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| Nicknamed "Big John", the late John Gunn was a valiant young man who won the hearts and genuine admiration of all. He was courageous, competitive and a winner. Gunn played on Wayne
Yates coached teams from 1974 to 1976. |
| As a freshman, Gunn averaged 12 points and 10 rebounds a game and played a big factor in the University of Memphis’s impressive 20-7 record that included a trip to the NIT. That year his teammates voted him “Mr. Hustle”. As a sophomore, the 6-9 Gunn averaged 10 points and eight rebounds. His career-high game was 25 points as a freshman against Buffalo State, but his best game was against Louisville his sophomore year in the Metro Tournament when he scored 18 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked two shots. |
| A tragic event then struck the Tiger basketball program at the start of the 1976-77 season. After just three games, Gunn was taken ill with a rare disease — Stevens-Johnson Syndrome — and admitted to the hospital. Ten days later on December 21, Gunn was pronounced dead at the age of 21 due to complications of the disease. |
| Gunn attended Melrose High School where he played for Coach Verties Sails. His senior year at Melrose, along with Tiger teammates Alvin Wright and James Bradley, the Wildcats were undefeated and won the Tennessee State Championship with a 35-0 record. That same year, Gunn was chosen as one of the five best basketball prospects in the nation and was voted the
Tennessee Player of the Year. |