Jim Line

Who was Jim Line?

James R. Line was an American basketball player. He was an All-American at the University of Kentucky and a key player on two NCAA championship teams.

Line, a 6'2" guard/forward from North High School in Akron, Ohio, played for Adolph Rupp at Kentucky fom 1946 to 1950. Line was on some of the best Kentucky teams of all time, as the Wildcats went 127–13 in his four years. He started at forward on Kentucky's 1947–48 championship team and played a significant role off of the bench for the 1948–49 team. In his senior year, 1949–50, Line averaged 13.1 points per game and was named a third team All-American by United Press International, along with teammate Bill Spivey. For his career, Line scored 1,041 points.

After graduation he was drafted in the fourth round of the 1950 NBA Draft by the Indianapolis Olympians, but never played in the National Basketball Association.

In 1952, Line was one of several former Kentucky players implicated in a point shaving scandal, with former teammates Spivey and Walter Hirsch. He was acquitted, however.

Line died on January 24, 2013 at his home in Russell, Kansas.