Joseph W. Graboski (January 15, 1930 – July 2, 1998) 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. He spent 13 seasons 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 ...

(NBA). He was the third player to enter the NBA without having played in

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

: (

Tony Kappen Anthony George Kappen (April 13, 1919 – December 18, 1993) was an American professional basketball player. A 5'10" guard who did not attend college and had previously attended Forest Hills High School in Queens, Kappen played for the Bosto ...

and

Connie Simmons Cornelius Leo "Connie" Simmons (March 15, 1925 – April 15, 1989) was an American professional basketball player. He was born in Newark, New Jersey. A 6'8" forward/center from Flushing High School in New York City, Simmons played ten seasons (19 ...

being the first two

prep-to-pro The NBA high school draftees are players who have been drafted to the National Basketball Association (NBA) straight out of high school. The process of jumping directly from high school to the professional level is also known as going prep-to-pro. S ...

players). He was also the second player to play in the league while still being 18 years old. A star at

Tuley High School Roberto Clemente Community Academy (commonly known as Clemente, Roberto Clemente High School) is a public 4–year high school located in the West Town community area of Chicago, Illinois. Operated by the Chicago Public Schools, the school is n ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, the 6'7"

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers. When on Of ...

had previously played some basketball with the

Philadelphia Sphas The Philadelphia Sphas, also stylized SPHAs or SPHAS, were an American basketball franchise that existed in professional, semi-professional, and exhibition forms. They played their home games in the ballroom of Philadelphia's Broadwood Hotel. The ...

while he was a high school junior and senior before he began his professional career with the hometown

Chicago Stags The Chicago Stags were a National Basketball Association team based in Chicago from 1946 to 1950. History 1946–47 season In the BAA's inaugural year, the Chicago Stags were placed in the Western Division, and after 60 games were tied with the ...

, with whom he played from 1949 to 1950. He also played for the

Indianapolis Olympians The Indianapolis Olympians were a founding National Basketball Association (NBA) team based in Indianapolis. They were founded in 1949 and folded in 1953. Their home arena was Butler Fieldhouse on the campus of Butler University--now known as Hin ...

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 ...

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

Chicago Packers The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

, and he left the NBA in 1962 with 9,398 career points and 6,104 career

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

BAA/NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

1930 births 1998 deaths American people of Slavic descent American men's basketball players Basketball players from Chicago Camden Bullets players Chicago Packers players Chicago Stags players Indianapolis Olympians players Philadelphia Warriors players Power forwards (basketball) St. Louis Hawks players Syracuse Nationals players {{1930s-US-basketball-bio-stub