The Golden State Warriors have had over 600 players don the more than 60 jersey numbers used by their players over the more than 75 years of existence the team has enjoyed in its rich and storied history.
Founded in 1946 during the Basketball Association of America (BAA -- a precursor league of the NBA) era, the team has called home the cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco, Oakland, and even San Diego.
To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Warriors Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. For this article, we begin with the first of 15 players who wore the No. 9 jersey for the Warriors.
That player would be Golden State big man alum Joe Graboski. After ending his high school career, Graboski became just the third player to make the leap directly to the NBA, signing with the (defunct) Chicago Stags.
The Chicago, Illinois native would play the first 2 seasons of his pro career with the Stags. He would also have a stint with the (defunct) Indianapolis Olympians before he'd be picked up by the (then) Philadelphia (now, Golden State) Warriors in the Olympians dispersal draft.
His stay with the team would span 8 seasons, ending when he was dealt to the (then) St. Louis (now, Atlanta) Hawks in 1961. During his time suiting up for the Warriors, Graboski wore only jersey No. 9 and put up 12.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game.
This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors jersey history - No. 9 - Joe Graboski (1953-61)
