Paul Endacott

Paul Endacott, the 1923 National Player of the Year, and a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, led Kansas to a pair of Helms Foundation National Championships.

Endacott graduated from Liberty Memorial High School in Lawrence 1919 and chose to attend Kansas as a walk-on to play for legendary coach "Phog" Allen. Endacott's aggressive style of play made him one of Kansas' all-time greats.

In Endacott's first year of eligibility, the 1921 season, he earned All-Missouri Valley Conference honors.

In Endacott's second season, the Jayhawks were 16-2 and co-champions of the Missouri Valley at 15-1. Once again, Endacott was a member of the all-conference team and was named to the Helms Foundation All-American team.

During that season, Endacott, along with fellow all-conference performer and leading scorer George Rody, helped Kansas win the 1922 Helms Foundation National Championship. The award was made retroactively by the Helms Foundation after its inception in 1936.

The 1923 season was like the previous campaign for the Jayhawks. The team posted an unblemished 16-0 Missouri Valley record, finished at 17-1 overall and once again, the Jayhawks were crowned the Helms Foundation National Champions.

In 1923 Endaccitt earned all-conference and All-American honors and in the process, became the first three-time all-conference performer and first two-time All-American in Kansas history.

After graduating from Kansas with a degree in civil engineering, Endacott went to work for the Phillips Petroleum Company in Bartlesville, Okla. There he rapidly climbed the corporate ladder, eventually becoming the company's president. After 44 years with Phillips, Endacott retired in 1967.

Phog Allen called him "the greatest player I have ever coached."

He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., on April 20, 1972.

Endacott's jersey was retired in a ceremony at halftime of the KU-Nebraska game on January 25, 1992.

Endacott was a generous contributor to KU and was instrumental in the construction of KU's Adams Alumni Center.