nba basketball tickets: September 2010

Thursday, September 30, 2010

interview.

Chauncey Billups came to Denver mid-season in a trade from Detroit for Allen Iverson. Billups brought with him to his hometown Nuggets the experience of winning a title with the Pistons. Denver fans hope their local hero can lead them to the Promised Land.

In this interview with FIVE, Billups talks about the Nuggets’ chances of winning the NBA crown and what it’s like to remember the old Nuggets teams and wear Denver on his jersey.

Has the trade for AI worked out beyond what you expected when it happened?

To this point. But it’s still early. We still have some season left and the playoffs. And most teams are remembered for what they do in the post-season. So we won’t know. But I am happy with where I’m at and where our team is at. But we’ll see.

A lot of people credit you for the turn-around. What do you see as the main factors?

I probably had something to do with it. But they had some good players already. They maybe could have been on the same run without me with what they had in place. ‘Melo’s been awesome. He’s really taken a leadership role. Nene’s been unbelievable. We have a lot of guys who are playing really well. So I can’t really take credit for that. I think I’m just one of the pieces to the puzzle. We just want to take it one game at a time. I think we have great pieces in place. But our main thing is to try our best to get home court advantage and build from there.

How much is the game gonna change come playoff time when you have to adapt?

The playoffs are all about adapting to changes – all about adjustments, during the game, at the half. You gotta be able to do that or you will be left behind. That’s one thing I think I can bring to our team is the knowledge of that, knowing how to do that and knowing what it takes to do that. Not only being able to preach that but going out and doing that. That’s one of the things I’m looking forward to coming down the road is seeing how we can adapt.

The team had its best start in franchise and people in Denver are starting to get excited. Do you remember watching those teams of the 1980s or the last team to make it to the Western Conference Finals back when the Nuggets were always good?

I remember watching Alex English’s teams. Kiki (Vandeweghe). Of course I grew up a Nuggets fan and watching basketball every day I could. I even remember when they were the eighth seed and they beat George Karl (and the Seattle SuperSonics in 1994) in the first round. I remember all that. I watched and studied a lot of those players and a lot of those teams. I’m happy that we have generated some excitement in the city for basketball. And hopefully we can continue to get better.

You made the All-Star team in the Western Conference even though there are a lot of great playmakers out West. How much is that a testament to how good the Nuggets are playing?

My stats are never really glaring or people think, man how does he do that. All of my individual accolades have come through winning and playing the right way and doing what’s best for my team. And people appreciate that. It was a direct correlation to us being a good basketball team.

How good can this team be this season?

I think we can be on the same level with the Lakers and Spurs. I think those are the two best teams. And we’re trying to creep into that elite group.

You’ve been with the team for quite some time now. Can you tell us what you think about Nene?

I’m really impressed with Nene. He’s getting better all the time. One-on-one, I don’t think people can cover him on the post. He’s got great moves down low, left and right handed. He’s just skilled. You can just tell that he’s been taught well.

What do you guys have to do to win the West and the title?

I think it’s really just our mental focus. We have the players and the athletes, a good coach. We have all those things. It’s just the mental focus and to prepare for all the small details and being able to execute those things. If we can be good at that every game, we can be super dangerous.

You talked about winning being so important for you. How much more does it mean now with Denver – your hometown – on your jersey?

I’ve been an All-Star a few times and one time they had us wearing our normal jerseys. And I was really hoping this year’s All-Star Game would have been one of those years and I could wear Denver on my chest as an All-Star.

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interview

In Part 2 of this interview with FIVE, Billups talks about paying to see fellow NBA stars, Shaquille O’Neal, trade rumors, coming from Colorado and playing Wii with his daughters.

With the game on the line, who would you take of all the NBA players?

Oh man, there’s a lot of them. It’s tough to not say Kobe, the way he’s playing right now and how he’s played for a long time. But I wouldn’t mind it in my hands.

Is there one guy in the league you would pay to go see?

There’s a few of them. LeBron. Kobe. Carmelo. I love watching and playing with ‘Melo now. KG. Duncan may not be the most exciting player in the world but you can appreciate his craft. There are probably seven, eight, ten guys I would pay to see.

