View source for Dwight Eddleman

{{Short description|American athlete (1922–2001)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox basketball biography
| name = Dwight Eddleman
| image = Photo of Dike Eddleman at the University of Illinois.png
| number = 11, 18, 12
| position = [[Small forward]]
| height_ft = 6
| height_in = 3
| weight_lb = 189
| birth_date = {{birth date|1922|12|27}}
| birth_place = [[Centralia, Illinois]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2001|08|01|1922|12|27}}
| death_place = [[Urbana, Illinois]], U.S.
| high_school = [[Centralia High School (Illinois)|Centralia]] (Centralia, Illinois)
| college = [[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball|Illinois]] (1945–1949)
| draft_year = 1949
| draft_round = 3
| draft_pick = 24
| draft_team = [[Chicago Stags]]
| career_start = 1949
| career_end = 1953
| years1 = {{nbay|1949|start}}–{{nbay|1951|end}}
| team1 = [[Atlanta Hawks|Tri-Cities Blackhawks / Milwaukee Hawks]]
| years2 = {{nbay|1951|end}}–{{nbay|1952|end}}
| team2 = [[Fort Wayne Pistons]]
| highlights = * 2× [[NBA All-Star]] ({{nasg|1951}}, {{nasg|1952}})
* Second-team [[NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|All-American]] – [[Associated Press|AP]], [[United Press International|UPI]] ([[1949 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|1949]])
| stat1label = [[Point (basketball)|Points]]
| stat1value = 3,221 (12.1 ppg)
| stat2label = [[Rebound (basketball)|Rebounds]]
| stat2value = 913 (4.5 rpg)
| stat3label = [[Assist (basketball)|Assists]]
| stat3value = 550 (2.1 apg)
| bbr = eddledi01
}}

{{Infobox NFL biography
|position=[[Wide receiver]], [[Punter (football)|Punter]], [[Return specialist#Punt returner|Punt returner]]
|number=40
|draftyear=1947
|draftround=9
|draftpick=75
|highlights=
* University of Illinois records
** Punt return average in a single game <br/>- 10/8/1947 (51.0 yards)
** Punt return average in a season <br/>- 1947 (32.8 yards)
** Longest punt <br/>- 11/6/1948 (88 yards)
** Longest punt return <br/>- 11/8/1947 (92 yards)
** Career punt return average <br/>- 1946–48 (21.5 yards)
** Season punt return average <br/>- 1948 (32.8 yards)
** Single game punt return average <br/>- 10/18/1947 (51.0 yards)
}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| sport = [[Track & field]]
| event = [[High jump]]
| pb = HJ – 2.04 m (1948)          =
| show-medals = yes
| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|the {{USA}}}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Olympic Games]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[1948 Summer Olympics|1948 London]]|[[Athletics at the 1948 Summer Olympics – Men's high jump|High jump]]}}
}}

'''Thomas Dwight''' "'''Dike'''" '''Eddleman''' (December 27, 1922 – August 1, 2001) was an American athlete who was generally considered the greatest athlete in the history of athletics at the [[University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign|University of Illinois]].<ref>[http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/legisnet92/hrgroups/hr/920HR0461LV.html State of Illinois 92nd General Assembly Legislation House Resolution]</ref> Eddleman participated on the university's [[basketball]], [[track and field]], and [[American Football|football]] teams between the years of 1942 and 1949. Eddleman earned a combined 11 [[varsity letter]]s in his career at the university, during which he also became a member of the [[Sigma Chi]] fraternity. Eddleman was born in [[Centralia, Illinois]], and attended [[Centralia High School (Illinois)|Centralia High School]]. On October 24, 2008, Eddleman was named a Distinguished Alumni of Centralia High school. He, along with five others, including [[James Brady]], were the first to be named Distinguished Alumni. His wife, Teddy Eddleman, accepted his award.

Beginning in 1969, Eddleman served the University of Illinois as a fundraiser for the [[Illinois Fighting Illini|athletic department]]. In tribute to his years of service to the university's athletics, in 1993, the University of Illinois athlete of the year awards for both men and women were named in his honor. In 2002, the portion of Fourth Street in [[Champaign, Illinois]] that runs along the east side of [[Memorial Stadium (Champaign)|Memorial Stadium]] between Peabody Drive and Kirby Street was designated Honorary Dike Eddleman Way (a street in his hometown of Centralia, Third Street, which runs past the old high school, is also designated Dike Eddleman Way).

