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50 Chuck Aleksinas

Name
Chuck Aleksinas
Position
Center
Class
SO
Hometown (Last School)
Morris, CT (Litchfield (Wamogo))
Ht
6'10"
Wt
258
Seasons
1977-78, 1978-79
Birthday
February 26, 1959

Chuck Aleksinas was born Charles Aleksinas on February 26, 1959, in Litchfield, Connecticut.  He played at Wamogo High School where he was the first 1,000 point scorer in the school’s history.

He played at Kentucky from 1977-78 and 1978-79. He was a member of the 1978 national championship team.  He transferred to the University of Connecticut after his sophomore year.

Aleksinas, the “Morris Mountain,” averaged 40.1 points and 19 rebounds for Wamago High School. The husky center, a two-time all-state selection, led the Warriors to the semifinals of the state tournament after a 16-8 regular season record.  Showing an uncanny eye for the bucket, Aleksinas hit 71 percent from the floor and 73 percent from the free-throw line.  Setting 13 individual school records, he hit 19 consecutive free throws in the state tournament and had a career single-game high 53 points and 29 rebounds.  He improved steadily throughout his high school career. He scored 22 points and 10 rebounds as a sophomore and 27 points and 14 rebounds his Junior year.  He was a three-year All-Berkshire Conference selection.  and 29 rebounds.  He amassed 1,910 points (31.3 ppg), snagged 1,122 rebounds (18.4), and shot 69.0 percent in his high school career.

Aleksinas committed to play for Kentucky on April 24, 1977.  Coach Hall didn’t spare the praise for Aleksinas. “Chuck may be the best post prospect we have seen in several years.  Not only has he the size and strength, but he possesses an unusual shooting touch for a youngster. He definitely has the strength to play and help us next season, and he has the willingness and anxiety to meet the challenge of collegiate competition. He is the strongest player we have seen since, before and after Darryl Dawkins,” declared the Kentucky coach.

As a freshman at Kentucky and as an understudy to Mike Phillips and Rick Robey, Aleksinas played 216 minutes in 28 games and averaged 3.5 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.  He hit 56.9 percent of his shots tying for third-best on the team.  He had a high game of 17 points and seven rebounds in 17 minutes against Portland State in the UKIT.

As a sophomore, Aleksinas played in only 13 games, all of which he started.  He averaged 11.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.  He had a career-high 20 points against Syracuse on December 23, 1978.  On Sunday, January 21, 1979, Aleksinas failed to show for practice.  Coach Hall and other team officials said they had not seen Aleksinas for almost 48 hours, since UK’s 66-55 loss to Tennessee on Saturday night. At least one UK player told Hall that the sophomore intended to quit the squad.  It was learned that Aleksinas had threatened to quit the team two other times — once the previous season and again prior to the first game of his sophomore season, when he missed a practice session without notifying Hall.  In his last game against Tennessee, Aleksinas had played only 16 minutes, scoring six points.  Reached at his parents’ home in Kentucky, the Morris native told the Hartford Courant, the largest daily newspaper in the state of Connecticut, “It wasn’t playing time that bothered me. I don’t know where that rumor started. Nobody asked me why I quit. I was averaging nearly 30 minutes a game.”  He said he quit because he wasn’t being used to his best advantage as a player. He said he and Coach Joe Hall had “different philosophies.”

“It just isn’t my kind of game,” said Aleksinas.  “They weren’t getting the most out of me,” he said. “The entire offense doesn’t have to be built around me. I need freedom where you don’t have to be inside all the time. Shooting from the outside is my biggest asset offensively.”  He said the Wildcats’ offense is “too structured, too deliberate. I wasn’t getting much out of it. You have to think about your career.”

He said he didn’t know where he would be in September. “But I’m not ruling anybody out. Wherever I go it will be a major college, an Eastern power, Pac 10. I can’t really narrow it down.”

On May 30, 1979, the Hartford Courant reported that Aleksinas would be transferring to Providence College.  On September 7, 1979, they reported that he would be transferring to Connecticut instead.  That, indeed, would be his final destination.

He was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the 4th round (7th pick) of the 1982 NBA Draft and played one season in 1984-85 for the Golden State Warriors.

Aleksinas went on to play in Italy before going home to Morris, Connecticut.

Now 54, he lives in the same house where he grew up. At Kentucky and in Europe, he developed a love of classic cars that has turned into a niche business. At his website, 427king.com, Aleksinas buys and sells rare auto parts that he finds while scouring the Internet and car auctions.

His wife, high school sweetheart Beth, is a fitness and yoga instructor, and Aleksinas remains as trim as in his playing days. In fact, until a couple of years ago, he still played rec games at the Morris Elementary School against players half his age.

College Statistics:

Per Game

Season G GS MP FG FGA FG% 2P 2PA 2P% 3P 3PA 3P% FT FTA FT% TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS
1977-78 27 0 8.0 1.4 2.4 .569 0.9 1.3 .694 2.2 0.1 0.9 1.4 3.7
1978-79 13 28.2 4.5 9.6 .464 2.5 3.5 .733 6.1 1.0 0.4 0.1 2.1 2.8 11.5
40 0 14.6 2.4 4.8 .500 1.5 2.0 .716 3.5 0.4 1.3 1.9 6.2

Totals

Season G GS MP FG FGA FG% 2P 2PA 2P% 3P 3PA 3P% FT FTA FT% TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS
1977-78 27 0 216 37 65 .569 25 36 .694 60 4 25 37 99
1978-79 13 366 58 125 .464 33 45 .733 79 13 5 1 27 37 149
40 0 582 95 190 .500 58 81 .716 139 17 5 1 52 74 248

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