Dave Gunther

Dave Gunther
	Gunther from 1958 Hawkeye
Personal information
Born	July 22, 1937
Died	March 16, 2024 (aged 86)
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school	Le Mars (Le Mars, Iowa)
College	Iowa (1956–1959)
NBA draft	1959: 8th round, 56th overall pick
	Selected by the Philadelphia Warriors
Position	Forward
Number	11
Career history
As player:
1959–1960	Cleveland Pipers
1960	Detroit Pistons
1960–1961	Williamsport Billies
1961–1962	San Francisco Saints
1962	San Francisco Warriors
As coach:
1967–1970	Wayne State (NE)
1970–1988	North Dakota
1993–1995	Buena Vista
1996–2001	Bemidji State
Career highlights and awards
	First-team All-Big Ten (1959); EPBL Rookie of the Year (1961);
	Stats at NBA.com
	Stats at Basketball Reference

David C. Gunther (July 22, 1937 – March 16, 2024) was an American basketball player and coach. He served as the head basketball coach at the University of North Dakota from 1970 to 1988. Gunther played college basketball at the University of Iowa and professional basketball with the San Francisco Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Early years

Gunther was born in 1937 and attended Le Mars High School in Le Mars, Iowa.^[1] He attended Le Mars High School and, as a senior, was selected as the first-team center on the 1955 All-Iowa basketball team.^[2]

College career

Gunther enrolled at the University of Iowa and played for the Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team at the forward position from 1956 to 1959. He scored 271 points (12.3 average) as a sophomore, 435 points (19.8 average) as a junior, and 482 points as a senior (21.9 average). He ranked 19th nationally in scoring during the 1958–59 season. He was selected as Iowa's most valuable player three consecutive years.^[3] He closed his college career with 1,188 points, tying the Iowa career scoring record set by Bill Logan from 1954 to 1956.^[3]

Professional basketball

Gunther was selected by the Philadelphia Warriors in the eighth round of the 1959 NBA draft but Gunther stated at the time that he was not interested in playing professional basketball.^[4] In the fall of 1959, after completing a tour of military service with the U.S. Army, Gunther joined the Cleveland Pipers of the National Industrial Basketball League.^[5]

In June 1960, the Detroit Pistons purchased rights to Gunther from the Philadelphia Warriors.^[6] He played a portion of the season with the Pistons before being sold to the Williamsport Billies of the Eastern Professional Basketball League (EBL).^[7]^[8] He was selected as rookie of the year in the EBL.^[7]

In May 1961, the San Francisco Saints of the American Basketball League outbid the Pistons to sign Gunther.^[7]^[9] His season was cut short when he was called back into military service.^[10]^[11]

In 1962, he concluded his professional basketball career with the San Francisco Warriors of the NBA.^[1]

Coaching career

After his playing career ended, Gunther worked as a basketball coach. He began his coaching career in 1963 as a head coach at Charles City High School in Charles City, Iowa.^[12] He next served as head basketball coach at Kimball High School in Royal Oak, Michigan, from 1964 to 1967.^[13]

In August 1967, he was hired as the head basketball coach at Wayne State College in Wayne, Nebraska.^[13] He served as head coach at Wayne State for three years, compiling a 70–12 record. He was selected as the Nebraska coach of the year in 1968 by the Lincoln Journal and in 1969 by the Omaha World Herald.^[14]

In the spring of 1970, Gunther was hired as the head basketball coach at the University of North Dakota.^[14] He continued to hold that position for 18 years until his retirement in March 1988.^[15] He compiled a 332–117 record at North Dakota.^[16]

In 1993, Gunther was hired as head basketball coach at Buena Vista in Storm Lake, Iowa.^[16] He led Buena Vista to a 25–25 overall record in two seasons. In March 1995, he was named head basketball coach at Bemidji State University.^[17] He retired in 2001 after six years at Bemidji.^[18]

Death

Dave Gunther died on March 16, 2024, at the age of 86.^[19]

Career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high