But if you had money for just one ticket?

Kobe James

Looking around the league, who do you see as an emerging star?

You know, one of my favorite players to watch is Brandon Roy. I love Brandon Roy. There are so many great ones. But I love Brandon Roy’s game. He’s so smooth but he competes so hard, his expressions out there. I love Brandon Roy.

You were one of the first players to get traded this season – for Allen Iverson. Are you players like the members of the media where you hear all these rumors and try to figure them out?

I listen. I don’t really pay too much attention. But I listen. You pretty much have to because you could be living in a different area code pretty soon if you’re not paying some kind of attention. There’s always a million rumors out there about this guy or that guy. And you hear them and just go on about your daily business. When you hear something so much, we’re just like everybody else: where there’s smoke, there’s fire. You just really go on about it. There’s not really anything you can control about it. You just try to be professional and do what you do.

When you hear about a rumor, do you start joking with them?

I was joking around with Amar’e (Stoudamire). I was asking him what color would he be wearing. He was like: I don’t know man. I don’t know.

Speaking of talking, who are the best and worst trash-talkers in the league?

Man, there’s not really that many good ones any more. Not really. GP (Gary Payton) was great. KG talks a lot, but a lot of times he’s talking to himself. There’s really not any bad ones.

Now that you’re out West, you see Shaquille O’Neal more often. What do you think about him this season and what he’s doing with Phoenix?

He just seems hungrier out there to prove that he’s still here. He’s dominant. You still have to double or triple team him most nights. The only nights you don’t have to is when they don’t give it to him that much. He’s still the biggest force in basketball, no matter how you look at it, cut it or slice it. He’s a force.

Talk a little bit about you coming from Colorado. How proud are you of being back in your home state – one not really known for basketball?

My whole life I’ve been going to camps and people have asked where I’m from. And I’m there by myself. I tell them where I’m from and they say Where? – like it wasn’t even in the United States. They ask me if I ride horses. Or if I ski.

And the answers of course were yes and yes, right?

Nah, I have never skied before. And I’ve never rode a horse. I tell ‘em I’m here to play ball. So, check the ball and let’s go. And that was always my attitude.

How is KG with it? You’ve known him for a long time.

I’ve known him forever. He always says, man, I’ve never met anyone that was first: black that was from Colorado. And then two: that played basketball and was good at it. I’ve always carried that with me. So I do take it all a little bit more personally, being where I am from. A lot these other guys have 20 or 30 guys they know from home in the NBA. And I can’t say that. I carry a really heavy load wherever I go.

Looking around the league, do you see anybody else in the league who has traveled a similar path as you?

One guy who has been through a lot and been doing great is Mo Williams. He came in and was up and down a little bit. But Mo is already an All-Star and I’m sure he will be one for a while to come.

Looking back to winning the NBA title with the Detroit Pistons in 2004, how does it feel to exceed your dream and win the title?

Other than being there for the birth of my daughters and getting married to my wife there’s no feeling like winning a championship. There’s no better feeling than that. It’s just amazing.

Speaking of your kids, I heard you play Wii tennis with them. Who has the upper hand in that?

They do, man. Both of my daughters have the upper hand. The little one can’t beat me yet. But the older two, I can’t beat them.

Nate Robinson: Little Gigant

As one of the shortest players in the NBA, Nate Robinson has not only twice taken the Slam Dunk Contest crown at the All-Star Game. On good days he drives any defender in the league crazy – and drives his coach crazy on bad ones.

Text: Johannes Korge

Whenever a player shorter than 6-foot makes noise in the NBA, it sparks special feelings for the league’s fans – especially the youngest ones. Players like Muggsy Bogues (5-foot-3), Earl Boykins (5-foot-5) or Spud Webb (5-foot-6) were most likely the shortest guys on the court in their early days and often ridiculed and not taken seriously. Yet, all three not only reached the NBA but established themselves and made millions during their solid, respectable careers.

Still, if these diminutive players can play with the best, fastest and mainly tallest ballers in the world, why can’t a fan of similar stature? Maybe on the asphalt or in a local club. But not in the NBA.

