Bob Jake

Robert John "Bob" Jake (January 9, 1923 – November 30, 2013) was an American basketball player and doctor. Jake played basketball for both Northwestern and Vermont and was the 16th overall selection by the Baltimore Bullets in the 1947 BAA Draft, the forerunner to the NBA.[1]

Bob Jake
Personal information
BornJanuary 9, 1923
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US
DiedNovember 30, 2013(2013-11-30) (aged 90)
Yountville, California, US
Career information
College
BAA draft1947 / Round: 2 / Pick: 16th overall
Selected by the Baltimore Bullets
Career history
1947–1948Glens Falls Commodores

Playing career

A native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Jake attended Milwaukee University School, now known as University School of Milwaukee, where he set school records in basketball for scoring.[2] Jake was also an accomplished tennis player, securing the National Boys Singles and Doubles Tennis Championships in 1938. He went on to be the #1 ranked boy's tennis player in the nation in 1939.[3] Jake then attended Northwestern University where he lettered in basketball and tennis from 1942 to 1943.[4] He volunteered for the United States Army during World War II in 1943, where he served stateside and studied medicine at the University of Vermont. After the war, Jake lettered for his final season at Vermont, finishing second on the team in scoring behind fellow BAA draft pick Larry Killick helping the Catamounts to a 19-3 record and Yankee Conference regular season title under coach John C. Evans.[5] The 19 wins was a school record until the 2001-02 season.

Jake was also a standout in doubles tennis at Vermont, as he and partner Hammond "Hammy" Livingston went 9-0 in 1949 to win the New England Championships[6]

Selected 16th overall in the BAA Draft to the Baltimore Bullets in 1947, Jake never suited up for the team, but did play in the semi-professional New York State Professional Basketball League for the 1947-48 season with the Glens Falls Commodores, alongside UVM teammate Killick.[7] He and Killick remain the only two University of Vermont products to be taken in a major basketball league draft.[8]


After basketball

Jake completed his medical residency in Milwaukee, and also served as an Army doctor during the Korean War in 1952. In 1955, he began his medical career in California, where he practiced until 1996. Jake died on November 30, 2013 in Yountville, California.

References
  1. "1947 BAA Draft - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  2. "USM Athletic Hall of Fame: Robert "Bobby" Jake". USM Athletics.
  3. "Robert "Bobby" Jake".
  4. "NU Sports - 2016_17_NU_MBB_Guide.pdf" (PDF). Nusports.com.
  5. "University of Vermont : Individual rEcords 1945-46" (PDF). Static.uvmathletics.com. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  6. "UVM Athletics". Uvmathletics.com. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  7. "History of the New York State Basketball League 1946-47 - 1948-49". Apbr.org. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  8. "NBA Draft Picks From University of Vermont - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 11 April 2018.


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