Norman Grekin (June 22, 1930 – September 29, 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. After playing

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for La Salle Explorers, he went on to play for 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 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). Grekin was born in 1930 in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He started playing basketball at the age of 14. After attending

West Philadelphia High School West Philadelphia High School is a secondary school located in the West Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the intersection of 49th Street and Chestnut Street. History The original West Philadelphia High School (WPHS) building ...

, he went on to star at

La Salle College La Salle College (LSC) (, Demonym: Lasallian) is a boys' secondary school in Hong Kong. It was established in 1932 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, a Roman Catholic religious teaching order founded by St. John Bapti ...

from 1950 to 1953. Grekin led the Explorers to the

1952 National Invitation Tournament The 1952 National Invitation Tournament was the 1952 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. The 1952 tournament was won by La Salle University. Tom Gola and Norm Grekin were co-MVPs. Selected teams Below is a list of the 12 ...

championship and was named co-Most Valuable Player with his teammate, Tom Gola. It was the first time the honor was shared. In 1953, Grekin received honorable mention in All-American voting from

Newspaper Enterprise Association The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) is an editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1902. The oldest syndicate still in operation, the NEA was originally a secondary news ...

and

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...

. He left La Salle as the second-leading scorer in the school's history. He was inducted into the La Salle Hall of Athletes in 1967. Grekin was selected in the

1953 NBA draft The 1953 NBA draft was the seventh annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 24, 1953, before the 1953–54 season. In this draft, nine remaining NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college bas ...

by the

. He entered the

Marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

in September 1953, but he received a medical discharge after 10 days. He played in his only game for the Warriors on October 31, where he recorded one personal foul, before being waived in early November. According to Warriors coach

Eddie Gottlieb Edward Gottlieb (born Isadore Gottlieb; September 15, 1898 – December 7, 1979) was a Jewish-Ukrainian professional basketball coach and executive. Nicknamed "Mr. Basketball" and "The Mogul", he was the first coach and manager of the Philadelphi ...

, Grekin did not fit as a playmaker playing at

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 ...

. Following his brief NBA stint, he played two 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 ...

for the Pottsville Bolognas and the Sunbury Mercuries. Grekin died on September 29, 1981, at

Bryn Mawr Hospital Bryn Mawr Hospital, part of Main Line Health, is a 264-bed acute care hospital located in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1893, Bryn Mawr Hospital has been named among ''U.S. News & World Report’s'' Best Hospitals in the Philadelphia region ...

in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He was 51.

Career statistics

NBA

Source

Regular season

References

External links

Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame entry

Jews in Sports entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grekin, Norm 1930 births 1981 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball players from Philadelphia Jewish men's basketball players La Salle Explorers men's basketball players Philadelphia Warriors draft picks Philadelphia Warriors players Power forwards (basketball) Sunbury Mercuries players