General

In Their Own Words: Yale Legend of Ivy League Basketball John J. Lee

By Roger Lee, son of John J. Lee, Yale ‘58
 
IvyLeague.com: Why did John choose to attend an Ivy League institution?
Roger Lee: He was committed to getting the best education possible. His parents were immigrants from Ireland and Germany and they prioritized his education above all else. Although he was drafted by the New York Knicks in 1958, he returned to Yale to get his graduate degree in chemical engineering. His basketball career was an afterthought!
 
IvyLeague.com: How did John’s Ivy League experience help prepare him for his career?
Roger: My dad would say that his success was entirely due to his Yale education. He learned how to think logically and creatively, how to communicate effectively, and how to lead others. Everything he accomplished professionally was a function of his Yale experience.
 
IvyLeague.com: How did John feel an Ivy League experience differs from other schools?
Roger: Because he and his parents prioritized his education, he optimized for the best school possible despite receiving scholarship offers from many other schools.
 
IvyLeague.com: What accomplishment during John’s time at Yale was he most proud of/had the most significance to him?
Roger: During his junior year, he led the team to the NCAA Tournament and was profiled on the cover of Sports Illustrated as “The Next Great Scholar Athlete.”
 
IvyLeague.com: What accomplishment after John’s time at Yale was he most proud of/had the most significance to him?
Roger: He was most proud to have the Yale basketball arena – The John J Lee Amphitheater – named after him.
 
IvyLeague.com: What was John’s most memorable experience from his time in the Ivy League?
Roger: I think it was playing the University of North Carolina in the first round of the NCAA Tournament during his junior year. He had been very sick the prior week but he was able to play. UNC had offered him a scholarship and he knew many of the players on the team as they all grew up playing together in New York City. He played very well and it was a tight game but Yale ultimately lost. UNC went on to win the national championship but the game against Yale remained one of their toughest matches in the tournament.
 
IvyLeague.com: Is there another Ivy League school that John most enjoyed traveling to and why?
Roger: I think it was Harvard, given the rivalry between the two schools. He holds the Yale record for points in an Ivy game from when he scored 41 against Harvard on March 10, 1956.
 
IvyLeague.com: How did the Ivy League community impact John’s life or career?
Roger: It was immeasurable. Honestly, it would be hard to overstate the impact the Yale experience had on his life. He had some of his greatest memories and made some of his best friends at Yale. He then spent the rest of his life paying back that debt of gratitude.
 
IvyLeague.com: How did John stay involved with Yale after his undergraduate career?
Roger: He spent most of his life giving back to Yale, because of the amazing experience he had there as a student-athlete. Whenever the university called, he gladly answered with an emphatic ‘yes.’ He held many positions with various committees at Yale, including the Board of Trustees, Board of the Investment Office, Head of the Yale Campaign (which raised nearly two billion dollars), head of the Science and Engineering Fundraising Committee, Head of his Class for multiple reunions, as well as various programs associated with Yale athletics.
John J. Lee was a Yale men's basketball student-athlete from 1954-58. He is a member of the 2019 Class of Legends of Ivy League Basketball that will be formally honored during the 2019 Ivy League Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments on Saturday, March 16, at the John J. Lee Amphitheater in New Haven, Conn. Purchase tickets at IvyMadness.com.