James W. Cunningham (November 14, 1935 – December 17, 1991) was an American standout basketball player at Fordham University in the 1950s. A native of Buffalo, New York, Cunningham starred in both football and basketball at Canisius High School from 1950 to 1954. He enrolled at Fordham where he played for head coach Johnny Bach between 1955 and 1958 because college freshmen were ineligible to play varsity sports during this era. Standing 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) and weighing 190 lb (86 kg), Cunningham played the shooting guard position. In just three varsity seasons he scored a then-school record 1,744 points. In his senior season of 1957–58, Cunningham led the Rams to a berth in the National Invitation Tournament, where they advanced to the quarterfinals before losing to Dayton. Upon the conclu