University of Tennessee Athletics
Hoops All-American Paul Walther Passes Away
December 22, 2014 | Men's Basketball
Tennessee basketball letterman and two-time All-American Paul "Lefty" Walther passed away Sunday in Atlanta. He was 87-years-old.
A native of Covington, Ky., Walther lettered at UT during two separate stints in the 1940s. After leading the Volunteers to the 1945 SEC Championship (18-5, 8-2 SEC) while garnering first-team All-America honors from Don Dunphy as a freshman, Walther served with the Navy during World War II.
Walther returned to Rocky Top to letter from 1947-49, serving a team captain in his final season with the Vols. He earned second-team All-America acclaim from The Sporting News in 1949 and graduated that same year.
The 6-2, 155-pound, left-handed sharpshooter with a knack for displaying on-court showmanship, Walther also was a three-time All-Southeastern Conference selection (1945, 1948, 1949).
"Lefty was probably one of the five best basketball players Tennessee ever had, and maybe the most entertaining one," retired Knoxville Journal sports editor Ben Byrd said. "He could dribble the ball behind his back, through his legs; he did a lot of things to entertain the crowd."
Walther played two seasons each for head coaches John Mauer and Emmett Lowery at UT. He led the Vols in scoring as both a junior (334 points, 13.4 ppg) and senior (462 points, 17.8 ppg).
He appeared in 91 games during his four seasons with the Vols, averaging 12.9 points per game for his career while totaling 1,173 points. Walther primarily wore jersey No. 14.
"He could play anywhere," Byrd said. "He was 6-2, and he should have been a guard, but they played him at forward a lot (at Tennessee). He could jump into the post and go right around a big center. He was a great player and a really wonderful guy."
Walther was selected by the Minneapolis Lakers in the 1949 Basketball Association of America draft (the BAA later became the NBA), and played six seasons with Minneapolis, the Indianapolis Olympians, the Philadelphia Warriors and the Fort Wayne Pistons. He scored more than 2,800 points during his NBA career.
Walther also started alongside George Mikan for the Western Conference in the 1952 NBA All-Star Game, with Bob Cousy among the starters for the Eastern Conference.
After his professional playing career, Walther worked for Merrill Lynch in Chicago for 32 years, serving as vice president of institutional sales.
Walther was named to Tennessee's All-Century Team during the 2008-09 season and also was honored as UT's "SEC Legend" at the 2009 SEC Tournament in Tampa, Fla.
He was a father of seven with 13 grandchildren and two great grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, Dec. 27, at 11 a.m. ET at the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta.
