The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with former Oklahoma State player Jack Herron about Bob Kurland winning back-to-back NCAA titles in 1945/1946 and a pair of gold medals in 1948/1952. Today marks the 68th anniversary of Bob scoring 8 PTS in a 36-25 win over the Soviet Union to clinch his 2nd gold medal.
(photo credit: usab.com)
Kurland was born/raised in Missouri: what made him choose Oklahoma A&M? They had a good engineering school and a great coach in Hank Iba who squeezed every ounce of ability out of each of his players. The reason they won games was the character of his players. Mr. Iba was from Missouri and had really good teams at Northwest Missouri State with several players who later became coaches themselves.
What made Iba such a great coach, and what was the most important thing that Bob ever learned from him? My dad played with Bob and said that he worked with Coach Iba for hours after practice on big-man drills (such as put-back dunks when a shot went off the backboard).
As a 7’ center he was the 1st player to dunk during a game (at Temple in 1944) and also known to leap above the rim to grab opponents’ shots (which led to the NCAA banning defensive goaltending in 1945): was his success based more on size or skill or athleticism or a little of everything? Kurland might not have been the strongest guy but he had great agility. He knew what he was doing so he could sweep the boards and guard opposing big men.
He was an “A” student who served as president of the student council in 1945/1946: how was he able to balance his work on the court with his work in the classroom/on campus? His roommate was Sam Aubrey, who later became head coach after Mr. Iba. Everyone had part-time jobs back then so Bob must have done a good job of balancing everything. Several of the players on those championship teams were war veterans and many of them ended up playing pro basketball after graduating.
He led the NCAA in scoring as a senior including 58 PTS in his final regular season game vs. St. Louis: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot he put up seemed to go in because he was “in the zone”? He had taken a lot of flak for not scoring more and I think that Coach Iba wanted to show everyone what Kurland could do so he just turned him loose. St. Louis was a good team back then including guys like future Hall of Famer Ed Macauley. Bob was just a darn good player and may have shot every single time that he touched the ball that night. He was picked by the press as 1 of the best players from the 1st half of the 20th century along with other legends like John Wooden.
He was a 3-time 1st-team All-American, won back-to-back NCAA titles at Oklahoma A&M in 1945/1946, and was named tourney MOP both years: where do you think that he ranks among the greatest college basketball players ever? He led the team in scoring both years so you would have to pick him as tourney MOP. We felt that we had the best 6’3”-6’5” guards in the country and after adding Kurland to that lineup we felt that we could beat anyone. I do not think there is any doubt: you have to list him among the best players ever.
He won a pair of gold medals with team USA at the 1948/1952 Olympics (becoming the 1st basketball player to ever win multiple gold medals) and got to carry the US flag in the 1952 closing ceremonies in Finland: what did it mean to him to carry the flag, and what did it mean to him to win a pair of gold medals? He had enough pride that he would have wanted to carry the flag and win the gold medal: he was a man of great character.
He led the AAU Phillips Oilers to 3 national titles in a 4-year stretch from 1947-1950 and was an AAU All-American for 6 straight years from 1947-1952: did it reach a point where he was considered the best basketball player in the country? There was no doubt that he was the best in the country. I have 2 photos of him playing against George Mikan in the mid-1940s: I think they split all of their battles against each other but the main difference is that Mikan chose to go pro. Phillips gave Bob a good job and paid him well so he stayed with them.
He was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 1961 and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006: where do these rank among the highlights of his career? If there were any other Halls of Fame then Bob would be in those as well!
He passed away in 2013: when people look back on his career, how do you think that he should be remembered the most? I stayed in touch with him and his wife until he passed away. Mr. Iba sized him up and recognized that he had the ability to succeed. Great coaches just have an eye for talent and then make something out of you. For a guy who was a superstar I will mainly remember him for treating me as well as he did.