Don Kojis, original San Diego Rockets player, dies at 82

Don Kojis, an original member of the San Diego Rockets who was also the NBA franchise’s first All-Star, has died. He was 82.

Kojis, who had recently been diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer, died early Friday morning at his San Diego home.

An NBA All-Star in two of his three seasons with the Rockets, Kojis made San Diego his permanent home toward the end of his playing career. After his 12-season NBA career ended, Kojis in 1978 co-founded, with Dr. Jerry Tisi, and physically helped build the Whispering Winds Catholic Camp between Lake Cuyamaca and Julian off State Route 79.

“Dad could have parlayed his NBA career into coaching or a front office position,” his son Matt said Monday. “But he felt a calling to build this special place where people could get away. He made this extraordinary pivot from the NBA to devoting his heart and soul into the camp.

“Whispering Winds was his life’s masterpiece … that and his grandkids.”

Kojis is survived by his wife of 52 years, Maureen, three sons (Dan and twins Matt and Mike) and seven grandkids. Services are pending.

Donald Kojis was born in Milwaukee, Wis., and was a two-time All-American at hometown Marquette University where he twice earned All-American honors despite playing center at 6-foot-5. He still holds the Marquette record for career rebounds.

Although he was chosen in the second round (12th overall pick) of the 1961 draft by the Chicago Packers of the NBA, Kojis didn’t start his NBA career until the 1963-64 season, joining the Baltimore Bullets after serving as the captain of the U.S. team in the 1963 Pan-Am and World Games.

“When I was drafted the league had nine teams and 99 players,” Kojis told the San Diego Union-Tribune in 2013.

Kojis spent his first two years out of college working in the marketing department and playing for the Phillips Petroleum 66ers of the National Industrial Basketball League. It was while with the 66ers that Kojis and teammate Charlie Bowerman mastered the play that became known as the alley-oop.

Kojis made his NBA debut with the Baltimore Bullets and also played for the Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls before being selected in the stocking draft for the new NBA Rockets in 1967. He is one of three players in NBA history to be selected in back-to-back expansion drafts.

Playing small forward, Kojis averaged 19.6 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game over three seasons with the Rockets. He made the NBA West All-Star team in the 1967-68 and 1968-69 seasons.

Small for his position even in his day, Kojis gained respect for both his physical brand of basketball on defense and when rebounding, as well as a deadly, high-arc, mid-range jumper on offense — a shot he mastered while playing center at Marquette against much taller opponents.

After taking a break from basketball following the end of his NBA career in 1975, Kojis played in San Diego recreation leagues and in pickup games until his early 60s.

“He was wiry strong,” said Matt. “He was not physically huge … definitely an under-sized forward. I’ve seen pictures of him battling much larger players. He always had a lot of hustle, even when he played his kids.

“He was kind of unusual as a player. He could jump really well. And he had really sharp elbows and he used them … he even used them on his kids when we were playing. He was relentless when he played basketball. And he never saw a shot he didn’t like. He loved playing basketball.”

Kojis played for six NBA teams, scoring 9,948 points with 4,555 rebounds in 814 games.

“What has always struck me most about my dad is the pivot he made,” said Matt, “going from his NBA career and hob-knobbing with the elite, to starting and devoting himself to the camp and the community. He never forgot his roots and values. When he started the camp, it was extreme boot-strapping. He raised funds, sawed and hammered.”

Over the years, Whispering Winds grew to host 11,000 people annually with 85 percent being youth.

“He was devoted to Whispering Winds, the community and people,” said Paula Bott, director of marketing and programs at Whispering Winds.

“He put a lot of physical labor into camp. Don is a great example for people. Whispering Winds is a testament to his character. He’d share stories with people, but he was never arrogant about what he had done.”

In 2013, Kojis was given the Ernie Wright Humanitarian Award at the Breitbard Salute to Champions for co-founding and helping build Whispering Winds.

Center is a freelance writer.