Spencer Haywood (born April 22, 1949) is an American former professional basketball player and Olympic gold medalist. He is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, inducted in 2015. Haywood is widely recognized for his landmark U.S. Supreme Court case, Haywood v. National Basketball Association, which challenged the NBA's eligibility rules and ultimately allowed undergraduate players to enter the league.
Early Life and Education
Haywood was born in Silver City, Mississippi, the youngest of ten children. His father died three months before his birth. His family worked as sharecroppers, and Haywood began picking cotton at age 13, earning as little as $2 per day. At age 15, he moved to Detroit, Michigan, to live with his brother. He attended Pershing High School, where he led the team to the 1967 Michigan Class A state championship. He initially attended Trinidad State Junior College in Colorado, where he averaged 28.2 points and 22.1 rebounds per game and was named Junior College Player of the Year.
Olympic Career
In 1968, at age 19, Haywood made the U.S. Olympic basketball team, becoming the youngest American basketball player in Olympic history. He was the leading scorer on the gold medal-winning team, averaging 16.1 points per game and setting a Team USA field goal percentage record of .719 (a record that stood until 2012).
College Career
Haywood transferred to the University of Detroit for the 1968–69 season, where he led the NCAA in rebounding (22.1 per game) and averaged 32.1 points per game. He was named a consensus first-team All-American.
Professional Career
ABA (1969–1970): Haywood joined the Denver Rockets of the American Basketball Association (ABA) under a hardship exemption. In his rookie season, he led the ABA in scoring (30.0 ppg) and rebounding (19.5 rpg), was named both ABA Rookie of the Year and ABA Most Valuable Player, and won the ABA All-Star Game MVP. His 1,637 rebounds and 19.5 rebounds per game remain ABA single-season records.
NBA (1970–1983): In 1970, Haywood signed with the Seattle SuperSonics, challenging the NBA's rule requiring players to be four years removed from high school before entering the league. The resulting antitrust lawsuit, Haywood v. National Basketball Association, reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in his favor. The NBA subsequently adopted a hardship exemption, later replaced by the early entry process.
Haywood played five seasons with Seattle (1970–1975), earning four NBA All-Star selections and two All-NBA First Team selections (1972, 1973). He averaged 24.9 points and 12.1 rebounds per game during his tenure with the SuperSonics. He was traded to the New York Knicks in 1975, later playing for the New Orleans Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers (winning an NBA championship in 1980), and Washington Bullets. He also played one season in Italy (1980–81) for Reyer Venezia.
Career Statistics
Over 844 combined ABA and NBA games, Haywood averaged 20.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. His combined career totals include 17,111 points and 8,675 rebounds.
Personal Life
Haywood married fashion model Iman in 1977; they had one daughter and divorced in 1987. He remarried Linda Fay in 1990; they had three daughters and remained together until her death in 2022. Haywood has been open about his past struggles with cocaine addiction, which affected his career, and has since worked to maintain sobriety. He has served as chair of the National Basketball Retired Players Association and has advocated for health benefits and pensions for retired players.
Legacy and Honors
- Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (2015)
- NBA champion (1980)
- ABA Most Valuable Player (1970)
- 4× NBA All-Star (1972–1975)
- 2× All-NBA First Team (1972, 1973)
- ABA All-Time Team
- No. 24 jersey retired by the Seattle SuperSonics (2007)
- No. 45 retired by Detroit Mercy Titans (2015)
