Francis Patrick "Chink" Crossin Jr. (July 4, 1923 – January 10, 1981) was an American professional

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."Chink Crossin Stats"
Basketball Reference. Retrieved on June 3, 2017. He earned his nickname from the sound that the chain-link nets made when his shots dropped through.Zeitlin, Dave
"Common Bonds"
Penn Gazette. June 30, 2010. Retrieved on June 3, 2017. During his high school basketball career at Luzerne High School in

Luzerne, Pennsylvania Luzerne is a borough located north of Wilkes Barre in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,703 at the time of the 2020 census. History The community was first settled in 1807. It was later incorporated as a boroug ...

, Crossin averaged 24 points per game, and led all Pennsylvania high school players in scoring in 1941. He played basketball at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

in the 1942–43 and 1943–44 seasons before serving in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

with the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

for two years. Crossin returned to Penn for the 1946–47 season. After the end of his college career, Crossin was selected with the 6th pick in the inaugural

1947 BAA draft The 1947 BAA draft was the 1st draft of the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which later became the National Basketball Association (NBA). The fledgling BAA held a joint draft with the established National Basketball League (NBL). Both le ...

by the

Philadelphia Warriors The history of the Golden State Warriors began in Philadelphia in 1946. In 1962, the franchise was relocated to San Francisco, California and became known as the San Francisco Warriors until 1971, when its name was changed to the current Golden St ...

. In three seasons with the team, Crossin averaged 4.7 points and 1.5 assists per game. Crossin played five seasons in the

Eastern Professional Basketball League The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) (originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association) was a men's professional basketball mi ...

(EPBL) from 1950 to 1955 for the Pottsville Pros/Packers, Wilkes-Barre Aces, Williamsport Billies, Berwick Carbuilders, Hazleton Pros and Sunbury Mercuries. He was named the EPBL Most Valuable Player in 1952 and was a two-time All-EPBL First Team selection.

BAA/NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crossin, Chink 1923 births 1981 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American Basketball League (1925–1955) players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Pennsylvania Guards (basketball) Penn Quakers men's basketball players Philadelphia Warriors draft picks Philadelphia Warriors players United States Navy personnel of World War II