Vern Mikkelsen
(1928-2013)
Hall of Fame Induction: 1995
Card Shown:
2009-10 Panini Hall of Fame
Position: PF
Height: 6’7″
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Vern Mikkelsen was one of the strongest players in the NBA in his day. He played rugged defense and averaged 14.4 points and 9.4 rebounds during his NBA career. Teaming with three other future Hall of Famers (and a future Hall of Fame coach) on the Lakers, Vern helped the team to win four NBA championships in the span of five years in the early 1950s. He was often tasked with guarding the top players on the opposing team, players like Paul Arizin, George Yardley, Bob Pettit, and Dolph Schayes.
Awards and Honors
- Mikkelsen was an All-American at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota and led his team to the 1949 NAIA championship.
- Vern was an All-Star six times in his ten-year NBA career.
- Vern helped the Minneapolis Lakers to win four NBA championships (1950, 1952, 1953, and 1954) while playing alongside future Hall of Famers George Mikan, Slater Martin, and Jim Pollard. His 1952 championship
- Vern was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995 along with his good friend and former Lakers coach John Kundla.
Points of Interest
- One of the first true power forwards in the NBA, Mikkelsen was a tenacious defender and rebounder. He led the league in personal fouls three years in a row from the 1954-55 season through the 1956-57 season.
- Mikkelsen fouled out a record 127 times before retiring from professional basketball in 1959.
- Vern became the sixth player in NBA history to score 10,000 points.
- The Minneapolis Lakers frontcourt of Mikan, Pollard, and Mikkelsen is still considered to be one of the best in NBA history.
- Although his number was not retired, Vern Mikkelsen’s name hangs on a banner in the Staples Center next to the retired numbers of past Laker superstars.
Statistics
Vern Mikkelsen Statistics
provided by Basketball-Reference.com
2005-06 Fleer Greats of the Game
2006-07 Upper Deck Chronology Contemporaries
