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Mel Hirsch

1921 – 1968

American basketball player

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About Mel Hirsch

Lived 1921 – 1968 (aged 46–47). Mel Hirsch was an American basketball player.

Melvin M. Hirsch (July 31, 1921 – December 1968) was an American professional basketball player. He played for the Boston Celtics of the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which would later become the National Basketball Association (NBA), for 13 games in the 1946–47 season. At 5 feet 6 inches tall, he was the shortest player in NBA history until Muggsy Bogues 40 years later. He is the third shortest NBA player of all time, after Bogues and Earl Boykins.

A stand-out player at Brooklyn College, Hirsch graduated in 1943 and served in the US Army Air Corps as a Navigator on C-47 aircraft in the 13th Troop Carrier Squadron in the South Pacific. He played on the squadron's officer's basketball team.

Hirsch died in December 1968, aged 47, from leukemia.

BAA career statistics Legend GP Games played FG% Field-goal percentage FT% Free-throw percentage APG Assists per game PPG Points per game

Regular season Year Team GP FG% FT% APG PPG 1946–47 Boston 13 .200 .500 .8 1.5Career 13 .200 .500 .8 1.5

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Important facts

Birth century
Died
1968
Occupation
Nationality
Education
Brooklyn College
Also known as
Melvin M. Hirsch

People in Mel Hirsch's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Mel Hirsch's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Mel Hirsch?

American basketball player

When was Mel Hirsch born?

Mel Hirsch was born on 31 July 1921 in Brooklyn.

When did Mel Hirsch die?

Mel Hirsch died in 1968.

What was Mel Hirsch's occupation?

Mel Hirsch was a basketball player.

What nationality was Mel Hirsch?

Mel Hirsch was American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Mel Hirsch

· Wikidata: Q3854065

· DBpedia: Mel Hirsch

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Mel Hirsch. https://biography.guide/mel-hirsch/

MLA: "Mel Hirsch." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/mel-hirsch/.

Chicago: "Mel Hirsch." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/mel-hirsch/.

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

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