Cliff Hagan, who won NCAA and NBA titles over a Hall-of-Fame basketball career, has passed away at 94, sparking an outpouring of grief from his alma mater, the University of Kentucky, and throughout the sport.
‘Cliff was a Kentucky legend and a great friend to all of us,’ current Wildcats head coach and former player Mark Pope wrote on X. ‘His legacy is forever imprinted in the annals of Kentucky basketball and the rafters of Rupp Arena. We will miss him dearly. Praying for his family.’
A cause of death has not been shared publicly, but Hagan’s passing comes just a few weeks after his former St. Louis Hawks teammate and fellow Hall of Famer Bob Pettit died at 93. The two were the last living players to have won a title with the Hawks, who now play in Atlanta.
‘Two best players from Hawks only title team, Bob Pettit & Hagan, both dying within 21 days of each other,’ Justin Termine, host of NBA Today, wrote on X. ‘Despite Pettit’s 50-point game in the Game Six clincher, Hagan actually led St. Louis in playoff scoring that [year].’
News of Hagan’s passing was first reported by long-time Kentucky sportswriter and author, Oscar Combs, who described him as a champion for women’s sports in his role as the school’s athletic director from 1975 until 1988.
‘I hope Cliff will be remembered for all his kindness and compassion while not having access to unlimited funding for athletes of women’s basketball and Olympic sports like today,’ Combs wrote on X.
Cliff Hagan, who won NCAA and NBA titles over a Hall-of-Fame basketball career, has passed away at 94, sparking an outpouring of grief from his alma mater, the University of Kentucky
Kentucky basketball coach Adolph Rupp talks to players, from left, Cliff Hagan, Lou Tsioropoulos and Frank Ramsey (30) in Lexington, Kentucky on January 16, 1954
Richie Guerin (left), Bob Pettit (center) and Cliff Hagan of the St. Louis Hawks pose in 1955
An Owensboro, Kentucky native, Hagan was a key member of legendary Wildcats coach Adolph Rupp’s 1951 title-winning team. Kentucky went 32-2 that season and a perfect 14-0 in the SEC to secure the program’s third championship, while Hagan averaged 9.2 points a game as a sophomore.
Hagan was an All-American in each of the next two seasons, but his college career was interrupted by a point-shaving scandal involving three of his Kentucky teammates. Ultimately, the school forfeited Hagan’s junior season, but despite being drafted by the Boston Celtics that summer, he returned to Lexington to play one more year for Rupp.
Rather than jumping into the fledgling NBA upon his graduation, Hagan was instead drafted into the Air Force, where he served in 1954 and 1955 at Andrews Air Force Base.
When he did finally turn pro, Hagan and Celtics center ‘Easy’ Ed Macauley were sent to the St. Louis Hawks for the draft rights in Bill Russell in one of the most famous trades in NBA history.
Hagan, Macauley, Pettit and Slater Martin would lose to the rival Celtics in the 1957 NBA Finals before exacting their revenge in 1958 with what remains the only title in Hawks history. Unfortunately for Hagan & Co., Boston was only just getting started and would win 10 of the next 11 NBA titles behind Russell’s defensive dominance.
‘Why [the Hawks] traded Bill Russell was [to get] Ed Macauley, who had been an All-American at Saint Louis University, a big-time player,’ Hagan, an undersized power forward at 6ft 4in, said in 2018. ‘I was just thrown in on the deal. The [Celtics] didn’t know what to do with me at my size.’
Cliff Hagan #16 of the St. Louis Hawks shoots a free-throw during an NBA game against the Cincinnati Royals on November 2, 1958 at the Cincinnati Gardens
During his best years between 1957 and 1962, Hagan averaged 22.7 points and 9.8 rebounds a game, while making just under 80 percent of his free-throw attempts.
He initially retired after the 1965-66 season, but was coaxed to play for the upstart ABA’s Dallas Chaparrals, who have since moved to San Antonio to become the Spurs.
Hagan finally retired in 1970 after five NBA All-Star nods and one more in the ABA.
Two years later, Hagan was named Kentucky’s assistant athletic director before being promoted to the top job in 1975.
Although he is credited with pushing for more funding for women’s sports in Lexington, his tenure was tarnished by basketball coach Eddie Sutton’s 1988 recruiting scandal. Ultimately, the Wildcats received a two-year postseason ban.
Hagan resigned and was replaced by his former Kentucky teammate, C.M. Newton, who quickly hired future Hall-of-Fame coach Rick Pitino to take over the Wildcats program.
Hagan (No. 16) is seen behind Bill Russell, the Celtics star for whom he was famously traded
Until a new park was completed in 2019, Kentucky’s baseball stadium was named after Cliff Hagan and even had a student section in the bleachers known as ‘The Cliff’
Until a new park was completed in 2019, Kentucky’s baseball stadium was named after Hagan and even had a section in the bleachers known as ‘The Cliff.’
But for all of his contributions as an administrator, it was his ability as a player that fans seemed to remember most Friday.
‘A deeply overlooked legend historically,’ one basketball fan said of Hagan’s game. ‘He always elevated his game in the playoffs. His hook shot was so accurate and had so much range that it helped inspire [Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s] skyhook. Just a fantastic player and one of my favorites from the era.’
Hagan was asked if he ever discussed the hook with Abdul-Jabbar, but admitted the two had never spoken.
He is survived by his wife, Martha, with whom he shared four children, including daughters Lisa, Laurie and Amy, as well as son, Cliff Jr.
‘Cliff was a giant, but the real loss is how we sometimes only celebrate legends after they’re gone,’ one Kentucky fan wrote on X. ‘His impact on the community—beyond just basketball—deserves a spotlight now, not just in memory.’
