Lars Erik Hansen (born September 27, 1954) is a former Danish Canadian basketball center in the National Basketball Association for the Seattle SuperSonics. He also was a member of the Cinzano Milano, Eldorado Roma, OAR Ferrol and FC Barcelona Bàsquet in Europe. He played college basketball at the University of Washington. Early years Hansen was born in Copenhagen, Denmark. In 1956, two years after his birth, his family settled in Coquitlam, British Columbia. He later became a basketball star at Centennial Secondary School. In 1971, he led the team to the B.C. High School Boys' provincial semifinals, losing to Vancouver College. In 1972, the team won the B.C. Provincial title, while he received AAA Provincial tournament MVP honors for the second straight year and the Vic Andrews Award winner as the B.C. High School Athlete of the year. He also practiced baseball as a pitcher. Hansen contributed to the Canada men's national basketball team finishing in eighth-place at the 1974 FIBA World Championship, for the first time in twenty years. He participated in the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, helping Canada to a fourth place finish. In 2006, he was inducted into the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame. In 2014, he was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame. College career Hansen accepted a basketball scholarship from the University of Washington. As a freshman in the 1972-73 season, he was named the starter at center, averaging 7.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per contest. As a sophomore in the 1973-74 season, with the arrival of center James Edwards, he had a backup role. He also missed 5 games with a chipped bone in his wrist. He posted 6.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. As a junior in the 1974-75 season, he was moved to a sixth man role from the bench, averaging 10.3 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. As a senior in the 1975-76 season, he was named the starter at power forward, averaging 14.2 points (third on the team) and 7.5 rebounds (led the team) per game. He also contributed to the team having a 22-6 record, qualifying for the school's first NCAA basketball tournament appearance since 1953 and finishing the regular season ranked No. 11. This was also the last team to defeat (103-81) a John Wooden squad, as the legendary coach would retire after the season, having won his 10th National Championship. Hansen appeared in