Webb and company show that talent, desire and effort can make up for the missing few inches. And there are a share of players at or below the magical 6-foot who not only keep up with the rest of the league but dominate it more often than not. All-Stars like Chris Paul and Allen Iverson have led their teams for years now. But fans still ooh and ah and cringe and cross their fingers any time one of the short fellas roam with the giants in the paint. And it’s exhilarating to think about a guy playing in the NBA but needing to jump to reach the top shelf in the supermarket. Still, these guys are among the best guards in the best league in the world.

That brings us to Nate Robinson – also known as “Nate the Great” and “Kryptonate”. Armed with an enormous confidence, the 5-foot-9 guard has played his way into the hearts of New York Knicks fans – as well as onto the “Most Wanted” list of supporters from teams around the league. After many successful baskets – preferably dunks, the combo-guard lets out a scream. But what is he screaming about? Satisfaction? Probably not. Aggression? Closer. What about 100 percent pure motivation, nearing counterproductive overzealousness? Bingo!

But it doesn’t even have to be a dunk of his own. At the end of January, the Phoenix Suns were visiting the Big Apple. With 3:36 left in the second quarter, Knicks forward David Lee surprised Suns big man Amar’e Stoudemire with a nice slam – plus the foul. Robinson was so impressed with his teammate’s move that the guard jumped off the bench and gave Stoudemire a bodybuider pose, letting the 13-inch taller Stoudemire know how foolish he looked in getting dunked upon by Lee. The referee gladly gave Robinson a technical foul and the Suns followed with a 13-3 run.

New York was able to win the game but afterwards Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni offered an interesting comment about his temperamental jumping bean Robinson. “That’s the reason why we don’t carry weapons. I could have shot him at that point,” said the coach. Of course it was a joke. But there was a sense of frustration and truth after likely the dumbest technical foul of the season. “We are not good enough to just give away points. I like his fearlessness. But he has to steer it in the right direction,” added D’Antoni. But that is Nate Robinson – fearless, motivated to the end and three-quarters under control. And his averages of 17.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.1 assists this season for the Knicks are all career highs.

The San Antonio Spurs experienced in the first game after the All-Star break what can happen if Robinson keeps his emotions under control and lets his game do the talking. With the Slam Dunk Contest trophy fresh in his memory, Robinson showed the Spurs that he is much more than just an abnormally athletic freak – dropping an impressive 32 points and 10 rebounds.

But that was just half the story. Points 25 and 26 knotted the game just before the end of regular. In overtime against one of the top title contenders, Robinson made Madison Square Garden his own stage, scoring six straight points and bringing the Garden into a frenzy. His final basket – a spectacular layup against San Antonio’s 6-foot-11 Tim Duncan – pushed the noise level at the Garden so high that even Nate’s teammates may not have heard his primal scream. “He is a wonderful player,” said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich of Robinson. “Besides his athleticism, he also has a certain brashness. He really gives everything he has.”

Nate the Great

Even in college, Robinson showed his fondness for bold actions and breaking unwritten rules. In 2004, the University of Washington guard picked a game against rival Oregon to unleash a mild controversy. His Huskies already had secured the victory with less than seven seconds left in the game. The first congratulatory handshakes had already taken place and everyone expected Washington to just run out the final seconds. But not Nate Robinson, who took Brandon Roy’s inbounds pass, dribbled the length of the court and threw down a spectacular dunk. Clearly an insult to any idea of fairness and the spirit of sports, many Oregon players and coaching staff had to be restraint from attacking Robinson, who was the subject of plenty of verbal attacks. Robinson’s opinion of the incident? “Sometimes things like that happen. The situation just called for it,” said Robinson rather unregretful one year after “Oregon-Gate”.

