Ken Sears

Kenneth Robert Sears (August 17, 1933 – April 23, 2017) was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was the first basketball player on the cover of "Sports Illustrated" magazine, appearing on the December 20, 1954 issue during his senior season in college.
Born and raised in Watsonville, California, Sears graduated from its high school in 1951 and played college basketball at nearby Santa Clara University. As a freshman, Sears led the Broncos to the final four (semifinals) of the NCAA tournament in 1952, held in Seattle.
A forward, Sears was a first round selection of the New York Knicks in the 1955 NBA draft and played eight seasons (1955–1961, 1962–1964) in the NBA with the Knicks and San Francisco Warriors. He averaged 13.9 points per game and 7.8 rebounds per game in his NBA career, appearing as an NBA All-Star in and . Sears also led the NBA in field goal percentage in consecutive years (1959, 1960).
Sears spent the 1961–62 season with the San Francisco Saints in the short-lived American Basketball League (ABL).