View source for Tony Lavelli

{{Short description|American basketball player (1926–1998)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox basketball biography
| name            = Tony Lavelli
| image           = Tony Lavelli 1959.JPG
| width           = 220px
| caption         = Lavelli in 1959.
| height_ft       = 6
| height_in       = 3
| weight_lb       = 185
| birth_date      = {{birth date|1926|07|11}}
| birth_place     = [[Somerville, Massachusetts]], U.S.
| death_date      = {{death date and age|1998|01|08|1926|07|11}}
| death_place     = [[Laconia, New Hampshire]], U.S.
| high_school     = [[Somerville High School (Massachusetts)|Somerville]]<br />(Somerville, Massachusetts)
| college         = [[Yale Bulldogs men's basketball|Yale]] (1945–1949)
| draft_league    = BAA
| draft_year      = 1949
| draft_round     = 1
| draft_pick      = 4
| draft_team      = [[Boston Celtics]]
| career_start    = 1949
| career_end      = 1951
| career_number   = 4, 11, 6, 16
| career_position = [[Small forward]]
| years1          = {{nbay|1949|full=y}}
| team1           = [[Boston Celtics]]
| years2          = {{nbay|1950|full=y}}
| team2           = [[New York Knicks]]
| highlights      = 
* [[Helms Foundation College Basketball Player of the Year|Helms Foundation Player of the Year]] (1949)
* Consensus first-team [[1949 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|All-American (1949)]]
* {{nowrap|2× Consensus second-team All-American ([[1946 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|1946]], [[1948 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|1948]])}}
* [[List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season scoring leaders|NCAA scoring champion]] (1949)
| stats_league    = NBA
| stat1label      = [[Point (basketball)|Points]]
| stat1value      = 591 (6.9 ppg)
| stat2label      = [[Rebound (basketball)|Rebounds]]
| stat2value      = 59 (2.0 rpg)
| stat3label      = [[Assist (basketball)|Assists]]
| stat3value      = 63 (0.7 apg)
| bbr             = lavelto01
}}
'''Anthony Lavelli Jr.''' (July 11, 1926 – January 8, 1998) was an American professional [[basketball]] player and musician.  He averaged 6.9 points per game<ref name="databasebasketball.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.databasebasketball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=LavelTo01|title=Tony Lavelli|access-date=September 18, 2015|website=Databasebasketball.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151030130849/http://www.databasebasketball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=LavelTo01|archive-date=2015-10-30|url-status=usurped}}</ref> during his two-year [[National Basketball Association]] (NBA) career (1949–1951) while also providing [[half-time]] entertainment with his [[accordion]] performances.

==College==

A native of [[Somerville, Massachusetts]], Lavelli attended [[Yale University]] as a music student and was a member of [[Skull and Bones]].<ref name="robbins">{{cite book | last=Robbins | first=Alexandra | author-link=Robbins, Alexandra | title=Secrets of the Tomb: Skull and Bones, the Ivy League, and the Hidden Paths of Power | publisher=Little, Brown | location=Boston | year=2002 | isbn=0-316-72091-7 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/secretsoftombsku00robb }}</ref>{{rp|169}}<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DDO3sdV6ytsC | title=Basketball: a biographical dictionary | access-date=April 8, 2011 | last=Porter|first= David L. | year=2005 | publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group | page=275| isbn=9780313309526 }}</ref>  He aspired to compose [[musical theatre|musical comedies]] after he graduated.<ref name="time">{{cite magazine|title=Baskets in 4/4 Time|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date= March 14, 1949|url=http://time.com/time/archive/printout/0,23657,794702,00.html}}{{dead link|date=July 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>  He wrote over a dozen songs while in college, with titles like "I Want a Helicopter" <ref name="time" /> and "You're the Boppiest Bee-Bop",<ref name="career">{{cite journal|title=Lavelli of Yale passes up pro basketball for music career|journal=[[New York Times]]|date= April 16, 1949|page= 18}}</ref> and he also appeared as an accordion soloist for the [[New Haven Symphony Orchestra]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Tony Lavelli solos with New Haven Symphony|work= Accordion World|year= 1949|url= http://www.ksanti.net/free-reed/essays/tonylavelli.html|access-date= September 18, 2015|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151030130851/http://www.ksanti.net/free-reed/essays/tonylavelli.html|archive-date= 2015-10-30|url-status= live}}</ref>  As a senior, he applied to the [[Juilliard School]], the [[Curtis Institute of Music]], and the [[New England Conservatory of Music]].<ref name="time" />

