Arizin, Paul (1928-2006), was one of the greatest scorers in American basketball history. Arizin, a guard, played for 10 seasons with the Philadelphia Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). In all but his rookie season, Arizin averaged more than 20 points per game. He led the NBA in scoring for the 1951-1952 and 1956-1957 seasons. He was a star on the Philadelphia team that won the 1955-1956 championship. Arizin averaged 22.8 points per game during his regular-season NBA career and 24.2 points in 49 play-off games.
Paul Joseph Arizin was born on April 9, 1928, in Philadelphia. He played at Villanova University from 1947 to 1950. In his senior year, Arizin averaged 25.3 points per game and was named the Sporting News Player of the Year. Philadelphia drafted him in the 1950 NBA draft. Arizin played for the Warriors through the 1961-1962 season with the exception of 1952 through 1954, when he served in the United States Marine Corps. After leaving the Warriors, Arizin played for three seasons with the Camden Bullets of the Eastern Basketball League. Arizin was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978. Arizin died on Dec. 12, 2006.
