Frank Sands Brian (May 1, 1923 – May 14, 2017) 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 court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player.

Life and career

A 6’1" guard from

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

, Brian signed with the

Anderson Packers The Anderson Packers, also known as the Anderson Duffey Packers and the Chief Anderson Meat Packers, were a professional basketball team based in Anderson, Indiana, in the 1940s and 1950s. The team was founded and owned by brothers Ike W. and Jo ...

of the National Basketball League in 1947. In 1949 the NBL and BAA merged to form the NBA. He scored 2,442 points in three seasons with the Packers, then joined the

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 ...

of the NBA when the Packers franchise folded following the 1949–1950 season. The Stags quickly traded Brian to the

Tri-Cities Blackhawks Tri-Cities most often refers to: *Tri-Cities, Tennessee, United States *Tri-Cities, Washington, United States Tri-City, Tricity or Tri-Cities may also refer to: Populated places Americas Canada *Tri-Cities (British Columbia), consisting of Co ...

, whom Brian represented as an

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...

in 1951. Brian also earned All-NBA Second Teams honors in 1951 after averaging 16.8 points, 3.9 assists and 3.6 rebounds. Frank Led Tri-Cities Blackhawks (now "Atlanta Hawks") in scoring in 1951.Frank was 5th in the League with his 1,144 points for the Blackhawks during 1951–1952 season. In May 1951, the Blackhawks traded Brian to the

Fort Wayne Pistons A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

for

Howie Schultz Howard Henry Schultz (July 3, 1922 – October 30, 2009), nicknamed "Stretch" and "Steeple", was an American baseball and basketball player from St. Paul, Minnesota. Schultz won an NBA title with the Minneapolis Lakers in 1952. Schultz played in ...

and Dick Mehen. Frank led Ft. Wayne Pistons (now "Detroit Pistons") in scoring in 1952 & 1953, ranking 6th in the league with 1,051 points during the 1951–52 season. Brian had five productive seasons with the Pistons, who went to the

NBA Championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

s in 1955 and 1956, and he retired in 1956 with 6,663 combined NBL/NBA career points. * Basketball All-American at LSU and 2-time All-Southeast Conference. * National All-AAU Basketball Team. * National Basketball League All-Rookie (1947) * 2-Time NBL All-Star (1948,1949) * Nicknamed "Flash" for being one of the League's fastest players. * NBA Basketball Pioneer...played in first 7 seasons of NBA history (1949–1956) * Played in first two NBA All-Star games (1951,1952) * All-NBA (1950,1951) * Led Tri-Cities Blackhawks (now "Atlanta Hawks") in scoring in 1951. * Was 5th in the League with his 1,144 points for the Blackhawks during 1951–1952 season. * Ranked 6th in the league with 1,051 points during the 1951–52 season with the Fort Wayne Pistons. * Led Ft. Wayne Pistons (now "Detroit Pistons") in scoring in 1952 & 1953. * Ranked in Top-6 in NBA in scoring for 3 consecutive seasons (1950,1951,1952) * Led NBA in Games Played in 1952 (66) * 2nd Best Free Throw Percentage in NBA in 1955 (85.1%) * Played in 1955 and 1956 NBA Championships. * Played in first NBA Championship Series of the Shot Clock Era (1955) * Scored 6,663 points in 10-year professional career. * Inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1986. * Inducted into the LSU Hall of Fame on September 13, 2013. Brian died on May 14, 2017 in Zachary, Louisiana, aged 94.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

Jimmy Smith, "Playing in the first NBA All-Star Game an unforgettable memory for 90-year-old Frank Brian of Zachary", nola.com, Feb. 11, 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brian, Frankie 1923 births 2017 deaths American men's basketball players Anderson Packers players Basketball players from Baton Rouge, Louisiana Fort Wayne Pistons players LSU Tigers basketball players LSU Tigers track and field athletes National Basketball Association All-Stars People from Zachary, Louisiana Point guards Shooting guards Tri-Cities Blackhawks players