William Clintard "Bill" Robinzine (January 20, 1953 – September 16, 1982) was an American professional basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 player.

Born in Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

, Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, Robinzine grew to be a 6' 7" forward from DePaul University

DePaul University

DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...

. He played seven seasons (1975

1975-76 NBA season

The 1975–76 NBA season was the 30th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning the NBA Championship, beating the Phoenix Suns 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals.-Notable occurrences:...

–1982

1981-82 NBA season

-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Houston Rockets*Rookie of the Year: Buck Williams, New Jersey Nets*Coach of the Year: Gene Shue, Washington Bullets*All-NBA First Team:**Larry Bird, Boston Celtics...

) in the NBA, competing for the Kansas City Kings

Sacramento Kings

The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...

, Cleveland Cavaliers

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...

, Dallas Mavericks

Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...

, and Utah Jazz

Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

. In the highlight footage of Darryl Dawkins

Darryl Dawkins

Darryl Dawkins is a retired American professional basketball player, most noted for his days with the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Nets, although he also played briefly for the Detroit Pistons and Utah Jazz late in his career...

 shattering a backboard dunking at Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium, Robinzine can be seen running away with his face in his hands during the play. When Dawkins gave a name to the dunk, part of the name was "Robinzine Cryin'"

While not much of a scorer, Robinzine was known as a tough rebounder and one of the better defensive players in the league at the power forward

Power forward (basketball)

Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...

 position. He played for the Kings for five seasons, and then was released to make room for Reggie King

Reggie King

Reginald "Reggie" Biddings King is a retired American professional basketball player. He was a 6'6" and 225 lb small forward and played college basketball at the University of Alabama. He had a career in the NBA from 1979 to 1985...

.

In September 1982, Robinzine committed suicide

Suicide

Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

 in his car by carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide , also called carbonous oxide, is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is slightly lighter than air. It is highly toxic to humans and animals in higher quantities, although it is also produced in normal animal metabolism in low quantities, and is thought to have some normal...

 poisoning at a storage place in Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...

 http://hometown.aol.com/bradleyrd/deceased.html. He was not on any NBA team's roster at that time.

External links

• Career stats @ basketball-reference.com
• "Robinzine Found Dead" @ query.nytimes.com