Nat Hickey

Nicholas J. "Nat" Hickey (born Nicola Zarnecić; January 30, 1902 – September 16, 1979) was a Croatian-American professional basketball coach/player and baseball player. He turned to coaching basketball after his retirement from playing full-time in 1942 but occasionally activated himself as a player for the teams he was coaching. In 1948, Hickey played two games with the Providence Steamrollers at the age of 45 while serving as the team's head coach in the Basketball Association of America (BAA). As the precursor to the National Basketball Association (NBA), his appearances in the BAA make him the oldest player in NBA history.

Early life Hickey was born Nicola Zarnecić on the Croatian island of Korčula (then Kingdom of Dalmatia, Austro-Hungary). He attended Hoboken High School in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Professional basketball career As a 5'11" guard/forward, Hickey played from the 1920s through 1940s with multiple early professional teams, including the Hoboken St. Joseph's, Eddie Holly's Majors, New York Crescents, Cleveland Rosenblums, the Chicago Bruins, Boston Trojans, and the Original Celtics of the American Basketball League as a player, as well as the Pittsburgh Raiders, Indianapolis Kautskys, and Buffalo Bisons / Tri-Cities Blackhawks of the National Basketball League as a player-coach for those teams there. Due to his status as a player-coach for the last team in particular during their inaugural and second seasons, he became one of eight players from the original Buffalo Bisons NBL team of 1946 who moved from Buffalo, New York to the "Tri-Cities" area of Moline, Illinois to become the Tri-Cities Blackhawks, a team ancestral to the Atlanta Hawks.

Providence Steamrollers (1948) On January 1, 1948, Hickey was appointed as head coach of the Providence Steamrollers of the Basketball Association of America (BAA). He replaced the previous coach, Hank Soar, who had accumulated a 2–17 record. On January 27, he played in a game against the St. Louis Bombers and recorded two points from free throws.

On January 28, the Steamrollers were five points behind in a game against the New York Knicks when Hickey checked himself in. He played the last 3.5 minutes of the first half during which time he missed his only field goal attempt and committed four personal fouls. The Knicks' margin ballooned to 19 points during Hickey's playing time and they eventually won the game 75–71. He was lampooned after his Knicks appearance in an article by the Associated Press which ridiculed him as an "old geezer" and "ancient pro." He expressed a desire to play again, but ultimately continued with only his coaching duties. The Steamrollers accumulated a 4–25 record under Hickey and he was replaced by Ken Loeffler at the end of the season. Clippers player George "Chuck" Karmarkovich, a 24-year-old who was considered the team's biggest star, was ejected from the car and killed. Hickey claimed that it was his first accident in 29 years of driving. The Clippers were disbanded the following day and Hickey did not return to coaching.

Hickey was inducted into the Cambria County Sports Hall of Fame in 1965 for his basketball and baseball achievements.

Personal life Hickey was a cousin of parachute jumper Nick Piantanida.

Career statistics Legend GP Games played FGM Field-goals made FG% Field-goal percentage FTM Free-throws made FTA Free-throws attempted FT% Free-throw percentage APG Assists per game PTS Points PPG Points per game Bold Career high

NBL Source

Regular season

NBA

Regular season Year Team GP FG% FT% APG PPG 1947–48 Providence 2 .000 .667 .0 1.0

Head coaching record

Source