In 1983, Eddleman was inducted into the [[National Federation of State High School Associations]] [[Hall of Fame]].

==Sports accomplishments==

===High school===
As a [[high school]] player, Eddleman is considered one of the finest players in the history of high school basketball in the state of Illinois. Eddleman played four years at Centralia High School, from 1939 to 1942. Eddleman led the [[Centralia High School (Illinois)|Centralia Orphans]] to the 1942 [[Illinois High School Boys Basketball Championship|Illinois state basketball championship]], after finishing fourth in 1939 and third in 1941. In the 1942 title game, Eddleman single-handedly led a comeback as the Orphans were 13 points down with five minutes to go. As a junior and senior, Eddleman led the state in scoring with 969 and 834 points, respectively. His 969 points as a junior broke the previous state record of 751 points. During his high school career, Eddleman scored 2702 career points, which was at the time of his graduation from high school a state record for most points in a career. Eddleman was the first high school player in Illinois to average at least 20 points per game. In 2007, the [[Illinois High School Association]] named Eddleman one of the [[100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament]].<ref>[http://www.ihsa.org/initiatives/legends/index.htm Legends of the IHSA]</ref>

===University of Illinois===

====Basketball====
In the fall of 1942, Eddleman enrolled at the [[University of Illinois]], playing on both the freshman football and basketball teams. However, in January 1943 Eddleman was called to military duty during World War II. He was placed in the [[United States Army Air Corps|Army Air Corps]] and, after being sent to [[Sheridan Reserve Center|Fort Sheridan]] in [[Chicago]] for basic training, he was stationed in [[Miami Beach]] where he was assigned as a physical trainer for new cadets, all while still being only 20 years of age. It was in Florida that he would suffer the most serious injury of his time in the military as during a beach volleyball game, Eddleman broke his right foot. Following approximately eighteen months in Florida, Eddleman returned to his home state near [[Belleville, Illinois]] stationed at [[Scott Air Force Base|Scott Field]]. His final destination during his military service was [[Wright Field]] in [[Dayton, Ohio]], where he played basketball for the [[Kittyhawks]], a military service ''"all-star"'' team regarded as one of the greatest in the nation. While playing for the Kittyhawks, he was named to the College All-Star team composed of the best college players in the country. The team played games around the country, but one particularly memorable game was when the Kittyhawks beat the [[Harlem Globetrotters]] in 1945. Eddleman would close out his military service in the fall of 1946, transitioning back to the life of a college student athlete.

Upon returning to the University of Illinois, as a second semester freshman in the spring of 1947, Eddleman was immediately issued his [[Illinois Fighting Illini football|Fighting Illini football]] and [[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball|basketball]] uniforms and then flown to [[Berkeley, California]] to play in two basketball games prior to the semester commencing. The Fighting Illini played consecutive games against the [[California Golden Bears men's basketball|University of California Berkeley]] on December 20 and 21. Eddleman followed that trip with another flight, this time to [[Pasadena]] to play on January 1 in the [[1947 Rose Bowl]] game. He and his Illinois football teammates beat the [[1946 UCLA Bruins football team|UCLA Bruins]] by a score of 45–14, meanwhile back in [[Madison, Wisconsin|Madison]], Eddleman's basketball teammates would lose on the same day to the [[1946–47 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team|Wisconsin Badgers]], the team that would go on to win the [[Big Ten]] title. Eddleman returned by train to [[Champaign, IL|Champaign]], where he joined the reunited remaining group of ''"[[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball#When duty calls|The Whiz Kids]]"'', [[Ken Menke]], [[Gene Vance]], and [[Andy Phillip]] as well as [[1945 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|All-American]] guard [[Walt Kirk]] on the basketball team to play in a January 4 game against the [[University of Mexico]] in which the Illini would win by a score of 94–36. Eddleman was back for the remainder of a season where he would spend most of it as a backup to "''The Whiz Kids''". The Illini would finish with an overall record of 14–6 and a [[Big Ten]] record of 8–4, second place in the conference.

