Togo Palazzi

Togo Palazzi
	Palazzi in 2013
Personal information
Born	August 8, 1932; Union City, New Jersey, U.S.
Died	August 12, 2022 (aged 90)
Listed height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight	205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school	Union Hill; (Union City, New Jersey)
College	Holy Cross (1951–1954)
NBA draft	1954: 1st round, 5th overall pick
	Selected by the Boston Celtics
Playing career	1954–1962
Position	Small forward / shooting guard
Number	12, 6, 17
Career history
1954–1956	Boston Celtics
1956–1960	Syracuse Nationals
1960–1962	Scranton Miners
Career highlights and awards
	Second-team All-American – Collier's (1954); Third-team All-American – AP, UPI, Look (1954); NIT champion (1954); NIT MVP (1954); No. 22 retired by Holy Cross Crusaders;
Career NBA statistics
Points	2,382 (7.4 ppg)
Rebounds	1,113 (3.4 rpg)
Assists	233 (0.7 apg)
	Stats at NBA.com
	Stats at Basketball Reference

Togo Anthony Palazzi (August 8, 1932 – August 12, 2022) was an American basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Boston Celtics and Syracuse Nationals.

Playing and coaching career

A 6'4" forward/guard born and raised in Union City, New Jersey, Palazzi played at Union Hill High School, where he was recognized as one of the top prep basketball players nationwide.^[1] He played at the College of the Holy Cross in the 1950s and was captain of the Crusaders team that won the 1954 NIT Championship and was named MVP of the tournament.^[2]

Palazzi was selected by the Boston Celtics with the fifth pick of the 1954 NBA draft. He played six seasons in the NBA as a member of the Celtics and Syracuse Nationals and averaged 7.4 points per game in his career.^[2]

Palazzi coached the Holy Cross women's team from 1980 to 1985, going 103–28 as coach; he coached them to an NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament appearance in his final year, the first ever appearance by the women's team.^[3]

Later life and death

Palazzi later gave speeches at basketball camps for young adults interested in the sport. He was a prominent fixture at camps such as the Scatlet Hawks Basketball Camp run by Steve Manguso in Milford, MA. Along with conducting area speeches he was the camp director of the Togo Palazzi/Sterling Recreation Basketball Camp in Sterling, Massachusetts.^{[citation needed]}

Palazzi died on August 12, 2022, at the age of 90.^[4]

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

NBA

Source^[5]

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
1954–55	Boston	53	9.5	.399	.750	2.8	.6	4.7
1955–56	Boston	63	11.2	.389	.685	2.9	.7	6.0
1956–57	Boston	21	11.1	.347	.719	3.6	.4	5.0
1956–57	Syracuse	42	18.6	.373	.790	4.5	1.0	10.7
1957–58	Syracuse	67	14.9	.394	.719	3.6	.6	8.6
1958–59	Syracuse	71	14.8	.392	.728	3.7	.9	8.4
1959–60	Syracuse	7	10.0	.317	.500	2.0	.4	4.3
Career		324	13.4	.386	.730	3.4	.7	7.4

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
1955	Boston	5	6.0	.500	.500	2.8	.2	5.8
1956	Boston	2	3.5	.200	–	1.0	.0	1.0
1957	Syracuse	5	17.4	.388	.778	3.6	1.0	9.0
1958	Syracuse	3	8.3	.214	.500	1.3	.0	3.0
1959	Syracuse	8	8.4	.295	.714	2.6	.8	4.5
Career		23	9.4	.353	.641	2.6	.5	5.3

References

^ Doyle, Bill. "Togo Palazzi a 'coach, mentor, friend'", Telegram & Gazette, February 14, 2015. Accessed November 26, 2019. "Palazzi was named one of the top five high school players in the nation when he played for Union Hill High School in Union City, N.J., the same hometown as his future HC teammates Earle Markey and Tommy Heinsohn."
^ ^a ^b Goode, Jon. (May 10, 2005). "No stopping Togo; Catching up with Togo Palazzi". Boston.com. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 27, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Per the Celtics, Boston alumnus Togo Palazzi has passed away at the age of 90". USA Today. August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
^ "Togo Palazzi NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 12, 2023.

External links

Togo Palazzi at NBA
Togo Palazzi at RealGM
Togo Palazzi at Proballers
Togo Palazzi – Basketball-Reference.com NBA player profile
Togo Palazzi – Sports-Reference.com college basketball player profile

[1] Doyle, Bill. "Togo Palazzi a 'coach, mentor, friend'", Telegram & Gazette, February 14, 2015. Accessed November 26, 2019. "Palazzi was named one of the top five high school players in the nation when he played for Union Hill High School in Union City, N.J., the same hometown as his future HC teammates Earle Markey and Tommy Heinsohn."

[stopping-2] Goode, Jon. (May 10, 2005). "No stopping Togo; Catching up with Togo Palazzi". Boston.com. Retrieved May 24, 2021.

[3] "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 27, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[4] "Per the Celtics, Boston alumnus Togo Palazzi has passed away at the age of 90". USA Today. August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2022.

[bbr-5] "Togo Palazzi NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 12, 2023.

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