Awaiting the then 21-year-old Robinson for his start in the NBA was a Knicks franchise without a leader, direction or perspective. The Phoenix Suns selected Robinson with the 21st pick of the 2005 NBA Draft and promptly sent him to New York as part of the Kurt Thomas-Quentin Richardson trade. Playing for coaches Larry Brown and then Isiah Thomas, Robinson offered regular performances which gave the suffering Knicks fans a rare ray of hope during one of the worst periods in the club’s history. Nate used his explosive nature and game perfectly in the role of energizer off the bench. “Everybody talks about my size. But as long as I play like a giant, that’s fine,” said Robinson, who clearly considered himself one of the most important players in the Knicks rotation.

Nate’s lack of size clearly creates match-up problems which make it difficult to find the ideal position in the Knicks system. As a point guard, Robinson turns the ball over too many times – his assist-turnover ratio of 2.1 is one of the lower among the league’s playmakers. And being just 5-foot-9 is much too short as a shooting guard. Robinson makes up a bit of his lack of size with his superior jumping ability and quickness. But he is helpless when tall or heavier guards bring him into the blocks. The same goes for the pick-and-roll, against which he lacks the body mass to fight off a screen. In addition, Robinson is not a strong one-on-one defender And every taller guard (and that is nearly every player in the league) knows they will have the room to shoot over Robinson. If Nate does use his leaping ability to try and block the shot, he is susceptible to fouls or drives.

But the arrival of Mike D’Antoni’s up-tempo offense not only drew rave reviews from fans, but it seemed a system built ideally for Robinson. The numerous fast break situations compensate for his below-average passing skills and give him plenty of chances to excite the fans with another of his exhilarating dunks. Still, the fan favorite’s coach and his teammates know that Robinson is a shoot-first point guard who will throw up a shot if he’s in trouble instead of looking for a teammate. And too often, Robinson relies on his jump shot in the half-court offense instead of using his tremendous quickness to penetrate the zone. “He still has a long way to go,” said D’Antoni.

Of course it’s clear that D’Antoni’s “Seven Second Or Less” system tends to inflate guards’ statistics. Without questioning his skills, Steve Nash won the 2005 and 2006 MVP titles by leading the up-tempo – and advantageous – Suns offense. And the same tendency is happening for Knicks guards Chris Duhon and Robinson.

So what does the future hold for “Nate the Great”? In the NBA, the shorter a player is, the more important traits such as specialization, fitness and mental stability become. As someone who lives a bit on the edge, the last point will be a challenge for Robinson. He is responsible – with the help of the Knicks coaching staff – for staying consistent and focused. If that doesn’t happen, the way out of the league is quick and steep. But if Robinson can maintain his athleticism and keep his emotions under control, then he has good chances of becoming one of the biggest short guys in league history. And millions of kids will dream of being like him.

The LeBronism Era?

The favorites Lakers, Celtics and Spurs are all fighting injuries at the beginning of the Playoffs. Detroit seem to be following the automobile industry and crashing into the ground. And if none of the champions from the 21st century can find their game, who can stop the start of the LeBronism Era? Maybe Superman? Rarely in the 2K years have there been so many question marks going into the Playoffs. Here are FIVE’s power rankings heading into the 2009 post-season.

The Power Rankings
These are the Power Rankings of the playoff teams at the end of the regular season. That does not necessarily mean number one will win the title.

Power Rankings 2009
How strong are the 16 Playoff teams at the start of the post-season? Our power rankings show who had momentum late and who barely crossed the finish line.

1. Cleveland Cavaliers
The best home team since the 1985-86 Celtics appeared highly motivated all the way to the end. LeBron pushes his team like Kevin Garnett did with the Celtics in 2008.

2. L.A. Lakers
Andrew Bynum’s physicalness was missing in the end. Kobe looked a bit tired at the end of the season but he was playing for home court advantage in the Finals.

3. Boston Celtics
The champs head into the post-season a bit uncertain without Garnett. Just how fit is the Big Ticket really? And how much will Stephon Marbury help?

4. Orlando Magic
Dwight Howard and company blasted the Cleveland Cavaliers 116-87 in early April to get a big boost of motivation and confidence.

5. San Antonio Spurs
Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan are battling injuries and only Tony Parker is top fit. But is that enough to make them a darkhorse?

6. Denver Nuggets
This team plays together, defends and acts cleverly. Is this really the Denver Ruckers? What a difference a guy like Billups makes.

