Everything about National Basketball League United States totally explained
The
National Basketball League was a professional basketball league in the
United States from
1937 to
1949.
League history
The NBL started with thirteen previously independent teams in 1937. The league began as the
Midwest Basketball Conference in
1935, but changed its name in 1937 in an attempt to attract a larger audience. The league was created by three corporations:
General Electric,
Firestone and
Goodyear. It was comprised primarily of
Great Lakes area small-market and corporate teams. The NBL lasted twelve years before merging with the three-year-old
Basketball Association of America in 1949, with the resulting combination being renamed the
National Basketball Association.
The league began rather informally. Scheduling was leftto the discretion of each of the nine teams, as long as the team played at least ten games and four of them were on the road. Games consisted either of four ten-minute quarters or three fifteen-minute periods. The choice was made by the home team. Some of the teams were independent, while others were owned by companies that also found jobs for their players.
The history of the NBL falls into three eras, each contributing significantly to the growth of professional basketball and the emergence of the
NBA. The first dynasty centered on the
Oshkosh All-Stars. The middle years saw the emergence of the
Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons, who were later instrumental in the survival of the NBA during its infancy. The final period of note during the NBL's existence centered around
George Mikan and the emergence of the big man in basketball.
Early Years
The Oshkosh All-Stars, who appeared in the championship series five consecutive years (1938-42) and won two titles, were led by rugged 6-4 center
Leroy "Cowboy" Edwards. He used a deadly hook shot with either hand and an array of moves around the basket to lead the NBL in scoring three consecutive years (1937-40).
Middle Years
The Zollner Pistons -- so nicknamed because they were owned by
Fred Zollner, whose company made pistons for engines -- were led by tough veteran
Bobby McDermott. The Pistons finished second in 1942 and 1943 and won the league title in 1944 and 1945. Like many teams of that era, it wasn't uncommon for Fort Wayne to play its games in taverns, armories, high-school gyms or ballrooms.
Under Zollner, the Pistons would eventually play an important role in the survival and growth of the NBA. Zollner's financial support of the NBA helped the league stay afloat during its tumultuous formative years.
Later Years
The NBL's third era was dominated by Mikan, the 6-10, three-time All-American center from
DePaul who would emerge as the dominant player in the game. As a rookie, Mikan led the
Chicago American Gears to the 1947 NBL title, but before the next season, owner Maurice White pulled his team out of the league and formed his own 24-team circuit called the
National Professional Basketball League. That venture quickly failed, and Mikan was signed by the NBL's
Minneapolis Lakers, where he teamed with the versatile
Jim Pollard to win the 1948 championship.
But after the 1947-48 season, Mikan's Lakers and three other NBL clubs left to join the
Basketball Association of America. The
Detroit Vagabond Kings folded in midseason, their franchise was awarded to one of the most famous of the barnstorming teams, the
New York Rens comprised of all African-Americans. The team finished the year as the
Dayton Rens, marking the first time that an all-black team competed in an all-white league. The NBL, stripped of its best teams and prime gate attraction, lasted only one more season, the
Anderson Duffey Packers winning the league's last championship before six of its members were absorbed by the BAA, which changed its name to the National Basketball Association.
Legacy
The NBL obviously contributed significantly to the foundation of the NBA, but it also had major accomplishments in other areas, most notably in offering opportunities for African-American players. In the 1942-43 season, with many players in the armed forces, two NBL clubs, the
Toledo Jim White Chevrolets and the
Chicago Studebakers, filled their rosters by signing African-Americans -- five years before
Jackie Robinson would break baseball's color barrier with the
Brooklyn Dodgers. Neither team fared well. Toledo signed several black players to start the season, including
Bill Jones, who had starred at the
University of Toledo, but the team lost its first four games and folded due to financial difficulties. Chicago stocked its roster with several members of the
Harlem Globetrotters, who worked during the week at the
Studebaker plant, but it also folded after compiling an 8-15 record.
Five current
NBA teams trace their history back to the NBL. Three teams joined the NBA in
1948: the Minneapolis Lakers (now the
Los Angeles Lakers), the
Rochester Royals (now the
Sacramento Kings), and the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons (now the
Detroit Pistons). Two more teams joined the NBA in 1949: the
Tri-Cities Blackhawks (now the
Atlanta Hawks), and the
Syracuse Nationals (now the
Philadelphia 76ers).
Five former NBA teams also trace their history back to the NBL: the
Anderson Packers,
Denver Nuggets,
Indianapolis Jets (as the Kautskys),
Sheboygan Redskins and
Waterloo Hawks played in the BAA/NBA.
The NBL also created the
Indianapolis Olympians for the
1949-50 NBL season. When the NBL and BAA merged, this team joined the NBA without playing a single NBL game.
Also still surviving are the
Akron Goodyear Wingfoots, the initial NBL Champion in
1938. The Wingfoots suspended operations for
World War II and were not included in the NBL/BAA merger. Instead, they remained in the
National Industrial Basketball League (NIBL), which in
1961 became the
National AAU Basketball League (NABL). The Wingfoots are still an AAU Elite team in the NABL.
List of NBL championships
List of NBL teams
Further Information
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