Last Updated on April 18, 2026 by Mat Diekhake

Here’s a detailed profile on Jim Paxson:

Player Profile

  • Full Name: James Clifford Pollard.
  • Nickname: “The Kangaroo Kid.” Other nicknames also appear in historical databases, but this is the widely documented one. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)
  • Nationality: American.
  • Date of Birth: July 9, 1922.
  • Hometown: Oakland, California.
  • Height: 6-foot-4 on Basketball-Reference; the Hall of Fame bio lists him at 6-foot-5. The contemporary statistical record is usually cited as 6-foot-4.
  • Weight: 185 pounds. (
  • Wingspan: 6-foot-5.
  • Shoe Size: Size 13 (US)
  • Jersey Number: No. 17 with Stanford ; No. 17 with the Minneapolis Lakers is documented by the Lakers.
  • Position: Small forward / forward. Basketball-Reference lists him as a small forward; NBL records list forward-center.
  • High School: Oakland Technical High School in Oakland, California. (RealGM Basketball)
  • College: Stanford University.
  • NBA Draft: Drafted by the Chicago Stags in 1947. Reliable sources agree on the team and year, but the pick notation varies by database because of early-league record formatting; Basketball-Reference identifies him as a 1947 draft entrant, while RealGM lists him as Round 7, Pick 5, which corresponds to 62nd overall in some historical listings.
  • Player Archetype: High-flying two-way wing forward. This fits both the period descriptions of his leaping and shooting and his role on the Minneapolis dynasty teams. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)
  • Primary Offensive Role: Off-ball scoring forward who thrived with a corner jump shot, transition finishing, and complementary offense next to George Mikan. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)
  • Defensive Role: Mobile team defender on the wing/frontcourt who added rebounding and athletic coverage rather than serving as a pure rim-protecting big. This is an inference from his position, rebounding profile, and era-specific descriptions.
  • Play Style: Smooth, unselfish, springy, and ahead of his time athletically, with finesse as a shooter and unusual vertical pop for his era. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)
  • Handedness / Shooting Hand: Right-handed shooter.
  • Athletic Profile: Elite leaper for his era; the Hall of Fame says he was reputed to touch the top of the backboard and dunk from the foul line. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)
  • Recruiting Status: Pre-modern recruiting era; no modern recruiting ranking exists. He was recruited to Stanford by Hank Luisetti.
  • Draft Status Detail: Entered the early professional ranks after World War II and AAU play; although drafted by the Chicago Stags in 1947, he began his pro career with the Minneapolis Lakers in the NBL in 1947-48.
  • Injury Status Category: Historically durable; no major recurring pro injury issue is prominently documented in the sources I found. He did miss Stanford’s 1942 NCAA title game because of the flu, which was illness rather than a basketball injury. (static.gostanford.com)
  • Career Stage: Retired former player and coach; Hall of Fame inductee. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)
  • Comparison Style: A pre-modern aerial wing, loosely comparable in style concept to an athletic, team-first scoring forward rather than a ball-dominant creator. This is a style comparison, not a one-to-one historical equivalence. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)
  • Teams Played For:
    • Minneapolis Lakers (1947-1955).
  • Championship Rings: 5 BAA/NBA championships with the Minneapolis Lakers in 1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, and 1954; he also won the 1948 NBL championship with Minneapolis before the NBA era fully settled. (NBA)
  • Parents: Unconfirmed.
  • Children: Jack Pollard, Jeanne Pollard, Jeff Pollard, and Jay Pollard is mentioned as having predeceased the family in Arilee Pollard’s obituary. (Legacy)
  • Siblings: No reliable public source located.
  • Retirment Age: 32. He retired after the 1954-55 season, before his July 1955 birthday.
  • Retirement Year: 1955.

Player Archetype / Play Style

Jim Pollard’s player archetype was that of a high-flying two-way wing, the kind of early-era forward who could score without hijacking possessions and still change games with movement, timing, and athleticism. Defensively, he functioned as a mobile team-oriented stopper and rebounder more than a bruising interior anchor, while offensively he worked as a smooth complementary scorer whose corner jumper, cutting, and transition play fit perfectly beside a dominant hub like George Mikan. Physically, Pollard stood around 6-foot-4/6-foot-5 and 185 pounds, but what really separated him was his leaping ability, which was so unusual for the period that it became central to his legend. His play style was unselfish, graceful, and advanced for his time, blending finesse shooting with above-the-rim athletic traits that made him one of the most distinctive forwards of pro basketball’s first dynasty. (The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)

Fun Facts

  • His nickname was The Kangaroo Kid because he could jump so high.

Sources:

Basketball-Reference — Jim Pollard Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft Status and more
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame — Jim Pollard
Los Angeles Lakers — Jim Pollard
Stanford Athletics — Jim Pollard