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John Givens

1926 – 2009

American basketball player-coach

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About John Givens

Lived 1926 – 2009 (aged 83). John Givens was an American basketball player and basketball coach.

John Givens (May 12, 1926 – December 8, 2009) was an American basketball player and coach.

Born and raised in McHenry in Ohio County, Kentucky, Givens played college basketball at Western Kentucky University for coach E.A. Diddle. He was drafted by the NBA's Rochester Royals in the sixth round of the 1950 draft.

Givens was a starting guard on the 1950–51 Sheboygan Red Skins of the National Professional Basketball League. The Red Skins finished with the league's best record at 29–16, after which the league dissolved. Givens was one of the league's most electric performers and finished seventh in NPBL scoring with 569 points in 44 games, a 12.9 per-game average.

Givens became the first head coach of the Kentucky Colonels during the American Basketball Association's first season in 1967–1968. Givens also became the first coach in the history of the ABA to be fired, after a 5–12 start. He was replaced as head coach of the Colonels by Gene Rhodes.

Givens later coached at Thomas Jefferson High School and Fern Creek High School, both in Jefferson County, Kentucky, before he retired.

Givens died on December 8, 2009, at his home in Louisville, Kentucky.

Head coaching record

ABA

Source

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Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Education
Western Kentucky University

People in John Givens's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped John Givens's

Frequently asked questions

Who was John Givens?

American basketball player-coach

When was John Givens born?

John Givens was born on 12 May 1926 in McHenry.

When did John Givens die?

John Givens died on 8 December 2009 in Louisville.

What was John Givens's occupation?

John Givens was a basketball player and basketball coach.

What nationality was John Givens?

John Givens was American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: John Givens

· Wikidata: Q6235435

· DBpedia: John Givens (basketball)

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). John Givens. https://biography.guide/john-givens/

MLA: "John Givens." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/john-givens/.

Chicago: "John Givens." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/john-givens/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

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