Benjamin Paul Goldfaden (September 6, 1913 – March 25, 2013) was an American professional basketball player.[1] He played two games in the Basketball Association of America (BAA) as a member of the Washington Capitols during the 1946–47 season. Goldfaden spent most of his professional career playing in the American Basketball League.[2]
Goldfaden began playing basketball in Detroit during his early years due to his height.[2] He attended South Side High School in Newark, New Jersey, where he was an all-state team selection in 1933.[3] Goldfaden was so highly recruited during his teenage years that he was pursued by Catholic and other sectarian prep schools despite that he was Jewish.[1] He was paid to play for barnstorming teams in exhibition games as a 16-year-old that would have marred his amateur status and disqualified him from playing college basketball.[1] Goldfaden played collegiately for the George Washington Colonials on an athletic scholarship.[1]
Goldfaden quit playing basketball at the age of 33 to become a physical education teacher as its salary of US$2,000 ($32,249 adjusted for inflation) was better than his basketball career.[1] He worked 20 years as an agent for Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance and served as a city recreation director in Maryland.[1] Goldfaden died of congestive heart failure, aged 99, in Tavares, Florida.[1] He was believed to be the oldest living former National Basketball Association (NBA) player at the time of his death.[1]
BAA career statistics
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | ||||
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | ||||
| FT% | Free-throw percentage | ||||
| APG | Assists per game | ||||
| PPG | Points per game | ||||
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | FG% | FT% | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946–47 | Washington | 2 | .000 | .500 | .0 | 1.0 |
| Career | 2 | .000 | .500 | .0 | 1.0 | |
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Ben Goldfaden: He played 2 games in NBA's initial season". Orlando Sentinel. orlandosentinel.com. March 26, 2013. Retrieved January 1, 2014.
- ^ a b Tranum, Sam (August 30, 2003). "Basketball's Bygone League" Archived 2017-09-02 at the Wayback Machine. Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
- ^ "Bloom Unanimous Choice For All-State Center Position". Asbury Park Press. March 24, 1933. p. 19. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
External links
- Career statistics from NBA.com and Basketball Reference
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