Best Gonzaga basketball players: All-time starting lineup

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 30: Head coach Mark Few of the Gonzaga Bulldogs reacts during the second half of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament West Regional game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Honda Center on March 30, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

3 of 5

3. G Frank Burgess (1958-1961)

The journey of Frank Burgess is truly a remarkable one, and his time at Gonzaga is just a small part of it. Burgess actually began his collegiate career at Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 1953, spending a year there before joining the Air Force.

After spending four years in the Air Force, Burgess returned to the United States and began his career at Gonzaga after being referred to the school by one of his colleagues in the Air Force who was a Bulldogs’ alum. In just three years, Burgess became a scoring machine for Gonzaga, leading the team in scoring average each season and setting numerous records in the process.

Burgess actually led the entire country in scoring as a senior, averaging 32.4 points per game, including a career-high 52-point explosion against UC Davis. That mark still stands as the most points scored in a game by a single player in school history, and Burgess set school records for points scored and scoring average that still stand.

After finishing his career as a second-team All-American, Burgess was selected in the third round of the NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. Burgess didn’t go to the NBA, however, playing for the Hawaii Chiefs in the American Basketball League for two seasons before the league folded.

Instead of going to the NBA, Burgess began a distinguished legal career that culminated with him being appointed a United States District Court Judge in the state of Washington by President Clinton. Burgess’ number 44 has been retired by the school, but his legacy off the court is even stronger than the one Burgess left on it.