7. New Orleans Hornets
No longer are the Hornets a nightmare for the favorites, mainly because Tyson Chandler’s ankle is giving him problems. But with Chris Paul running the point, anything is possible.

8. Houston Rockets
No T-Mac, but instead you have a bunch of hungry, model professionals who want to prove themselves. But is that enough for their first Playoffs series win since 1997?

9. Utah Jazz
A season of injuries allowed the back-ups to get a lot of quality playing time. All the troops are healthy in time for the Playoffs. And this team is a sleeper for the title.

10. Portland Trail Blazers
They are young, play controlled, defend and are waiting for Greg Oden to finally wake up. How will the youngsters react to the playoff pressure?

11. Dallas Mavericks
Jason Kidd passed Magic Johnson for third place on the NBA’s all-time assist list. Too bad the Mavs don’t have the talent for big things in the post-season.

12. Atlanta Hawks
No bench, no problem. The Hawks are young, athletic and excellently led by Mike Bibby. Nobody wants to play against them in the Eastern Conference.

13. Philadelphia 76ers
Everything was running superbly until Thaddeus Young went down. The Sixers will not be a problem in the Playoffs without their bundle of energy.

14. Detroit Pistons
Allen Iverson is on the shelf injured but the youngsters have not taken the next step. Right now, everything is going wrong in Detroit.

15. Miami Heat
Dwyane Wade is one player the favorites don’t want to see lined up on the other side. If there is a big shocker in the Playoffs, then it will come from Miami.

16. Chicago Bulls
John Salmons broke through as a Bull. This team could make a deep run into the Playoffs – in 2010 after a low post scorer arrives by trade.

business of basketball

The 2008-09 Euroleague season started with the promise of being one of the best of all-time.

The defending champion CSKA Moscow had remained intact and ready to compete for its third crown in four seasons. But the Russian powerhouse would face plenty of competition as more teams than ever could lay serious claim to being legitimate title contenders.

The league’s teams also made a number of big acquisitions in the off-season while big names changed places and new faces emerged to replenish the faith of Europe’s millions of basketball fans.

Going into the season, among the favorites for the title were title-holder CSKA; re-loaded Greek powers Panathinaikos and Olympiacos; the quartet of Spanish clubs Regal FC Barcelona, Tau Ceramica, Unicaja and Real Madrid; as well as Montepaschi Siena and Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv.

Besides the departure of playmaker Theo Papaloukas, CSKA Moscow kept together its winning core of head coach Ettore Messina, guards J.R. Holden and Trajan Langdon and power forward Matjaz Smodis plus the duo of Ramunas Siskaukas and Nikos Zisis for a second season while adding the trio of Terrence Morris, Zoran Planicic and Erazem Lorbek to the mix.

Panathinaikos came into the season extra hungry after missing the 2008 Final Four and with it a chance to defend its 2007 championship. Head coach Zeljko Obradovic added to his already strong side the likes of Nikola Pekovic, Antonis Fotsis and Drew Nicholas.

The biggest team making news was Greek side Olympiacos, which opened up its pocketbooks and gave head coach Panagiotis Giannakis some top-notch experienced players looking for the club’s first Euroleague crown since 1997. Papaloukas brought the experience of two titles and six Final Fours with CSKA back to his former club while Nikola Vujcic came with two crowns and four total Final Four appearances with Maccabi Tel Aviv. Yotam Halperin also was part of two title-winning teams and a third semifinal showing with Maccabi. And Josh Childress had his share of big-game knowledge as well.

Other moves of note coming into the season included head coach Dusko Ivanovic leaving Barcelona after three seasons to return to Tau Ceramica. Replacing him at Barcelona on a full-time basis was Xavier Pascual, who took over for Ivanovic late last season.

Two big clubs switching coaches during the season were Lottomatica Roma hiring Fernando Gentile to replace Jasmin Repesa and Pini Gershon returning to Maccabi for the first time since 2006 when Tel Aviv was upset by CSKA in the Final trying to win its third straight title.

