John Hersey and Thornton Wilder had the skills to play basketball or write/novel?
John Hersey John Richard Hersey (June 17, 1914 – March 24, 1993) was an American writer and journalist. He is considered one of the earliest practitioners of the so-called New Journalism, in which storytelling techniques of fiction are adapted to non-fiction reportage. Hersey's account of the aftermath of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, was adjudged the finest piece of American journalism of the 20th century by a 36-member panel associated with New York University's journalism department.
Tom Marshall (basketball) John Thomas "Tom" Marshall (born January 6, 1931) is an American former basketball player and coach. He graduated from Mount Juliet High School in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. He was a star at Western Kentucky University in the 1950s, where he was a two-time All-American. His number 41 is one of only six retired at Western Kentucky. He was named to the OVC Half-Century Team and the OVC 40th Anniversary team. A 6'4" forward, he was drafted by the Rochester Royals with the seventh pick of the 1954 NBA draft. After a promising rookie season, he was drafted into the Army and missed the 1955–56 season. In a four-year NBA career, he played for the Royals (in both Rochester and Cincinnati), as well as for the Detroit Pistons. In his final year as a player (1958–59) he served as a player-coach; then coached the Cincinnati Royals for one additional season (1959–60) after retiring from playing. The Royals would eventually become the Sacramento Kings many years after his retirement.