Frank Lubin

Frank John Lubin (; January 7, 1910 – July 8, 1999) was a Lithuanian-American basketball player. He played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins from 1928 to 1931. In 1997, Lubin was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the Helms Sports Hall of Fame.

For his early contributions to the success of basketball in Lithuania, Lubin is nicknamed the 'Godfather of Basketball' in Lithuania. 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.

Basketball career

High school When Lubin grew up to a height of 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.

Lithuanian national team

During the 1936 Summer Olympics, Lubin was invited to come to Lithuania, and he became their first national team head coach. During Lubin's first visit to Lithuania his sister-in-law broke her leg while riding to countryside with a wagon, which tipped over, therefore Lubin had to stay with his wife in Lithuania for longer than expected until she recovered and Lubin was asked to train Lithuanian athletes about basketball. They won the EuroBasket title in 1937, using American-born players of Lithuanian heritage. When the team hosted the EuroBasket in 1939, they again won the title, this time with Lubin, acting as a player-coach. Lubin the de facto MVP of EuroBasket 1939, however he was unable to receive the award, because he was taller than , and FIBA had a rule at the time, which prohibited the award to be given to players at such a height. According to the 1939 edition of Lithuanian magazine Trimitas, "The biggest pillar of our team was Lubinas, 2-3 away players would run around him and protect him as best they could. However, Lubinas, being covered by the away players, did not try to shoot the ball himself, but knew how to pass the ball well to his teammates, who made the most of the opportunities." Lubinas intended to settle in the land of his father in the surroundings of Lukšiai in Lithuania and dreamed of leading Lithuania at the 1940 Summer Olympics. According to Lubin, he established American-style basketball in Lithuania.

Despite being an international basketball star of his era, Lubin never made any money off basketball.

In a 1992 interview Lubin said that he was "filled with pride" when he saw Lithuania competing again as an independent country at the 1992 Summer Olympics.