NBA birthdays: Players born on May 23
Jaxson Hayes is among the players born on May 23.
With over 5,000 players in NBA history, at least one player was born on every day of the calendar year – including three leap day ballers. Our day-by-day breakdown of the players born on each day of the year continues.
Below are the most notable NBA players born on May 23.
The term “NBA-Lifer” can be thrown around loosely, but Thorn truly fits that bill. Thorn was the second overall pick in the 1963 NBA Draft by the Baltimore Bullets, spending eight years as a player. He suited up for the Detroit Pistons, St. Louis Hawks and Seattle SuperSonics, averaging 10.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. Thorn retired as a player in 1971 and then spent eight seasons as a coach.
His most impactful profession in the NBA was as an executive, becoming the Chicago Bulls’ GM in 1978. He was at the forefront of drafting Michael Jordan in the 1984 NBA Draft, but became the NBA’s Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations in 1986. Thorn helped create the “Dream Team” in the 1992 Summer Olympics and became the Philadelphia 76ers team president in 2010. Thorn became the President of Basketball Operations a few years later before retiring in 2015. He’s been a consultant for the Milwaukee Bucks throughout his “retirement” and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018.
“Old Rancher” was the 12th overall pick in the 1949 BAA Draft, but started his career with the Rochester Royals. Coleman spent his first seven seasons in Rochester, averaging 11 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. His best season was in 1955, averaging 12.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. That was his final full season with the Royals, closing his career with three seasons playing for the St. Louis Hawks. He retired in 1958, winning titles with the 1951 Royals and the 1958 Hawks. The big man averaged 10.6 points and 9.2 rebounds throughout his nine-year career.