Among the prominent players to come to the Euroleague were Carlos Arroyo (Maccabi) and Brandon Jennings (Lottomatica Roma) while Juan Carlos Navarro returned to Barcelona after a year abroad and Primoz Brezec (Roma) marked his comeback to Europe after seven years away.

The season saw a number of players raise peoples’ eyebrows – either established veterans finally with a big chance or youngsters lifting their game to the next level.

One star to stay with his team but pick up his already-stellar game was Panathinaikos’ four-time reigning Euroleague Best Defender Dimitris Diamantidis, who took his offensive game to another level while remaining a dominating defensive force.

With the departure of Planicic from Tau, Igor Rakocevic stepped up his game for Ivanovic, leading the competition in scoring with more than 18 points.

Sani Becirovic was the second-leading scorer in the Regular Season for Roma (17.4 ppg) as the guard finally was given big minutes and added responsibility with his move from Panathinaikos.

Pat Burke was in a similar situation with his move to Asseco Prokom, with whom he averaged nearly 11 points and a third-best 6.9 rebounds a contest, including his tremendous Regular Season Week 8 showing of 18 points and 20 rebounds – just the eighth player to pull down at least 20 boards in a Euroleague game.

As every year, the Euroleague also features young players who emerge on the scene as the next stars on the continent. And the 2008-09 season was no different.

Nikola Pekovic had already turned heads after averaging more than 16 points and nearly 7 rebounds for Partizan last season. But the 23-year-old did not let up with his move to Euroleague giant Panathinaikos, scoring in double digits in 15 of 19 games.

Replacing Pekovic as the main man at Partizan was 23-year-old Novica Velickovic, who averaged 14 points a game in the Top 16 to lead the Belgrade club to the Quarterfinal Playoffs.

Maccabi meanwhile saw two younger players show superstar potential at times as Lior Eliyahu, 23, registered the highest performance index rating of the season of 42 in Week 6 with 24 points, 17 rebounds and 6 assists. And 20-year-old Omri Casspi hit double digits seven times including 19 points in Week 8.

Another youngster to emerge as a dominating force at times was Barcelona forward Ersan Ilyasova, 22, who had 30 points and 11 rebounds against Alba Berlin in the Top 16.

Spanish fans also got a close up look at one of the best young players in the entire game, DKV Joventut point guard Ricky Rubio. The 19-year-old, however, was unable to make his mark this season in the Euroleague as he missed the first half of the Regular Season with a wrist injury before Joventut failed to make the Top 16.

The fact that talent-laden teams like Joventut and Efes Pilsen failed to make the Top 16 shows just how strong the level of competition is in the league.

Four Spanish teams reached the Top 16, including Regular Season group winners Unicaja, Barcelona, and Tau. The Regular Season also saw CSKA Moscow lose twice at home as the reigning champ showed chinks in its armor.

Alba Berlin returned to the Euroleague for the first time since 2003 and joined Bamberg as the only other German club to reach the Top 16. But Alba was drawn into a Top 16 Group of Death with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Maccabi Tel Aviv.

In the end, the usual powers reached the later stages of the event as Spain and Greece sent five of the eight teams to the Quarterfinal Playoffs along with CSKA Moscow, Montepaschi Siena and Partizan.

In the end we had an exciting Final Four in Berlin, which was won by Panathinaikos, after a close win over Greek rival Panathinaikos and a great performance in the FInal agains CSKA Moscow.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