In his second [[1947–48 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team|season]] of varsity basketball, Eddleman would lead the team in scoring and be named to the [[1948 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|Associated Press 2nd team All-American]], [[1948 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|Converse 3rd team All-American]], as well as [[1948 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|True Magazine 3rd team All-American]]. The team would be led by new head coach, [[Harry Combes]] to an overall record of 15 wins and 5 losses and a 7 and 5 conference record, third place in the Big Ten. After the season, Eddleman would be named First-team All-Big Ten as well as the University of Illinois Athlete of the Year.

In the [[1948–49 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team|1948–49 season]], Eddleman would lead the basketball team to the [[List of Big Ten Conference men's basketball regular season champions|Big Ten title]], and an appearance in the [[1949 NCAA basketball tournament#Bracket|NCAA Final Four]]. That year, he earned the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''{{'}}s [[Silver Basketball]] as the conference [[Most Valuable Player|MVP]]. He was named a [[1949 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|Converse 1st team All-American]], [[Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year|Big Ten Player of the Year]] and earned the [[Big Ten Medal of Honor]]. Eddleman served as the team captain in 1949 and was named the team MVP that year and the University of Illinois Athlete of the Year for the second straight season. In his military shortened tenure at Illinois, Eddleman scored 618 points in 55 games for an average of 11.2 points per game, but 606 of those points were scored in his final two seasons for an average of 13.5 points per game. The Fighting Illini's record over Eddleman's three season was 50 wins and 15 losses overall and 25 wins and 11 losses in the conference.<ref>A Century of Orange and Blue: Celebrating 100 Years of Fighting Illini Basketball By [[Loren Tate]], Jared Gelfond pgs.267–268 {{ISBN|1-58261-793-7}}</ref>

====Football====
Eddleman was a member of three football teams while attending Illinois, however, the [[1946 Illinois Fighting Illini football team|1946 team]] would be the most successful. Not only would they win the 1947 Rose Bowl game, they were also the [[List of Big Ten Conference football champions|Big Ten champions]] finishing with 8 wins and 2 losses overall while going 6 and 1 in conference play. The [[1947 Illinois Fighting Illini football team|1947 team]] was not as successful, finishing in fourth place in the conference with a 3 and 3 record, while winning 5 games, losing 3 games and tying 1 overall. Eddleman's final season was in [[1948 Illinois Fighting Illini football team|1948]]. This team would finish in eighth place in the conference with a record of 2 and 5 and an overall record 3 wins and 6 losses. Individually, Eddleman would set several records for [[Punt (gridiron football)|punting]] and [[punt return]]ing, seven of which still stand at Illinois.

Eddleman was drafted by the [[Chicago Bears]] with the 75th pick in the [[1947 NFL draft]] and was additionally drafted by the [[Cleveland Browns]] with the 145th pick in the [[1948 AAFC Draft]].

====Track & field====
As a high school athlete, Eddleman won three Illinois state [[high jump]] titles.<ref>[https://www.ihsa.org/SportsActivities/BoysTrackField/RecordsHistory.aspx?url=/data/trb/records/index.htm IHSA.org]</ref> As a collegian, each year that Eddleman attended Illinois he also competed in track as a [[high jumper]]. Eddleman would win various high jump titles while at Illinois, including the [[Chicago Relays]], the [[Illinois Tech Relays]], and the [[Penn Relays]]. Additionally, he won three high jump titles in each appearance at the Big Ten Indoor Championships, the [[Central Collegiate Championships]], and the [[Drake Relays]]. He also won an NCAA Championship in [[1948 NCAA Track and Field Championships|1948]] as well as Big Ten outdoor high jump titles in 1947 and 1949, the [[Kansas Relays]], the [[Compton Relays]], the [[Purdue Relays]], and the [[Kansas City Games]]. During his four years of competition, his Fighting Illini team would win an [[1947 NCAA Track and Field Championships|NCAA championship]] in 1947.

