, who had coached Paul Seymour at the University of Toledo. Rivlin recommended him to Seymour, then coaching the Syracuse Nationals, who chose him in the second round of the NBA draft.
Gifted with exceptional speed and a fine outside shooting touch, Greer was unique in using a jump shot on his free throw attempts. A 6-foot-2, 175-pound guard, he played in the NBA for 15 seasons and averaged more than 20 points a game eight times.
The Nationals became the Philadelphia 76ers in 1963. Greer averaged 22.1 points per game in 1966-67, when the 76ers finally dethroned the Boston Celtics and won the NBA championship.
Greer retired after the 1972-73 season. In 1,122 games, he scored 21,586 points, an average of 19.2 per game, and had 4,540 assists. He scored 1,876 points and had 303 assists in 92 playoff games.