Ernie Vandeweghe

66
Ernie Vandeweghe bigraphy, stories - American basketball player

Ernie Vandeweghe : biography

September 12, 1928 –

Ernest Maurice "Ernie" Vandeweghe Jr. (born September 12, 1928 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada) is a physician, a United States Air Force veteran and a retired professional basketball player. He is best known for playing for the New York Knicks of the NBA and for the athletic successes of his family. He is the father of former NBA All-Star (and former New Jersey Nets coach) Kiki Vandeweghe and grandfather of tennis professional Coco Vandeweghe. He is also the widower of 1952 Miss America pageant winner Colleen Kay Hutchins.

In his youth, Vandeweghe played football, basketball and baseball for Oceanside High School on Long Island where he was also a member of the Omega Gamma Delta Fraternity. A 6’3" guard, Vandeweghe played collegiately for the Colgate University Raiders, where he was an All-American. He was drafted by the Knicks in the 1949 BAA Draft, and played in the NBA for six seasons. While playing for the Knicks, Vandeweghe also studied medicine. After retiring from the NBA in 1956, Vandeweghe served as a physician for the Air Force; while stationed overseas in Germany he and his wife became the parents of Kiki. In addition, he had two other children who were world-class athletes; his daughter Tauna won a U.S. national swimming championship in the backstroke (and competed in the 1976 Summer Olympics), and his son Bruk medalled in beach volleyball in the 1994 Goodwill Games.

Dr. Vandeweghe has also served as chairman of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, and served on the Olympic Sports Commission under President Gerald Ford, where he assisted with development of two key pieces of sports legislation–Title IX and the 1976 Amateur Athletic Act. He has also been a senior vice president with Focus Partners LLC, a New-York-based financial services firm, and a consultant with the United States Golf and Fitness Association. He occasionally provides commentary for several sports publications.