On July 10, 1948, the summer of his junior year, Eddleman became eligible to participate in the [[1948 Summer Olympics]] by qualifying at a meet held in [[Dyche Stadium]] at [[Northwestern University]]. After qualifying, Eddleman traveled to [[London]] in good company with Illini teammate [[Bob Richards]] as well as other Olympic notables including [[Harrison Dillard]], [[Herb McKenley]], [[Clyde Scott|Clyde "Smackover" Scott]], and [[William Porter (athlete)|Bill Porter]]. After qualifying in their respective events, the two Illinois athletes made a quick trip back to Champaign-Urbana on the train, leaving the next day to join the other American Olympic hopefuls in New York in order to board the {{SS|America|1939|6}} with a final destination of [[England]].

The high jump took place on the first day of competition, July 30, 1948, and [[John Winter (athlete)|John Winter]], a 23-year-old bank clerk from Perth, cleared a height of {{height|ft=6|in=6}} on his first attempt. The remaining four jumpers, including Eddleman, failed three times each to match Winter. For the first time in the Olympics, ties were decided according to fewer misses. The winning height was {{convert|6|ft|6|in|m}}. The second-, third-, and fourth-place jumpers all cleared {{height|ft=6|in=4.75}}. Eddleman was awarded [[Athletics at the 1948 Summer Olympics – Men's high jump|fourth place]] due to his number of misses.<ref>[https://www.olympic.org/london-1948/athletics/high-jump-men Olympic.org]</ref> After the Games, Eddleman competed in an additional track and field meet in [[Glasgow, Scotland]], winning the high jump at a personal-best height of {{height|ft=6|in=8.5}}. He then returned to the United States on the {{RMS|Queen Elizabeth}}, arriving in Centralia by train to a citywide celebration. Less than a week later, he was practicing football in [[Memorial Stadium (Champaign)|Memorial Stadium]].

===Professional basketball===
After leaving the University of Illinois, Eddleman played professionally for four seasons in the [[National Basketball Association]]. His career began after he received offers from the [[Chicago Stags]] and the [[Tri-Cities Blackhawks]]. He decided to play for the Blackhawks because he preferred to live in [[Moline, Illinois]], with his wife and newborn daughter. In 1950, Eddleman led the Blackhawks in scoring as a [[rookie]]. After playing for the Tri-City Blackhawks and the [[Milwaukee Hawks]], he was traded to the [[Fort Wayne Pistons|Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons]] which resulted in a move to Indiana. While playing for the Pistons, he cultivated a friendship with [[Fred Schaus]], who would later become coach of the [[Los Angeles Lakers]]. Eddleman played in the [[NBA All-Star Game]] in both [[1951 NBA All-Star Game|1951]] and [[1952 NBA All-Star Game|1952]]. Over his NBA career, Eddleman scored 3221 points in 266 games, for a scoring average of 12.1 points per game.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120503192335/http://www.databasebasketball.com/draft/draftyear.htm?yr=1949&lg=N 1949 NBA draft]}}</ref>

During the off-season of the two years that he played in Indiana, Eddleman utilized his physical education degree by working as the recreational director for [[Victory Soya Mills Silos|Central Soya, Incorporated]], a Midwest soybean processing company. Prior to the [[1954–55 NBA season|1954–55 season]], after learning he would be traded to the [[Baltimore Bullets (1944–54)|Baltimore Bullets]], a team that dropped out of the NBA and folded after playing 14 games in 1954, Eddleman decided to retire from professional basketball and work full-time for Central Soya. In 1956, Eddleman was transferred to a new plant in [[Gibson City, Illinois]], a town located just 30 miles north of Champaign.

==Personal life and death==
Eddleman married Teddy Georgia Townsley, his high school sweetheart, on December 25, 1945, as the couple exchanged wedding vows in a Christmas ceremony while Eddleman was home on leave from the Army Air Corps. Their marriage resulted in the birth of four children, three daughters and one son. Diana, Nancy, Kristy, and Tom, all of whom attended the University of Illinois.

In 1969 Eddleman left Central Soya and accepted the executive director of Grants-In-Aid position with the University of Illinois Foundation, a fundraising entity working with Fighting Illini Alumni to provide financial aid for student athletes. In 1990, the Grants-In-Aid program was renamed the Fighting Illini Scholarship Fund. Eddleman retired from his position with the University of Illinois on January 1, 1993.

In 1993, the University of Illinois renamed its male and female Athlete of the Year awards the Dike Eddleman Athlete of the Year.

