Six-time All-Star and scoring champion remembered as much for his humanity as his basketball excellence.
Jack Coleman Twyman was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1934. Rochester Royals selected him in the second round of the 1955 NBA Draft. His 11-season career produced 19.2 points and 6.6 rebounds per game along with six All-Star appearances. He won the scoring title in 1960 with 31.2 points per game. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1983. His basketball career was significant but his lasting legacy is humanitarian. When his teammate Maurice Stokes was paralysed by encephalitis following a head injury in 1958, Twyman became his legal guardian — spending decades organising charity basketball games, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars and personally managing Stokes's care until his death in 1970. The NBA Citizenship Award was renamed the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award in his honour. His combination of elite scoring — he averaged 25.2 points per game in 1959-60 — and his off-court character made him one of the most admired figures of the early NBA era. His story with Stokes was adapted into a 1973 television film and has been cited by countless players and administrators as an example of what sport's values should look like.
NBA scoring champion and Hall of Fame forward known for his shooting ability
How They Played
Skilled scorer and shooter, primarily played forward position
Lasting Impact
Pioneer of the modern forward position and humanitarian who cared for paralyzed teammate Maurice Stokes
Scoring Champion (1960)
Career Honours
- Scoring Champion (1960)
- All-Star 6x
- Hall of Fame (1983)