The 1950s in the NBA is a foggy period for nowadays NBA fan. It was just too long ago.
The game wasn’t that great back then you would say. Yes. Maybe so, but nevertheless
the 1950s also was an important period in the development of basketball.
For most NBA fans the 1950s, at least the end of the 1950s associate with the start
of the legendary Boston Celtics and Bill Russell dynasty. But that was at the end of the 50s.
As always, I love NBA history, so I want to dig deeper.
Hello everyone. I’m PRPLPRNCH and today I want to tell you about the REAL legend of
the 1950s, the first official NBA draft pick, the pioneer of a jumpshot and the first real
NBA Superstar - Paul Arizin.
Paul Arizin was born on April 9th, 1928 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Arizin’s first crack at basketball wasn’t a lucky one. His highschool coach didn’t
think he was good enough, and he failed to make La Salle College High School team as
a senior. Arizins love for basketball couldn’t be stopped. Paul Arizin went on to play for
church and independent leagues, competing in gyms and halls through the whole city.
During this time Arizin would discover a key element that would revolutionize the game
of basketball - a jump shot.
"It came by accident. Some of our games were played on dance floors. It became quite slippery.
When I tried to hook, my feet would go out from under me, so I jumped. I was always a
good jumper. My feet weren't on the floor, so I didn't have to worry about slipping.
The more I did it, the better I became. Before I knew it, practically all my shots were jump
shots."
After highschool Paul Arizin made the Villanova college basketball team in 1947 and had 3
great years there. In 1950 Paul Arizin was named the collegiate basketball player of
the year carrying an average of 25.3 points a game. His official career high in points
though was 85 points he scored against Naval Air Materials Center roster. It is reported,
that Paul Arizin also scored at least a 100 points in a game, but that game was not recognized
by NCAA since it was against a junior college.
Eventually his number 11 was retired in Villanova.
In 1950 Arizin won a bunch of awards - Helms Foundation Player of the year, Sporting News
Player of the year, Consensus first team All American and he was the NCAA division 1 scoring
leader. His impressive resume was recognized by the Philadelphia Warriors who drafted Paul
Arizin.
1950 was the year the basketball association of America previously known as BAA was rebranded
as NBA and Paul Arizin was the first official NBA draft pick. Territorial, but still the
first.
In his first year, as a rookie, Paul Arizin averaged 17.2 points and 9.8 rebounds and
by his second year, Paul Arizin was already leading the Philadelphia Warriors and the
NBA in scoring averaging 25.4 points, 11.3 rebounds in 44.5 minutes of action.
But the most important thing wasn’t his impressive stats. In the late 1940s basketball
was still in an era of old-fashioned two-handed set shots and slow-up offenses. Paul Arizin
introduced the NBA to a modern basketball. Paul Arizin pretty much showed that there
is such a thing as a jump shot and by the 1952 a few people started to include the jumpshot
into their offensive repertoire.
After 2 years in the NBA, Paul Arizin missed 2 seasons because of the military service
in U. S. Marine corps. In those two seasons without Paul Arizin, the Philadelphia Warriors
had awful records of 12-57 and 29-43.
Arizin returned to the NBA for the 1954-55 season and his skills weren’t gone. Arizin
was second in the league in scoring averaging 21 points and 9.4 rebounds and he was once
again making NBA All-Star teams. In the 1955-56 season Paul Arizin was unbelievable and not
only him, Philadelphia Warriors finally had a great team around him.
Neil Johnston, Jack George, Tom Gola and Joe Graboski were all also averaging double digit
points and in total 4 Warriors were placed in the league’s top 20 in scoring. Philadelphia
Warriors finished the regular season with a 45-27 record and went all the way to the
NBA finals, where they defeated Fort Wayne Pistons 4 to 1 in the series and Phialdelphia
Warriors were NBA champions now. There wasn’t an NBA Finals MVP award at that time, but
I’m sure Paul Arizin would’ve won one.
Fresh off winning the NBA championship Paul Arizin once again led the league in scoring
for the 1956-57 season averaging 25.6 points and 7.9 rebounds. The team was worse, as they
were missing key players who were missing seasons because of serving in the U. .S military.
With a 37-35 record, the Warriors made the playoffs but were swept in the first round.
And this was the year the Boston Celtics dominance started.
Paul Arizin got some big help for the 1959-60 season when Wilt Chamberlain joined the Philadelphia
Warriors forming one of the best offenses in the league, but every time the superiority
of Boston Celtics came through.
In his final 1961-62 NBA season, Paul Arizin averaged 21.9 points and 6.8 rebounds. He
was still a very good player, but decided to retire at the age of 34.
In his NBA career, Paul Arizin played 713 games, all for the Philadelphia Warriors and
had an averages of 22.8 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists.
After retiring from the NBA Arizin didn’t leave professional basketball for 3 more years.
He played in the Eastern professional Basketball League for the Camden Bullets averaging more
than 20 points per game each season and winning the championship in 1964.
In 1970, Paul Arizin was named to the NBA Silver Anniversary team.
7 years later he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
and in 1996 Arizin was selected to the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.
The pioneer of a jumpshot, the first NBA superstar, the first real legend of the NBA - Paul Arizin.
Thanks for watching guys. Hope you enjoyed the video. What are your thoughts on Paul
Arizin and his NBA career? Would you put him in the top 50 greatest basketball players
of all time? What exactly was his impact on the NBA? Leave a comment below and express
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