Eddleman died from a heart ailment at Champaign's Carle Foundation Hospital, on August 1, 2001, at the age of 78.

==Honors==

===Basketball===
* 1948 – First-team [[List of All-Big Ten Conference football teams|All-Big Ten]]
* 1949 – Team MVP and Captain<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://s3.amazonaws.com/sidearm.sites/fightingillini.com/documents/2018/10/5/2018_19_ILLINI_MBB_Record_Book.pdf |title=FightingIllini.com |access-date=February 14, 2019 |archive-date=August 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220824121512/https://s3.amazonaws.com/sidearm.sites/fightingillini.com/documents/2018/10/5/2018_19_ILLINI_MBB_Record_Book.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* 1949 – [[1949 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|Converse 1st team All-American]]
* 1949 – Earned the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''{{'}}s [[Silver Basketball]] award
* 1949 – [[Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year|Big Ten Player of the Year]]
* 1949 – [[Big Ten Medal of Honor]] recipient
* 1973 – Inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame as a player.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ibcaillinois.org/dwight-eddleman.cfm |title=IBCA Hall of Fame |access-date=February 14, 2019 |archive-date=April 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421194108/http://www.ibcaillinois.org/dwight-eddleman.cfm |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* 1983 – Inducted into the National High School Hall of Fame.<ref>[https://www.ihsa.org/Resources/AwardsRecognition/NFHSHallofFame.aspx IHSA.org]</ref>
* 2005 – Elected to the "[[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball#All-Century Team|Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team]]".
* 2007 – Named one of the [[100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament]].<ref>[https://www.ihsa.org/archive/announcements/060412.htm 100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament]</ref>
* 2008 – Honored as one of the thirty-three [[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball#Honored jerseys|honored jerseys]] which hang in the [[State Farm Center]] to show regard for being the most decorated basketball players in the University of Illinois' history.

===Track & field===
* 1948 – [[1948 NCAA Track and Field Championships#Field events|NCAA High Jump Champion]]
* 1948 – Member of the [[United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics|United States Olympic team]]
* 1959 – Member of the Drake Relays Hall of Fame<ref>[https://godrakebulldogs.com/documents/2018/8/24/HallofFame_Athletes_18.pdf GoDrakeBulldogs.com]</ref>

===Football===
* 1947 – Team leader in scoring (42pts)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://s3.amazonaws.com/sidearm.sites/fightingillini.com/documents/2018/8/8/FULL_RECORD_BOOK_080816.pdf |title=FightingIllini.com |access-date=February 14, 2019 |archive-date=August 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220823105643/https://s3.amazonaws.com/sidearm.sites/fightingillini.com/documents/2018/8/8/FULL_RECORD_BOOK_080816.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* 1947 – [[1947 Rose Bowl|Rose bowl champion]]

===Athletics===
* 1948 & 1949 – [[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball#Dike Eddleman Award|University of Illinois Athlete of the Year]]
* 1961 – Inducted into the Illinois Sports Hall of Fame
* 1993 – University of Illinois renamed their male and female Athlete of the Year awards to the Dike Eddleman Athlete of the Year.<ref>[https://fightingillini.com/sports/2015/4/6/dikeeddlemanaward.aspx FightingIllini.com]</ref>
* 2017 – Inducted into the University of Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame<ref>[http://uillinois_microsites.sidearmsports.com/halloffame/dikeeddleman.html Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame]</ref>

