Charles Hardnett

Charles "Charlie Red" Hardnett (September 13, 1938 – July 6, 2019) was an American basketball player who played three seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 6' 8" power forward played for Carver High School in Atlanta. He played college basketball for Grambling State University from 1959 to 1963. Hardnett earned All-America honors in 1962. He was also the NAIA Basketball Tournament MVP in 1961. Hardnett was drafted in the third round (third pick) of the 1962 NBA draft by the St. Louis Hawks. He played for the Chicago Zephyrs / Baltimore Bullets (NBA) from 1962 to 1965. Hardnett also coached at the college level. He coached at Coppin State College (Baltimore) from 1970 to 1974, and at Morris Brown College (Atlanta) from 1974 to 1980.

High school career Hardnett attended Carver High School in Atlanta from 1955 to 1958. While in High School, Hardnett played three sports including basketball, football, and baseball. He earned several honors as an athlete and student while at Carver, and was the only male athlete to attend and graduate college in his graduating class. His accomplishments as a high school student-athlete are as follows:

All-City in Football – Junior(1957) and Senior (1958) All-City in Basketball – Junior(1957) and Senior (1958) All-State in Basketball – Senior (1958) State Tournament MVP – Senior (1958) Black High School All-American Team – Senior (1958) Member of the Baseball team for three years President of the student body – Senior (1958) The most improved student award – Senior (1958) Four-Year Scholarship to Grambling College

Collegiate career Hardnett went to Grambling College in 1958, and became an instant success. He was coached by Fred Hobdy who coached at Grambling for 30 seasons. During his days at Grambling, Hardnett played with players such as Willis Reed. During his years at Grambling, Hardnett amassed the following honors:

1958–1959 First year starter Led the team in rebounding

1959–1960 Most Valuable Player – Georgia Invitational Tournament, Atlanta NAIA All-American Team Selected to the NAIA All-Stars that participated in the 1960 Olympic Trials Beat Ohio State (1960 NCAA Champions) in the first round First Team All-SWAC

1960–1961 NAIA All-American NAIA Tournament MVP NAIA All-Tournament Team Basketball Player of the year award – 100% Tip-Off Club Atlanta Chuck Taylor All-American Second Team Only small college player selected First Team All-SWAC NAIA Basketball Championship 2nd HBCU to win the event (Only National Championship for Grambling)

1961–62 NAIA All-American Team Chuck Taylor All-American First TeamOnly small college player selected First Team All-SWAC

Hardnett scored over 2,000 points in his career at Grambling and grabbed over 2,000 rebounds (16.9 RPG—First All-Time at Grambling). In addition, Hardnett was drafted by the NBA and became the First African-American drafted by the NBA from the state of Georgia, the second Player drafted by the NBA from Grambling, and only the third African-American drafted by the NBA from an HBCU in the state of Louisiana. In 1973, Hardnett was elected to the NAIA Hall of Fame as an athlete.

2009 Inducted into the Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame at the inaugural induction ceremony July 18, 2009, Monroe, Louisiana.

The inaugural induction class includes Willis Reed (Basketball), Tommy Agee (Baseball), Ernie Ladd (Football/Wrestling), Henry Dyer (Football), Ralph Garr (Baseball), Charlie Hardnett (Basketball), Robert Hopkins (Basketball), Lane Howell (Football), Stone Johnson (Football/Track), Willie Joseph (Football), Legolian "Boots" Moore (Football), Bo Murray (Football), Helen Richards-Smith (Basketball), Richard Stebbins (Track), Hershell West (Basketball), Willie Young (Football), Tank Younger (Football), Ralph W.E. Jones (College President and Coach), Eddie Robinson (Coach), Collie Nicholson (Sports Information Officer), Fred C. Hobdy (Coach), Willie Brown (Football), Buck Buchanan (Football), Willie Davis (Football) and Charlie Joiner (Football).

2012 NAIA 75th Anniversary Team at NAIA Championship Kansas City, Missouri.

2015 Inducted into the Coppin State University Hall of Fame February 2015, Baltimore. Inducted into the Carver High School Hall of Fame April 2015, Atlanta.

Professional career Members of the 1963–64 Baltimore Bullets from left to right: Rod Thorn, Charles Hardnett, Walt Bellamy, Gus Johnson and Terry Dischinger. Thorn, Bellamy and Johnson were elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

Hardnett's professional basketball career started by being drafted by the St. Louis Hawks in the 3rd round of the 1962 NBA draft. He played in Chicago for the Zephyrs and in Baltimore for the Bullets. After the NBA, Hardnett went on to play in the Eastern Professional Basketball League (EPBL). He played three more years of professional basketball for the Harrisburg Patriots and the Scranton Miners. He was selected to the All-EPBL First Team in 1966.

Coaching career

After a successful playing career, Hardnett entered a career of coaching. His coaching career would have him serve as the Head Basketball Coach at Coppin State in Baltimore and at Morris Brown College in Atlanta. During his career at Morris Brown College he served quadruple duties as the Head Basketball Coach, Athletic Director, Head Baseball Coach, and Head Golf Coach. He coached for 12 years and amassed a 160–150 coaching record. During his coaching career, Hardnett had the following highlights:

Won 2 Regular Season Championships 1972, 1973 Won 1 Conference Tournament Championship 1974

Career statistics

NBA Source

Regular season Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG Chicago 78 21.2 .441 .645 7.7 .9 10.6 Baltimore 66 9.3 .412 .672 3.8 .4 4.5 Baltimore 20 10.0 .313 .590 3.9 .1 3.7Career 164 15.1 .423 .647 5.7 .6 7.3

Playoffs Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG 1965 Baltimore 5 4.4 .400 .400 1.2 .4 2.0

Honors In 1973, Hardnett was elected to the NAIA Hall of Fame as an athlete. In 2009, Hardnett was inducted into the Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame at the inaugural induction ceremony on July 18, 2009, in Monroe, Louisiana. 2012, Hardnett was honored with the NAIA 75th Anniversary Team at the NAIA Championship in Kansas City, Missouri. In 2015, Hardnett was inducted into the Coppin State University Hall of Fame.