Ray Patterson (basketball)

{{Short description|American basketball player (1922–2011)}}

{{Infobox basketball biography

| name = Ray Patterson

| image =

| image_size =

| caption =

| height_ft = 6

| height_in = 2

| weight_lb = 195

| birth_date = {{birth date|1922|1|15}}

| birth_place = Lafayette, Indiana, U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|2011|8|3|1922|1|15}}

| death_place = Sugar Land, Texas, U.S.

| high_school = Wayland Academy
(Beaver Dam, Wisconsin)

| college = Wisconsin (1942–1945)

| career_start = 1945

| career_end = 1952

| career_position = Forward

| career_number =

| years1 = 1945–1947

| team1 = Midland Dow

| years2 = 1947–1948

| team2 = Flint Dow A.C.'s

| years3 = 1948–1949

| team3 = Beaver Dam Olo Soap

| years4 = 1949–1950

| team4 = Fond du Lac

| years5 = 1951–1952

| team5 = Sheboygan

| cyears1 = 1948–1954

| cteam1 = Wayland Academy

| highlights =

}}

Raymond Albert Patterson Jr. (January 15, 1922 – August 3, 2011) was general manager of the NBA's Houston Rockets from 1972 to 1990. He was named NBA Executive of the Year in 1977,[https://web.archive.org/web/20000818192826/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/nba/almanac_executive_of_the_year/ NBA Executive of the Year]. CNN/SI. Retrieved on May 8, 2008. and his Rockets appeared in the NBA Finals in 1981 and 1986. Among his most notable player acquisitions were Ralph Sampson in 1983 and Hakeem Olajuwon in 1984. He left the Rockets in 1990 with hopes of becoming co-owner of an NHL team in Houston, and was succeeded by his son, Steve.Eddie Sefko. "Ray Patterson ends NBA career". Houston Chronicle. August 30, 1990. Sports, 1. Ray Patterson's NHL dreams never materialized, but he helped found an International Hockey League franchise, the Houston Aeros, in 1994.Neal Farmer. "Hockey comes to Houston". Houston Chronicle. January 14, 1994. Sports, 9.

During the 1940s, Patterson played professional basketball for the Flint Dow A.C.'s of the NBL.Harry Page. "Where are they?" San Antonio Express-News. January 3, 1999. 2C.

From 1968 to 1972, Patterson served as president, and part-time GM, for the Milwaukee Bucks.{{Cite web|url=https://behindthebuckpass.com/2011/08/03/ray-patterson-former-milwaukee-bucks-president-passes-away/|title = Ray Patterson, Former Milwaukee Bucks President, Passes Away|date = 3 August 2011}} Patterson drafted Lew Alcindor with the first overall pick in the 1969 draft and traded for Oscar Robertson in 1970.{{Cite web|url=https://behindthebuckpass.com/2011/08/03/ray-patterson-former-milwaukee-bucks-president-passes-away/|title = Ray Patterson, Former Milwaukee Bucks President, Passes Away|date = 3 August 2011}} Led by the pair, the Bucks won their first NBA championship in 1971.{{Cite web|url=https://behindthebuckpass.com/2011/08/03/ray-patterson-former-milwaukee-bucks-president-passes-away/|title = Ray Patterson, Former Milwaukee Bucks President, Passes Away|date = 3 August 2011}} Over his career, Patterson was responsible for the drafting, trading, or signing of nine Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame players.{{cite web| url = https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/HOU/hof.html| title = Houston Rockets Hall of Fame {{!}} Basketball-Reference.com}}{{cite web| url = https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/hof.html| title = Milwaukee Bucks Hall of Fame {{!}} Basketball-Reference.com}}

Patterson died on August 3, 2011, at age 89.{{cite web|title=Ray Patterson dies at 89|url=https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/6832155/former-milwaukee-bucks-houston-rockets-president-ray-patterson-dies-89|work=ESPN.com|access-date=August 3, 2011}}{{cite web| url = http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/houstonchronicle/obituary.aspx?n=Raymond-Patterson&pid=153032758| title = Raymond Patterson Obituary (2011) - Houston, TX - Houston Chronicle| website = Legacy.com}}