Charles "Chico" Vaughn (February 19, 1940 – October 25, 2013) was an American
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
player. At 6'2", he played the
guard
Guard or guards may refer to:
Professional occupations
* Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault
* Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street
* Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning
* Prison ...
position.
Vaughn is the highest scorer in
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
high school boys basketball, tallying 3,358 points during his career at Egyptian High School in
Tamms, Illinois (1954–1958). He was born in nearby
Hodges Park, Illinois, then moved with his family to
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
before returning to Tamms at age 7.
Vaughn also is the all-time leading scorer for
Southern Illinois
Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern United States, Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of th ...
, where he scored 2,088 points for the Salukis and had his uniform number (20) retired by the school. He had an unorthodox behind the head release that made his shot difficult to block.
After leaving college, Vaughn played five seasons (1962–67) in the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
as a member of the
St. Louis Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...
and
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...
. He joined the rival
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major men's professional basketball league from 1967 to 1976. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger, American Basketball Association–National Basketball Association merger in 1976, ...
in 1967 and played three seasons there as a member of the
Pittsburgh/Minnesota Pipers. Vaughn was the fourth leading scorer (19.9 points per game) on the 1967–68 Pipers team which won the
1968 ABA Championship.
Vaughn returned to SIU to obtain his college diploma in 1988.
He died on October 26, 2013 of cancer at the age of 73.
References
External links
Career statistics
1940 births
2013 deaths
American men's basketball players
Basketball players from Portland, Oregon
Detroit Pistons players
Minnesota Pipers players
Pittsburgh Pipers players
Point guards
San Diego Rockets expansion draft picks
Shooting guards
Southern Illinois Salukis men's basketball players
St. Louis Hawks draft picks
St. Louis Hawks players
{{1940s-US-basketball-bio-stub