Jack "Jumping Jack" McCracken (June 15, 1912 - January 5, 1958) was a basketball player in 1930s and 1940s. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) players of all time and was officially named as the greatest player of all time by the AAU organization.
A native of Chickasha, Oklahoma, McCracken went to Classen High School in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He attended Northwest Missouri State Teachers College (now Northwest Missouri State University) in Maryville, Missouri and played for legendary coach Henry Iba, who had also coached him in high school. McCracken never turned pro.
After leaving Northwest Missouri State Teachers College, he went to Denver, Colorado to play in the AAU.
Famous quotes containing the word jack:
“Lock in! Be alert, my acrobat
and I will be soft wood and you the nail
and we will make fiery ovens for Jack Sprat
and you will hurl yourself into my tiny jail
and we will take a supper together and that
will be that.”
—Anne Sexton (1928–1974)