1946–47 season

The league started with 11 teams, which were divided into two divisions, the Eastern Division and the Western Division. Each team played 60 or 61 regular season games. The best three teams from each division advanced to the playoffs. The two division winners received first round byes and qualified directly to the semifinals while the two second-placed teams and two third-placed teams contest a best-of-3 quarterfinal and semifinal. The Eastern Division winner, the Washington Capitols, who had the best record with 49 wins, were defeated in the best-of-7 semifinal by the Western Division winner, the Chicago Stags. The Stags advanced to the finals along with the Philadelphia Warriors who defeated the New York Knickerbockers in the other semifinal. The final series was also played in a best-of-7 format. The Warriors won the inaugural BAA championship by winning the series 4–1.[6][9][10] On November 1, 1946, at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, the Toronto Huskies hosted the New York Knickerbockers, which the NBA now regards as the league's first official game. In the opening game of the BAA, Ossie Schectman scored the opening basket for the Knickerbockers.
The first year had many problems. Because arenas were shared with hockey teams, arena owners simply put the wooden floor over the ice. This caused some games to be rained out due the puddles on the floor. In addition, the owners would not turn on the heat, thus causing fans to bring blankets to the games and players to wear gloves. To make matters worse, attendance was at 3,000 per game. Basketball players would also dribble the ball for long periods once their team was ahead by a lot. The owners discussed trying a 60-minute game and even doing "innings" where each team would have the ball for a certain period of time. In addition, the teams in the league were financially weak. However, the BAA still had fans eager to see former college stars play.
From the beginning, the league was intended to be major league. The league also differed from its rival, the National Basketball League. Two differences include a 48-minute game instead of 40-minute game, and allowing players to play until they commentated six fouls opposed to five. The league formation failed to alarm staff members of the NBL. They were not interested in war with the BAA and operate in harmony. However, some NBL players did switch to the BAA.
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Basketball Association of America

The Basketball Association of America (BAA) was a professional basketball league in North America, founded in 1946. The league merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) in 1949, forming the National Basketball Association (NBA). The BAA consisted of 18 teams, 2 of which suspended operations before the Association began playing, leaving 16 to play the 3 complete seasons before merging with the NBL to form the NBA. The Philadelphia Warriors won the inaugural BAA championship in 1947, followed by the Baltimore Bullets and the Minneapolis Lakers in 1948 and 1949 respectively. Six teams from the BAA are still active in the NBA as of the 2009–10 season. The 1946-47 season began with 11 teams, before decreasing to 8 in 1948, and to 12 in 1949. The BAA also had several problems. These included low-scoring games (there was no shot clock at that time), poor attendance, and scheduling conflicts, due to many teams sharing arenas with hockey teams.

Walter Brown, owner of the Boston Garden, wondered what could happen if the ice hockey arenas, which were often empty, hosted basketball games when there were no ice hockey games played. For this reason the BAA was founded in New York City on June 6, 1946. All thirteen people at the meeting formed and owned teams.^[2] Later that day, Maurice Podoloff, who was already serving as president of the American Hockey League, was appointed president of the BAA, becoming the first person to simultaneously lead two professional leagues (Joseph Carr had been president of the American Basketball League from 1925 to 1928 while also overseeing the National Football League, although the NFL and ABL seasons did not overlap).

The owners of the BAA, while experienced businessmen, had little practice at owning basketball teams. The league started with 11 professional basketball teams, which played in a 60-game regular season. This was followed by the playoffs and the final series to determine the league winner. Similar to Major League Baseball, nobody expected signing or drafting back players.

Although there had been earlier attempts at professional basketball leagues, including the American Basketball League (ABL) and the NBL, the BAA was the first league that attempted to play primarily in large arenas in major cities, such as Madison Square Garden and Boston Garden. During its early years, the quality of play in the BAA was not significantly better than in competing leagues or among leading independent clubs such as the Harlem Globetrotters. For instance, both the 1948 and 1949 titles were won by teams that had played in the other leagues during the previous year, the Baltimore Bullets in 1948 and the Minneapolis Lakers in 1949 respectively.

