Name Frank Lubin Listed height 6 ft 5 in (1.98 m) Role Basketball Player | Listed weight 232 lb (105 kg) College UCLA (1928–1931) | |
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Similar People Lorenzo Tucker, Peggy Cartwright, Donald Bevan, Edwin A Doss, Raymond McKee | ||
Nationality American / Lithuanian | ||
Tribute to frank lubin captain of 1st golden olympic basketball team
Frank John Lubin (Lithuanian: Pranas Jonas Lubinas; January 7, 1910 – July 8, 1999) was a Lithuanian American basketball player. In 1997, Lubin was inducted into the UCLA Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the Helms Sports Hall of Fame.
Contents
- Tribute to frank lubin captain of 1st golden olympic basketball team
- Pranas Lubinas apie Lietuvos krepin 1992 Frank Lubin
- Early life
- High school
- College career
- US national team
- Lithuanian national team
- References
Pranas Lubinas apie Lietuvos krepšinį 1992 (Frank Lubin)
Early life
Lubin was born on the east side of Los Angeles, California, to a family of Lithuanian immigrants, and he died in Glendale, California. A veteran with the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, Lubin was buried at Riverside National Cemetery, in Riverside, California. His father, Konstantinas Lubinas, was from Vilkaviškis, while his mother, Paulina Vasiliauskaitė, was from Vabalninkas.
High school
When Lubin grew up to a height of 6 feet 6 1/2 inches at Lincoln High School, classmates encouraged him to try out for the basketball team. Gangly and uncoordinated, Lubin struggled to improve his game, but was eventually named to the All-City Second Team as a senior in 1927.
College career
While playing college basketball with the UCLA Bruins, from 1928 to 1931, Lubin, a 6-foot 7-inch center, earned All-Pacific Coast Conference honors in his senior season.
U.S. national team
Following his college career, he worked as a stagehand at Twentieth Century Fox, and joined the studio's AAU team, which earned the right to represent the US as part of the first Olympic basketball tournament in 1936 in Berlin, where he won the gold.
Lithuanian national team
During the 1936 Summer Olympic Games, Lubin was invited to come to Lithuania, and he became their first national team head coach. They won the EuroBasket title in 1937, using American-born players of Lithuanian heritage. When the team hosted the tournament in 1939, they again won the title, this time with Lubin both playing and coaching. Lubin undoubtedly was the MVP of the EuroBasket 1939, however he was unable to receive that award, because he was taller than 1.90 meter (6'3"), and FIBA had a rule at that time, which prohibited the award to be given to players at such a height.
When World War II broke out, in 1939, Lubin was in Italy, coaching a Lithuanian women's team. Given that Nazi Germany was directly on the path back to Lithuania, Italian officials had to help the team to get back, through train and boat, avoiding Germany. Afterwards, Lubin fled Lithuania to California with his family, in the face of the upcoming Soviet invasion that happened one year later. Lubin continued to play for the Twentieth Century Fox team until 1955, when knee problems prompted him to retire. For his contributions and for introducing the now basketball-mad country of Lithuania to the sport, Lubin is often called the "grandfather of Lithuanian basketball".