Hershell West

Hershell West is an American former basketball player and coach. He played basketball at Eula D. Britton in his hometown of Rayville, Louisiana and won the Louisiana State AA Championship in 1959. Grambling State Tigers men's basketball head coach Fred Hobdy offered West and the four other Britton starters athletic scholarships to Grambling State after watching them play.[1] West played college basketball for the Tigers for four years, where he won a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) championship in 1961 and was a two-time first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) selection in 1962 and 1963.[2][3] In 1962, he and six other Tigers players participated in a goodwill tour of Latin America.[4]

Hershell West
Personal information
BornRayville, Louisiana
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High schoolEula D. Britton (Rayville, Louisiana)
CollegeGrambling State (1959–1963)
NBA draft1963 / Round: 2 / Pick: 15th overall
Selected by the Syracuse Nationals
PositionGuard
Career highlights and awards

West was selected in the 1963 NBA draft as the 15th overall pick by the Syracuse Nationals but he never played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He became a basketball coach for Richwood High School in Louisiana, where he served as a mentor to future NBA player Larry Wright. West helped Wright transfer to the larger Western High School in Washington, D.C., where he became a highly recruited prospect.[5] Wright honored West by turning down other collegiate offers to attend Grambling State and play for the Tigers.[6]

West was an inaugural member of the Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame in 2009.[7]

References
  1. Stewart-Staten, Annie Ruth (July 3, 2014). "1959 champs paved the way for future teaems". The Richland Beacon-News. p. 6. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  2. Keise, Kevin (October 25, 2012). "GSU's 1961 men's basketball team finally gets rings". The Gramblinite. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  3. "Southwestern Athletic Conference". College Hoopedia. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  4. "Grambling Cagers Backbone of Touring Squad". Jet. Johnson Publishing Company. July 19, 1962. p. 59. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  5. Mann, Jack (January 8, 1978). "The Super Subs". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  6. Letlow, Paul (June 23, 2018). "The Wright stuff: Championship success has been constant theme for Larry Wright". Crescent City Sports. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  7. "Grambling establishes Sports HOF". Los Angeles Sentinel. June 4, 2009. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
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