Eric Lamont Crookshank (born November 13, 1978) is 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 who last played for the

Saint John Mill Rats The Saint John Riptide were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Saint John, New Brunswick, that had home games at Harbour Station. They were a member of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada) in the Atlantic Division. ...

of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). He was previously known as one of the most prominent members of the Halifax Rainmen, who played in the Canadian league as well as the Premier Basketball League (PBL) and the

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, ...

(ABA). After announcing retirement in 2012 with the Rainmen, he became the first NBL Canada player to have his jersey retired. However, he returned to the league in 2013, when he started competing for the Mill Rats. Since joining the Rainmen, Crookshank is often nicknamed "Air Canada" due to his

slam dunk A slam dunk, also simply known as dunk, is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air, controls the ball above the horizontal plane of the rim, and scores by shoving the ball directly through the basket with one ...

ing capabilities.

Early life

Crookshank was born on November 13, 1978, at the

Alta Bates Hospital Sutter Health Alta Bates Summit Medical Center is located in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its three hospital campuses are located in Berkeley (Alta Bates Campus, Herrick Campus) and Oakland (Summit Campus). Alta Bates Summit is a non ...

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. His father was the leader of a local gang and a part-time

streetball Streetball (or street basketball) is a variation of basketball, typically played on outdoor courts and featuring significantly less formal structure and enforcement of the game's rules. As such, its format is more conducive to allowing players ...

player. He has formerly played

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at Lake Marriott University in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. Despite this, Eric admired his father because of his vengeance, confidence, control, and passion. In his autobiography, he said that he looked up to him "like he was the president." He lived with his younger sister Shirley and his mother, who was a drug addict. He also had an older brother that had problems with depression. Eric's mother died from

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...

in 2008, an event that would profoundly affect his personal life.

Professional career

Two years after graduating from

Cal State Dominguez Hills California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH, CSU Dominguez Hills, or Cal State Dominguez Hills) is a public university in Carson, California. It was founded in 1960 and is part of the California State University (CSU) system. In 2020, ...

, in 2007, Crookshank signed a professional contract with the Halifax Rainmen of the

(ABA). He immediately improved the team, averaging 20.5 points per game and earning All-Star honors. Crookshank instantly became well known around the city of

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...

. He was considered a fan favorite and led the Rainmen in scoring in his first season with the team. However, on January 14, 2009, after Halifax moved to the Premier Basketball League (PBL), Crookshank was suspended for the season after criticizing team head coach Rick Lewis in the public after he had to play off the bench. The

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

later said, "I was very arrogant. It was me first and whoever second. I didn’t care about anybody but myself." Rainmen owner

Andre Levingston Andre Levingston is an American entrepreneur and basketball coach. He was formerly an auto detailer and schoolteacher. He is a co-founder of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL) and most recently served as the owner and president of th ...

said Crookshank would later "thank him for it." The suspended player remarked, "I lost my mother and this is probably the second worst thing that has happened to me in my life. But life goes on." Despite this, he could attend his team's games and was paid. Off the court, he took part in community service and began speaking to children at schools about responsibility. Crookshank decided to return to the same team once he was reinstated and started playing under a new coach Les Berry. He was named PBL Defensive Player of the year by the end of the season and finished second in Most Valuable Player (MVP) voting. In 19 games, he averaged 14.5 points, 13.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks.

References

External links

FIBA.com profileUSBasket.com profileEric Crookshank
at RealGM {{DEFAULTSORT:Crookshank, Eric 1978 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American men's basketball players Basketball players from Berkeley, California Cal State Dominguez Hills Toros men's basketball players Chabot Gladiators men's basketball players Saint John Mill Rats players Forwards (basketball)