BATON ROUGE — Former LSU men’s basketball star Eddie Palubinskas was inducted on Tuesday into the Basketball Australia Hall of Fame in ceremonies held in Sydney.
Palubinskas was one of 14 inductees to this year’s class and one of six players, male and female, to be honored. Palubinskas played at LSU during the 1973 and 1974 seasons under Coach Dale Brown at LSU.
Known as one of Australian basketball’s most colorful personalities, Palubinskas represented Australia at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich where he finished second in the tournament for most points scored. He came back in the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal to be the tournament’s leading scorer.
Palubinskas was the first Australian to make an impact on the American college scene, playing for LSU. He would lead the nation in free throw percentage in both junior college and at LSU and led the team in scoring in 1973 at 18.6 points per game. He twice also led the Tigers in assists, including a 4.1 average in 1973.
When the Atlanta Hawks selected him in 1973, Palubinskas became the first Australian basketball player drafted in the NBA.
In retirement, Palubinskas has become known for his painting and artistic ability and he has used his free throw shooting talents to work with teams and individuals around the world.