Paul Arizin

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Paul Arizin
No. 11
Forward / Guard
Personal information
Date of birth April 9, 1928(1928-04-09)
Place of birth Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Nationality American
Date of death December 12, 2006(2006-12-12) (aged 78)
Place of death Springfield, Pennsylvania
High school La Salle
Listed height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight 190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
College Villanova (1947–1950)
NBA Draft 1950 / Pick: Territorial
Selected by the Philadelphia Warriors
Pro career 1950–1965
Career history
1950–1962 Philadelphia Warriors
1962–1965 Camden Bullets (EPBL)
Career highlights and awards
Career statistics
Points 16,266 (22.8 ppg)
Rebounds 6,129 (8.6 rpg)
Assists 1,665 (2.3 apg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Basketball Hall of Fame as player

Paul Joseph Arizin (April 9, 1928 – December 12, 2006), nicknamed "Pitchin' Paul," was an American basketball player who spent his entire National Basketball Association career with the Philadelphia Warriors from 1950 to 1962. He retired with the third highest career point total (16,266) in NBA history, and was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History upon its 50th anniversary in 1996. He was a high-scoring forward at Villanova University before being drafted by the Warriors of the fledgling NBA.

Contents

[edit] Biography

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Arizin did not play basketball at La Salle College High School, failing to make the team in his only tryout as a senior. Arizin graduated just a year before another NBA hall of famer, Tom Gola, entered La Salle College High School as a freshman.

During his freshmen year at Villanova, Arizin played CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) basketball in Philadelphia. Late in that season, Al Severance, the then Villanova varsity basketball coach, attended one of Arizin's CYO games. Afterwards, Severance approached Arizin and asked, "How would you like to go to Villanova?" His answer: "I go to Villanova."

Arizin then made the team in his sophomore year. And, for the next three years he progressed so rapidly that in 1950 he was named the college basketball collegiate player of the year after leading the nation with 25.3 points per game. During a game on 01949-02-12 February 12, 1949, Azirin scored 85 points against the Naval Air Materials Center roster. Purportedly, Arizin also scored at least one hundred points in a game while playing for Villanova, but the game is not recognized by the NCAA because the opponent was a junior college.[1][2]

[edit] NBA

After being selected by the Warriors with their first pick in the 1950 NBA Draft, Arizin averaged 17.2 points per game in his rookie season and was named NBA Rookie of the Year — a designation not currently sanctioned by the NBA for the 1950-51 season. He was the league scoring champion during the 1951–52 and 1956–57 seasons, and became one of the greatest NBA players of the 1950s. He sat out the 1952–53 and 1953–54 NBA seasons due to military service in the Marines during the Korean War.[3]

He became famous for his line-drive jump shots, and teamed with center Neil Johnston to form the best offensive one-two punch in the NBA at the time, leading the Warriors to the 1956 NBA title. He also played with scoring star Joe Fulks early in his career, and with Philadelphia legends Tom Gola and Wilt Chamberlain toward the end of his career in the early 1960s. Arizin chose to retire from the NBA rather than move with the Warriors to San Francisco. At the time of his retirement, no player had retired from the game with a higher scoring average (21.9 points per game) in his final season. This record would stand until Bob Pettit's retirement in 1965 following a season in which he averaged 22.5 PPG.

After retiring from the NBA, Arizin played for three seasons with the Camden Bullets of the Eastern Professional Basketball League, winning the 1964 title.

Arizin played in 10 NBA All-Star Games (he was the 1952 NBA All-Star Game MVP) and was named to the All-NBA First-Team in 1952, 1956, and 1957. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978.[4] He was inducted into the inaugural class of the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.[5] He died in his sleep at age 78 on December 12, 2006, in Springfield, Pennsylvania.[6]

[edit] See also

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Portal icon United States Marine Corps portal

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ "The Night of the Century". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/sports/year_in_sports/03.02.html. Retrieved December 9, 2010. 
  2. ^ Wolfley, Bob (March 1, 1987). "THE GAME and Wilt still loom large" (PDF). The Milwaukee Journal. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VGMaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lSoEAAAAIBAJ&dq=paul%20arizin%20100%20points%20junior%20college&pg=6984%2C158430. Retrieved December 9, 2010. 
  3. ^ "Paul Arizin Bio". NBA.com. http://www.nba.com/history/players/arizin_bio.html. Retrieved 2007-06-15. 
  4. ^ "Hall of Famers". Basketball Hall of Fame. http://www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/tag/paul-j-arizin. Retrieved 2009-08-02. 
  5. ^ "Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame Inductees". http://www.phillyhall.org/inductees.asp. Retrieved 3 August 2009. 
  6. ^ NBA Hall of Famer Arizin dies at 78

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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