American Basketball League

The American Basketball League was an early professional basketball league. Where the National Basketball League was made up of smaller town teams, generally sponsored by industrial firms, the ABL was much more ethnic and big city.
Initial teams that dominated the ABL were the Cleveland Rosenblums, the New York Celtics, the Boston Whirlwinds, and the Philadelphia Sphas. Players were generally the children of first generation immigrants, many being Jewish, Italian, and Irish. Nat Holman, Harry Boykoff, Bobby McDermott and Harry Litwak were but a few early stars.
The ABL for many years was the top pro basketball league in the United States of America, but the teams were generally run by promoters with little or no money. After World War II, the arena owners in the large cities looked to take advantage of the pro basketball following established by these promoters but retain the ownership of the teams for themselves. Hence the Basketball Association of America was formed and the Cleveland Rosenblums became the Cleveland Rebels; the Boston Whirlwinds became the Boston Celtics, and the original Celtics were supplanted by the New York Knickerbockers. In fact, only Eddie Gottlieb, the promoter of the Philadelphia Sphas, survived by working a back room deal with the Philadelphia Arena to keep his Philadelphia operation. Gottlieb retained the Sphas in the ABL while naming the NBA franchise the Warriors.
In the 1940's it was the ABL that sported pro basketball's first 7 footer, Elmore Morgenthaler of the Philadelphia Sphas. Morgenthaler was with the original Toronto Huskies of the NBA before joining the Sphas, where he was legendary, scoring as many as 21 points a game in an era when teams as a whole only averaged scoring in the 50's. The ABL remained basically an East Coast minor pro league into the 1950s.
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Wednesday, September 1, 2010

The American Basketball Association

The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a professional basketball league founded in 1967. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. League history The original ABA was founded in 1967, competing with the well-established National Basketball Association, until the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. According to The NBA Encyclopedia, its long-term goal was to force a merger with the more established league. ABA officials told potential owners that they could get an ABA team for half of what it cost to get an NBA expansion team at the time. When the merger occurred, ABA officials said, their investment would more than double. Ultimately, four ABA teams were absorbed into the older league: the New York Nets, Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, and San Antonio Spurs. Two other clubs, the Kentucky Colonels, and the Spirits of St. Louis, were disbanded upon the merger. A third, the Virginia Squires, had folded less than a month earlier, missing out on the opportunities that a merger might have provided. The ABA distinguished itself from its older counterpart with a more wide-open, flashy style of offensive play, as well as differences in rules - a 30-second shot clock (as opposed to the NBA's 24-second clock, though the ABA did switch to the 24 second shot clock for the 1975-76 season) and use of a three-point field goal arc. Also, the ABA used a colorful red, white and blue ball, instead of the NBA's traditional orange ball. The ABA also had several "regional" franchises, such as the Virginia Squires and Carolina Cougars, that played "home" games in several cities. The ABA also cleverly went after four of the best referees in the NBA: Earl Strom, John Vanak, Norm Drucker and Joe Gushue, getting them to "jump" leagues by offering them far more in money and benefits. In Earl Strom's memoir "Calling The Shots," Strom conveys both the heady sense of being courted by a rival league with money to burn -- and also the depression that set in the next year when he began refereeing in the ABA, with lesser players performing in inadequate arenas, in front of very small crowds. But the emergence of the ABA boosted the salaries of referees just as it did the salaries of players. The freewheeling style of the ABA eventually caught on with fans, but the lack of a national television contract and protracted financial losses would spell doom for the ABA as an independent circuit. In 1976, its last year of existence, the ABA pioneered the now-popular slam dunk contest at its all-star game in Denver. One of the more significant long-term contributions of the ABA to professional basketball was to tap into markets in the southeast that had been collegiate basketball hotbeds (including North Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky). The NBA was focused on the urban areas of the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast. At the time, it showed no interest in placing a team south of Washington, D.C. Buy and sell your basketball tickets through yourticketmarket.com. this is one of the mose reliable and secure side for buying and selling of online tickets.Buy nba baskerball tickets through yourticketmarket.com..This is one of the best side for buying and selling of online ticket.Visit this side you will find many event tickets like sports,thretre,concert and much more.

American Basketball League Teams, 1925-1955

1930, Syracuse All-Americans

1930, Toledo Red Men Tobaccos

1928, Trenton Bengals

1933-1934, Trenton Moose

1941-1950, Trenton Tigers

1946-1947, Troy Celtics

1950-1951, Utica Pros

1925-1928, Washington Palace Five

1938-1942, Washington Brewers

1951-1952, Washington Capitols

1938-1940, Wilkes-Barre Barons

1947-1953, Wilkes-Barre Barons

1941-1942, Wilmington Blue Bombers

1943-1947, Wilmington Bombers

1946-1947, Yonkers Chiefs