However, Lavelli's musical talents were often overshadowed by his achievements on the basketball court. Lavelli claimed that he had only learned basketball as a teenager to impress his friends, who were mostly apathetic to his music.<ref name="time" />  Nevertheless, he would become one of Yale's all-time greatest players. A 6'3" [[forward (basketball)|forward]] with an accurate one-handed [[hook shot]], he scored 1,964 points in four years and graduated as the fourth highest-scorer in college basketball history.<ref name="time" />  He also earned four [[All-America]]n team selections and one Player of the Year award during his college career.<ref name="time" />  Upon graduating, he was selected by the [[Boston Celtics]] as the fourth overall pick in the [[1949 BAA draft]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=The Official NBA Encyclopedia|location= New York|publisher=[[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]|year= 2000|page= 368|title=1949 BAA Draft}}</ref>

===College statistics===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
|-
! Year
! Team
! GP
! FG%
! FT%
! PPG
|-
|style="text-align:left;"| [[1948–49 NCAA Division I men's basketball season|1948–49]]
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Yale Bulldogs men's basketball|Yale]]
| 30 || .350 || .824 || 22.4
|}

==Professional basketball==
Despite his athletic accomplishments, Lavelli's first love was music, and he initially refused to sign with the Celtics so that he could enroll at Juilliard.<ref name="career" /> Eventually, based on suggestions made by sports executive [[Leo Ferris]], Lavelli proposed to join the team on the condition that they would pay him an extra $125 per game to play his accordion during half-time breaks at [[Boston Garden]] and certain visitors' arenas.<ref>{{cite book|last=Burwell|first= Brian|title=At the Buzzer!|location= New York|publisher= Doubleday|year= 2001 |page= 145}}</ref> The Celtics conceded to his demands.

Lavelli made his Celtics debut on November 24, 1949, in a game against the [[Fort Wayne Pistons]]. He tallied 20 points in his first game,<ref>{{cite journal|title=Celtics bow, Lavelli gets 20|journal=New York Times|date= November 25, 1949|page= 34}}</ref> and averaged 8.8 points per game over the course of the [[1949–50 NBA season]].<ref name="databasebasketball.com"/> However, he received much more attention for his half-time accordion performances; indeed, some basketball historians have credited Lavelli's mini-concerts for saving the Celtics franchise, which was in danger of folding due to lack of fans and money.<ref name="Cavanaugh, Jack 1995">{{cite journal|last=Cavanaugh|first= Jack|title=The last days of a garden where memories grew|journal=New York Times|date= April 16, 1995|page= S7}}</ref> In a typical performance, Lavelli would greet the fans and play "[[Granada (song)|Granada]]", "[[Lady of Spain (song)|Lady of Spain]]", and other musical pieces before dashing off to the Celtics' locker room.<ref name="Goldstein, Richard 1998">{{cite journal|last=Goldstein|first=Richard|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/01/13/sports/tony-lavelli-71-musician-with-a-memorable-hook-shot.html |title=Tony Lavelli, 71, musician with a memorable hook shot|journal=New York Times|date= January 13, 1998|access-date=8 November 2019 |url-access=subscription |page= D21}}</ref> He usually played in his basketball jersey, as he had little time to change his clothes.<ref name="Cavanaugh, Jack 1995"/>  The Celtics finished last in their division that season, but one newspaper joked that the team "doubtless [found] his music soothing".<ref>{{cite news|title=Tony from Yale likes accordion, cage combination; halftime 'concerts' prove biggest success|newspaper=The Charleston Gazette|date= November 28, 1949}}</ref>

Lavelli signed with the rival [[New York Knicks]] prior to the start of the [[1950–51 NBA season]].  He averaged 3.3 points per game with the Knicks and participated in their playoff run, which ended in the [[1951 NBA Finals]] at the hands of the [[Rochester Royals]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Royals Reign, Despite Knicks Unlikely Comeback|website=[[NBA.com]]|url=http://www.nba.com/history/finals/19501951.html|access-date=September 18, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151014170535/http://www.nba.com/history/finals/19501951.html|archive-date=2015-10-14|url-status=live}}</ref>  However, Lavelli had joined the Knicks so that he would be close to Juilliard, and he began taking courses there during his tenure with the team.<ref name="Goldstein, Richard 1998"/>

