Happy Hairston

Who was Happy Hairston?

Harold "Happy" Hairston was an American professional basketball player. He played for the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA. He was a member of the 1971–72 NBA championship Lakers, a team that won 33 games in a row, a record not duplicated in any other American professional sport. Hairston was a 6'7" 225 lb forward. He was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Hairston attended Erasmus Hall in Brooklyn, New York. He played college basketball at New York University from 1962 to 1964, where one of his teammates was Barry Kramer. He played professionally for the Cincinnati Royals and Detroit Pistons before joining the Lakers in 1969.

In 1971-72, Hairston grabbed 1,045 rebounds; his teammate Wilt Chamberlain pulled down 1,572. Hairston led the Lakers in both rebounds and field goal percentage during the 1973-74 and 1974-75 seasons, and set an NBA record for most defensive rebounds in a quarter with 13.

During his 11 seasons in the NBA, Hairston averaged 14.8 points and 10.3 rebounds.

After his retirement in 1975, Hairston established the Happy Hairston Youth Foundation in Century City.