The RoundHouse | 11/27/2018 12:07:00 PM

John Criss remembers Dave Stallworth singing "Baby Love" by The Supremes, a song that went to No. 1 on the pop charts in the fall of 1964, the same time the Shockers headed toward the top of the national basketball rankings.
 
"He would start that melody, and he would smile from ear to ear," Criss said. "He was like the rest of us – we couldn't sing, but we thought we could."
 
The Dave Stallworth statue arrived Tuesday from the foundry in Colorado, traveling through the snow and ice, to Wichita for Saturday's 11 a.m. unveiling outside Koch Arena. The Shockers play Baylor at 7 p.m. Saturday, and Stallworth's teammates will be recognized at halftime.
 
The statue and fund-raising are final tributes from his teammates – and fans of the 1960's era teams – to ensure Stallworth's contributions to the university and community are remembered. With Stallworth leading the way, the Shockers won their first Missouri Valley Conference title and made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1964. They became a regular in the national rankings and packed fans into what was then known as the WU Fieldhouse.
 
The Shockers won a lot of games in those days and that's important. 
 
Stallworth, a 6-foot-7 forward from Dallas, earned All-American honors in 1963, 1964 and 1965. Voters put the Shockers No. 1 in the national polls on Dec. 15, 1964, their one and only week in that spot. The Shockers advanced to their first Final Four in 1965, a season in which Stallworth played 16 games before exhausting his eligibility in late January.
 
It is also important to members of the team that fans know more about Stallworth off the court. That part of the Stallworth story is a significant part of the impetus behind the project.
 
"Dave was all about 'the others' and winning," teammate Dave Leach said. "Not once did I hear him brag about himself. He approached each individual as an equal, no matter your position on the team or station in life. As a result, we all felt the need to live up to his example which made us better players and better teammates."
 
In those days, freshmen were ineligible by NCAA rule, which made sophomores the ones tasked with odd jobs. The routine told them to carry the upperclassmen's baggage from the cab to the hotel on road trips. Stallworth, already the team's leading scorer, helped the sophomores.
 
"He would carry his own, or give you a hand," Criss said. "He's just one of the guys."
 
Manny Zafiros met Stallworth on his second day in Wichita; Zafiros a little-known freshman from New York and Stallworth a Shocker star. Stallworth invited Zafiros to play pickup basketball. 
 
"It made me feel great," Zafiros said. "He embraced me. His graciousness - he was a special guy."
 
Teammate Vernon Smith describes Stallworth as a great teammate and friend because of his wit and humility.
 
"His smile and his gentle ways were at the top of his personality," Smith said.
 
Stallworth's basketball contributions rank atop Wichita State's list, recognized by his No. 42 jersey in the Koch Arena rafters and his place on the Missouri Valley Conference's 1997 inaugural Hall of Fame class, alongside Larry Bird, Oscar Robertson, Wes Unseld, Ed Macauley, Hersey Hawkins and coach Henry Iba.
 
Stallworth earned star status without acting like a star.
 
"I never saw him force a shot," Criss said. "He would take the shots as they came. A teammate was always open. Some of these All-Americans, they hog the ball. He was a team player all the way."
 
Stallworth by the numbers
 
1,936 – Career points, ranking No. 3 in Wichita State history
 
24.2 – Career scoring average, No. 1 in Wichita State history
 
46 – Points scored in a 65-64 win over No. 1 Cincinnati
 
40 – Points scored in his final game, a win over Louisville on Jan. 30, 1965
 
24 – Career high rebounds in a 1964 NCAA Tournament win over Creighton
 
12.6 – Rookie scoring average with the New York Knicks in 1965-66
 
10.5 – Career rebound average, No. 6 on Wichita State's list
 
8 – NBA seasons with the New York Knicks and Baltimore/Capital Bullets
 
3 – Drafted third overall by the New York Knicks in 1965, four spots ahead of Shocker teammate Nate Bowman (Cincinnati Royals)
 
2 – Consensus All-American honors in 1964 (first team) and 1965 (second team)
 
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.