Lew Hitch

Lewis Rufus Hitch (July 16, 1929 – February 8, 2012) was an American professional basketball player. He was born in Griggsville, Illinois.

Lew Hitch

Personal information
Born	(1929-07-16)July 16, 1929 Griggsville, Illinois
Died	February 8, 2012(2012-02-08) (aged 82)
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight	200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High school	Griggsville-Perry (Griggsville, Illinois)
College	Culver–Stockton (1947–1948) Kansas State (1949–1951)
NBA draft	1951: 2nd round, 19th overall pick
Drafted by	Minneapolis Lakers
Playing career	1951–1957
Position	Power forward / center
Number	11, 12, 15, 14
Career history
1951–1953	Minneapolis Lakers
1953–1954	Milwaukee Hawks
1954–1957	Minneapolis Lakers
1957	Philadelphia Warriors
Career highlights
2× NBA champion (1952, 1953)
Career NBA statistics
Points	2,075 (5.0 ppg)
Rebounds	2,183 (5.3 rpg)
Assists	499 (1.2 apg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

A 6'8" forward/center from Kansas State University, Hitch played six seasons (1951–1957) in the National Basketball Association as a member of the Minneapolis Lakers, Milwaukee Hawks, and Philadelphia Warriors. He averaged 5.0 points per game in his career and won the 1952 and 1953 championships with the Lakers.

He died on February 8, 2012, after an extended illness.^[1]

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
†	Won an NBA championship	*	Led the league

NBA

Source^[2]

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
1951–52†	Minneapolis	61	13.9	.358	.670	4.0	.8	3.6
1952–53†	Minneapolis	70	14.7	.349	.610	3.9	.9	3.7
1953–54	Milwaukee	72	34.1	.367	.639	9.6	2.0	8.0
1954–55	Milwaukee	57	25.5	.387	.675	6.1	1.8	6.2
1954–55	Minneapolis	17	19.0	.471	.694	5.5	1.4	5.8
1955–56	Minneapolis	69	16.4	.400	.758	4.1	1.1	4.2
1956–57	Rochester	30	18.5	.372	.725	4.0	.5	4.8
1956–57	Philadelphia	38	15.2	.377	.703	3.5	.7	3.7
Career		414	20.2	.376	.674	5.3	1.2	5.0

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
1952†	Minneapolis	13	11.7	.360	.286	3.4	.7	1.8
1953†	Minneapolis	12*	15.8	.348	.531	5.3	.9	4.1
1955	Minneapolis	7	19.6	.400	.793	6.0	1.4	7.9
1956	Minneapolis	3	18.0	.308	.700	5.0	.7	5.0
1957	Philadelphia	2	1.5	.000	1.000	1.0	.0	1.0
Career		37	14.5	.360	.585	4.5	.9	3.9