INDIANAPOLIS — Former WTHR sportscaster and Indiana Pacer Jerry Harkness has died at 81 years old.
Jerry's son, Jerald, shared the news on Facebook Tuesday morning and said, "We were great at enjoying life together. I’m so proud of all the lives you touched. How lucky am I to be your son."
Harkness and the Loyola University Chicago Ramblers won the NCAA Championship in 1963.
RELATED: KRAVITZ: Loyola legend Jerry Harkness is reveling in his alma mater's unlikely Final Four appearance
He was then drafted by the New York Knicks in the second round of the NBA draft later that year.
Harkness played one season for the Knicks before playing two seasons for the Indiana Pacers in the American Basketball Association from 1967-1969.
According to the Pacers, Harkness achieved many career milestones outside of basketball, such as becoming the first Black salesman for Quaker Oats, the first Black fundraiser for United Way, the state's first Black sportscaster at WTHR — formerly WLWI — and one of the founders of the 100 Black Men mentoring organization.
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