Les Anderson (2006) - Hall of Fame - George Washington University Athletics

Les Anderson

Induction:
2006
Class:
1978

Leslie M. Anderson, who won four letters in men's basketball at GW between 1974-78, currently ranks 16th on the University's all-time leading scoring list (1,377 points) and eighth on the rebounding list (816). A 6-foot-5 forward, his exciting aerial displays led to his appropriate nickname of 'High Rise'.

Anderson played on teams which posted a 66-40 record during his four seasons, including a 20-7 mark in 1975-76, the opening campaign at the Charles E. Smith Athletic Center some 30 years ago. He led the squad in rebounding in back-to-back seasons (8.5 in '76 and 9.2 in '77).

As a senior in '78, he shared team MVP honors with 6-10 center Mike Zagardo, a member of the GW Athletic Hall of Fame, and several months later was drafted by the Boston Celtics. (That was the same draft in which the Celtics selected a junior-eligible player named Larry Bird.)

The 11th GW men's basketball player to be elected to the University's Athletic Hall of Fame, Anderson went on to a distinguished military career of more than 20 years as a recruiter for the U.S. Army, for which he retired as a First Sergeant in 2005.

A native of Washington, D.C., Anderson, attended Bell High School in the District and graduated from Laurinburg Prep in North Carolina in 1974. As an Army recruiter, he was assigned to recruiting stations in Fort Worth, Boston, Richmond and Lakehurst, N.J., during his military career. Anderson and his wife, Francine, have three children: Britney, Leslee and Jerran.