Background
Spahn, who was Jewish, was born in New York, New New York
basketball coach basketball player
Spahn, who was Jewish, was born in New York, New New York
He attended Bryant High School, in Queens, New York, where he played basketball. He attended City College of New York (City College of New York), where he was an All-American and All-Metropolitan basketball player at the guard position under coach National Holman in 1932 and 1933, leading the team to a 32–2 record over those two years. After he graduated, he became an assistant coach at City College of New York under National Holman, as he worked toward a masters degree.
He earned a Doctor of Philosophy in education from New York University.
He was captain of the team in his senior year, and eighth in scoring in the Metropolitan area. Spahn became a professional basketball player in 1934. He played for a number of teams in the American Basketball League (American Basketball League)—the Brooklyn Visitations, the Jersey Reds, the New York Jewels, and the Philadelphia SPHAs.
He played on five American Basketball League championship teams during the 1930s.
In his rookie season with the Reds, he led the league in scoring. The next year, he was third in scoring.
In 1940-1941 he was fifth in scoring in the league, as Petey Rosenberg led the league in scoring. He was that American Basketball League Most Valuable Player (Most Valuable Player) runner-up in 1936-1936, and in 1936-1937.
He was the American Basketball League"s Most Valuable Player in 1937-1938, winning the David Soden Trophy.
He retired in 1943, and finished as the fifth all-time leading scorer in American Basketball League history. From 1934 to 1938, he led the American Basketball League in free throws made. He was inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1993.
He was also inducted into the City College of New York Athletic Hall of Fame.
Hall of Famer National Holman said he was among the 10 greatest players of all time. He later became a camp director and private-school headmaster.
He was headmaster of the Franklin School (later known as the Anglo-American International School) in Manhattan from 1950 to 1975, director of Camp Winaukee in New Hampshire from 1938 to 1975, and director of the Tripp Lake Camp in Maine from 1958 to 1982. He was also a president of the Association of Private Camps.
In addition, he coached basketball teams at West Point.
He died of heart failure at the New York University Medical Center in Manhattan at the age of 79. At the time, he was a resident of Manhattan.