Jim Birr

James Otto Birr (August 22, 1916 – June 8, 2006) was an American professional basketball player.[1][2] He played for the Indianapolis Kautskys in the National Basketball League and averaged 7.0 points per game.[1][3] In college, he played on the football and basketball teams for Indiana University.[2] In football he received All-America votes.[2]

Jim Birr
Birr, circa 1934
Personal information
Born(1916-08-22)August 22, 1916
Indianapolis, Indiana
DiedJune 8, 2006(2006-06-08) (aged 89)
Naples, Florida
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High schoolShortridge (Indianapolis, Indiana)
CollegeIndiana (1935–1938)
PositionForward / center
Career history
1938–1941Indianapolis Kautskys
1939–1940Beard All-Stars
1940–1941Jim Birr All-Stars
1945–1946Indianapolis Kautskys

Birr was a multi-faceted individual as well. He served in World War II aboard the USS Belleau Wood and received both a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.[2] He was an original investor in the formation of the New York Titans professional football team (then of the AFL, now known as the New York Jets of the NFL), unsuccessfully ran to become the mayor of Indianapolis, created his own independent basketball team called the Jim Birr All-Stars, and created and published the magazine Movie Digest.[2] Later in life, Birr moved to South Florida and got into real estate development.[2] There, he played a part in the development of the Daytona International Speedway.[2]

References
  1. "James Birr NBL stats". basketball-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  2. "Jim Birr". Peach Basket Society. September 21, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  3. "James Birr Statistics". Just Sports Stats. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
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