Jacob Louis Molinas was an American professional basketball player, playing first for Columbia University, in New York City, and later briefly in the early National Basketball Association with the Fort Wayne Pistons.
18 Facts About Jack Molinas
1.
2.
Jack Molinas played for multiple minor league franchises and teams after his brief NBA stint during the 1950s and early 1960s.
3.
Jack Molinas grew up in Brooklyn and attended the then all-boys premier academic selective specialized Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan of New York City.
4.
Jack Molinas's parents owned a bar on Coney Island, the ocean-side resort in Brooklyn.
5.
Jack Molinas attended Columbia University from 1950 to 1953 where he played basketball.
6.
Jack Molinas had some involvement in the CCNY point-shaving scandal back when he played college basketball, though he was never caught while he played for Columbia.
7.
Jack Molinas played in 32 games before the league banned him for wagering on Pistons games.
8.
Jack Molinas was selected for the 1954 NBA All-Star Game, but was suspended at the time of the game and was replaced by teammate Andy Phillip.
9.
Jack Molinas would be the last active player to be banned from the NBA for gambling until 2024,70 years later, when Jontay Porter was banned from the NBA for his own involvement in gambling on NBA games in which he played.
10.
Jack Molinas played in the Eastern Professional Basketball League from 1954 to 1962 for the Williamsport Billies, Hazleton Hawks and Wilkes-Barre Barons.
11.
Jack Molinas was selected as the EPBL Most Valuable Player in 1956.
12.
Jack Molinas was a five-time All-EPBL First Team selection and two-time Second Team selection.
13.
Jack Molinas became the central figure in the 1961 point-shaving scandal.
14.
Jack Molinas gave Hawkins $250 during his first year at Iowa but never encouraged him to throw games.
15.
In 1963, Jack Molinas was convicted for his role in the scheme and was sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison.
16.
Jack Molinas was paroled in 1968 after serving five years.
17.
Jack Molinas was said to have contacts with New York City mobsters Thomas Eboli and Vincent Gigante.
18.
Jack Molinas was hit in the neck, and his girlfriend, Shirley Marcus, and dog were both wounded as well.