The Magic Begins In the late ’80s, Orlando businessman Jim Hewitt had an interest in bringing an NBA franchise to Central Florida. With the help of Philadelphia 76ers general manager Pat Williams, Hewitt began promoting the would-be team and garnering interest from locals, convincing them to put down deposits on season tickets. The NBA listened, … Read more
From Minneapolis to Los Angeles The Los Angeles Lakers are a big part of NBA history; however, their start began in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1947 – before the NBA even existed. Back then, the Lakers were a part of the National Basketball League but made the jump to the Basketball Association of America after their first season. … Read more
Starting Lineup The idea of an NBA All-Star game was conceived in 1951 after a meeting took place between Haskell Cohen, an NBA publicist, and Walter Brown, then owner of the Boston Celtics. Cohen and Brown wanted to introduce the All-Star game during the college scandals of the time. Point-shaving misconduct infiltrated the NCAA in the 1951 season, giving basketball … Read more
The Hawks Take Flight The Atlanta Hawks got their start in 1946. However, back then, they were known as the Buffalo Bisons and were a part of the National Basketball League, where they played for 38 days before departing for Moline, Illinois. There, they took on a new name — the Tri-Cities Blackhawks, in reference to the Black Hawk … Read more
Knickerbockers Origins The New York Knicks got their start in 1946 as one of the initial members of the NBA. Ned Irish – the founding father of the Knicks – led the club to victory against the Toronto Huskies (68-66) during their first showdown in this newfound league. The Knickerbockers moniker goes back to the Dutch settlers who first settled in New … Read more
The Sacramento Kings have only been around since 1985, but their time in the NBA goes way beyond that. The team started out in 1948 as the Rochester Royals with the Basketball Association of America. The Royals were one of 17 teams to participate in the merger of the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball League … Read more
Creating a Franchise The Toronto Raptors were born in 1993 when the NBA received a formal application from the Professional Basketball Franchise Inc. (PBF) in Canada. In the summer of ’93, the NBA expansion committee visited Toronto to examine the PBF’s plans, which was led by high-esteemed businessmen, who were eager to get their own franchise. To … Read more
The Utah Jazz were established in New Orleans, Louisiana, as the New Orleans Jazz in 1974. As history goes, a contest was held to name the expansion team, which received more than 6,500 entries. After much consideration, team officials announced the team’s name as the “Jazz” on June 7, 1974. With New Orleans being the “Jazz Capital of the … Read more
The Beginning Before the San Antonio Spurs became what they are, the team started out as the Dallas Chaparrals in 1967 as part of the American Basketball Association. Cliff Hagan came out of his one-year retirement to become a player-coach for the Chaparrals. The Chaparrals ended the season 46-32, but this was only the start to some … Read more
The Bay Area of California didn’t always have a basketball team to call its own. The Philadelphia Warriors were founded in 1946. They are one of three teams (including the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks) to survive in the NBA after the BAA merged with it in 1949. In 1962, the team moved to the Bay Area and adopted the San Francisco … Read more