==Statistics==

===College basketball===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
! width=40px style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center" |Season
! width=40px style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center" |Games
! width=40px style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center" |[[Point (basketball)|Points]]
! width=40px style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center" |[[Points per game|PPG]]
! width=100px style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center" |Big Ten <br/>Record
! width=100px style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center" |Overall <br/>Record
! width=250px style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center" |Highlight
|-
|[[1946–47 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team|1946–47]]
|{{center|10}}
|{{center|12}}
|{{center|1.2}}
|{{center|{{sort|0804|8–4}}}}
|{{center|{{sort|1406|14–6}}}}
|{{center|-}}
|-
|[[1947–48 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team|1947–48]]
|{{center|20}}
|{{center|277}}
|{{center|13.9}}
|{{center|{{sort|0705|7–5}}}}
|{{center|{{sort|1505|15–5}}}}
|First-team [[List of All-Big Ten Conference football teams|All-Big Ten]]
|-
|[[1948–49 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team|1948–49]]
|{{center|25}}
|{{center|329}}
|{{center|13.1}}
|{{center|{{sort|1002|10–2}}}}
|{{center|{{sort|2104|21–4}}}}
|[[Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year|Big Ten Player of the Year]]
|-
|- class="sortbottom"
|{{center|'''Totals'''}}
|{{center|'''55'''}}
|{{center|'''618'''}}
|{{center|'''11.2'''}}
|{{center|'''{{sort|2511|25–11}}'''}}
|{{center|'''{{sort|5015|50–15}}'''}}
|
|}

=== NBA career statistics ===
{{NBA player statistics legend}}

==== Regular season ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
!Year
!Team
!GP
!MPG
!FG%
!FT%
!RPG
!APG
!PPG
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1949–50 NBA season|1949–50]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1949–50 Tri-Cities Blackhawks season|Tri-Cities]]
|64
|–
|.366
|.623
|–
|2.2
|12.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1950–51 NBA season|1950–51]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1950–51 Tri-Cities Blackhawks season|Tri-Cities]]
|68
|–
|.355
|'''.699'''
|'''6.0'''
|'''2.5'''
|'''15.3'''
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1951–52 NBA season|1951–52]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1951–52 Milwaukee Hawks season|Milwaukee]]
|50
|'''32.3'''
|.324
|.631
|4.6
|2.2
|12.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1951–52 NBA season|1951–52]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1951–52 Fort Wayne Pistons season|Fort Wayne]]
|16
|18.0
|'''.381'''
|.462
|2.3
|1.4
|6.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1952–53 NBA season|1952–53]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1952–53 Fort Wayne Pistons season|Fort Wayne]]
|'''69'''
|22.8
|.351
|.561
|3.4
|1.5
|8.9
|- class="sortbottom"
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |Career
|267
|25.7
|.352
|.630
|4.5
|2.1
|12.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |All-Star
|2
|26.0
|.250
|.600
|1.0
|2.5
|4.5
|}

==== Playoffs ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
!Year
!Team
!GP
!MPG
!FG%
!FT%
!RPG
!APG
!PPG
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1950 NBA Playoffs|1950]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1949–50 Tri-Cities Blackhawks season|Tri-Cities]]
|3
|–
|.378
|'''.600'''
|–
|'''2.3'''
|'''16.3'''
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1952 NBA Playoffs|1952]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1951–52 Fort Wayne Pistons season|Fort Wayne]]
|2
|18.5
|.375
|.571
|'''3.5'''
|2.0
|8.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1953 NBA Playoffs|1953]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1952–53 Fort Wayne Pistons season|Fort Wayne]]
|'''7'''
|9.0
|'''.391'''
|.267
|0.7
|0.3
|3.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |Career
|12
|11.1
|.381
|.489
|1.3
|1.1
|7.3
|}

==References==
* ''Dike Eddleman: Illinois' Greatest Athlete'' by Diana Eddleman Lenzi, Sports Publishing, Inc., 1997
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
{{Portal|Biography}}
* [https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/e/eddledi01.html Career Professional Basketball Statistics]
{{Footer USA Track & Field 1948 Summer Olympics}}

{{Bears1947DraftPicks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eddleman, Dwight}}
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:2001 deaths]]
[[Category:All-American college men's basketball players]]
[[Category:American football punters]]
[[Category:American men's basketball players]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1948 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Basketball players from Illinois]]
[[Category:Chicago Stags draft picks]]
[[Category:Fort Wayne Pistons players]]
[[Category:Illinois Fighting Illini football players]]
[[Category:Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball players]]
[[Category:Milwaukee Hawks players]]
[[Category:NBA All-Stars]]
[[Category:Olympic track and field athletes for the United States]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Centralia, Illinois]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Illinois]]
[[Category:Small forwards]]
[[Category:Track and field athletes from Illinois]]
[[Category:Tri-Cities Blackhawks players]]
[[Category:United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:Illinois Fighting Illini men's track and field athletes]]
[[Category:American male high jumpers]]