Charles Washington Criss, Jr. (born November 6, 1948 in Valhalla, New York

Valhalla, New York

Valhalla is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place that is located within the town of Mount Pleasant, New York, in Westchester County. Its population was 3,162 at the 2010 U.S. Census...

) is a former American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 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.

A 5'8" guard from New Mexico State University

New Mexico State University

New Mexico State University at Las Cruces , is a major land-grant university in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States...

, Criss began his professional career in the Continental Basketball Association

Continental Basketball Association

The Continental Basketball Association was a professional men's basketball league in the United States, which has been on hiatus since the 2009 season.- History :...

, earning league Most Valuable Player honors with the Scranton Apollos in 1976, next playing for the Washington Generals

Washington Generals

The Washington Generals are an American exhibition basketball team, best known for their spectacular losing streak in exhibition games against the Harlem Globetrotters.-History:...

. He joined the Atlanta Hawks

Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association .-The first years:...

 of the National Basketball Association

National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

 the following year, and played eight seasons in the league with the Hawks, San Diego Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks

Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....

. When he entered the NBA, Criss was the league's shortest active player.

In his NBA career, Criss averaged 8.5 points

Points per game

Points per game, often abbreviated PPG, is the average number of points scored by a player per game played in a sport, over the course of a series of games, a whole season, or a career. It is calculated by dividing the total number of points by number of games. The terminology is often used in...

 and 3.2 assists per game, his best year being his first

1977-78 NBA season

The 1977–78 NBA season was the 32nd season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Washington Bullets winning the NBA Championship, beating the Seattle SuperSonics 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals.-Notable occurrences:...

, posting averages of 11 points and 4 assists in 77 matches. Since retiring as a player, he worked as a golf instructor, an Atlanta Hawks television color commentator

Color commentator

A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...

, a minor-league basketball coach and a basketball summer camp coordinator.