During the mid-1950s, Lavelli played with the College All-Stars, who primarily served as opponents to the [[Harlem Globetrotters]], and his accordion performances became a fixture of the Globetrotters’ halftime shows.<ref name="Goldstein, Richard 1998"/>

==Post-basketball career==
After retiring from basketball in the late 1950s, Lavelli embarked on a long career as a songwriter and nightclub performer.<ref name="Goldstein, Richard 1998"/> He released two records during his life: ''All-American Accordionist'' and ''Accordion Classics''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tony Lavelli|website=Recordsbymail.com |url=http://www.recordsbymail.com/artistPage.php?artistFirst=TONY&artistLast=LAVELLI|access-date=September 18, 2015}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Lavelli's cousin, [[Dante Lavelli]], played for the [[Cleveland Browns]] in the 1940s and 1950s and was later inducted into the [[Professional Football Hall of Fame]].<ref name="Goldstein, Richard 1998"/>

==Death==
In 1998, he suffered a [[myocardial infarction|heart attack]] at his home in [[Laconia, New Hampshire]] and died shortly afterwards.<ref name="Goldstein, Richard 1998"/>

== NBA career statistics ==
{| class="toccolours" style="font-size: 90%; white-space: nowrap;"
! colspan="6" style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid #aaa;" |Legend
|-
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;" |&nbsp;&nbsp;GP
|Games played
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;" |&nbsp;MPG&nbsp;
|Minutes per game
|-
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;" |&nbsp;FG%&nbsp;
| style="padding-right: 8px" |[[Field goal (basketball)|Field-goal]] percentage
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;" |&nbsp;FT%&nbsp;
|[[Free throw|Free-throw]] percentage
|-
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;" |&nbsp;RPG&nbsp;
|[[Rebound (basketball)|Rebounds]] per game
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;" |&nbsp;APG&nbsp;
|[[Assist (basketball)|Assists]] per game
|-
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;" |&nbsp;PPG&nbsp;
|Points per game
| style="background-color: #F2F2F2; border: 1px solid black" |&nbsp;'''Bold'''&nbsp;
|Career high
|}

=== Regular season ===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
!Year
!Team
!GP
!FG%
!FT%
!RPG
!APG
!PPG
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |{{nbay|1949}}
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1949–50 Boston Celtics season|Boston]]
|'''56'''
|'''.372'''
|.853
|–
|0.7
|'''8.8'''
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |{{nbay|1950}}
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1950–51 New York Knicks season|New York]]
|30
|.344
|'''.854'''
|2.0
|'''0.8'''
|3.3
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |Career
|86
|.367
|.853
|<u>2.0</u>
|0.7
|6.9
|}

=== Playoffs ===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
!Year
!Team
!GP
!FG%
!FT%
!RPG
!APG
!PPG
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1951 NBA Playoffs|1951]]
| style="text-align:left;" |[[1950–51 New York Knicks season|New York]]
|2
|.200
|1.000
|0.5
|0.5
|2.0
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |Career
|2
|.200
|1.000
|0.5
|0.5
|2.0
|}

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{basketballstats|bbr=l/lavelto01}}
*{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060213050649/http://www.databasebasketball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=LavelTo01 Tony Lavelli]}} at Databasebasketball.com
*{{IMDb name|1676598}}

{{navboxes|list=
{{NCAA Division I men's basketball scoring champion}}
{{1946 NCAA Men's Basketball Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1948 NCAA Men's Basketball Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1949 NCAA Men's Basketball Consensus All-Americans}}
{{Helms Foundation College Basketball Player of the Year}}
{{1949 BAA Draft}}
}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavelli, Tony}}
[[Category:1926 births]]
[[Category:1998 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American accordionists]]
[[Category:All-American college men's basketball players]]
[[Category:American men's basketball players]]
[[Category:American people of Italian descent]]
[[Category:Boston Celtics draft picks]]
[[Category:Boston Celtics players]]
[[Category:Musicians from Somerville, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:New York Knicks players]]
[[Category:Small forwards]]
[[Category:Songwriters from Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Somerville, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Basketball players from Middlesex County, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Williston Northampton School alumni]]
[[Category:Yale Bulldogs men's basketball players]]
[[Category:Members of Skull and Bones]]
[[Category:20th-century American songwriters]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]