George W. Kok was born in Grand Rapids in 1922 and grew to 6-foot-11. He understandably starred in basketball at Ottawa Hills High School and then at the University of Arkansas.
Due to a shortage of players at the end of World War II, Kok was allowed to play four full years for Arkansas as opposed to three years of eligibility, which was the norm at the time. He dominated and averaged 18.7 points per game as a freshman in 1944-45 and led Arkansas to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament.
He left Arkansas as the all-time leading scorer and the first player to score more than 1,000 points in his career. His career scoring total was not surpassed for 30 years. He earned All-America honors twice and was All-Southwest Conference three times.
He was the second pick in the 1948 BAA draft by the Indianapolis Jets, but never played in the league that was the predecessor of today's NBA. He did play one year in what was then known as the American Basketball League.
He went into education and taught for 24 years at Pleasure Ridge Park High School in Louisville, Ky., where he was the school’s first athletic director. He is also a member of the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame and the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor. He died in 2013 at the age of 91.