The Baltimore Bullets were a professional basketball team based in Baltimore. The Bullets competed in the American Basketball League (1944–1947), the Basketball Association of America (1947–1949), and (following the BAA's merger with the National Basketball League) the National Basketball Association (1949–1954). On November 27, 1954, the team folded with a 3–11 record on the season,[1] making the Bullets the last NBA franchise to fold.[2] Out of all defunct NBA teams, the Bullets were members of the association for the longest time and the only defunct team to win a championship.[3]
| Baltimore Bullets | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Founded | 1944 | |||
| Folded | 1954 | |||
| History | Baltimore Bullets (ABL) 1944–1947 Baltimore Bullets (BAA) 1947–1949 Baltimore Bullets (NBA) 1949–1954 | |||
| Arena | Baltimore Coliseum | |||
| Location | Baltimore, Maryland | |||
| Team colors | ||||
| Championships | 2 ABL: 1946 BAA/NBA: 1948 | |||
|
| ||||
The Bullets name was revived in 1963, when the former Chicago Zephyrs relocated to Baltimore; even after these Bullets relocated to Washington in 1973, they kept their name for 24 more years until they were renamed the Wizards.
Franchise history
editABL (1944–1947)
editThe Baltimore Bullets began play in 1944 as an American Basketball League (ABL) team. The Bullets acquired their name in reference to the Phoenix Shot Tower.[4][5] In the ABL, Baltimore reached the championship round all three seasons, winning the ABL title in 1946. The Bullets won a division title in 1947, but forfeited that season's championship in favor of playing in the World Professional Basketball Tournament (the Bullets' second appearance in the tournament).
BAA/NBA (1947–1954)
editThe Bullets moved to the Basketball Association of America (BAA) in 1947, and won the 1948 championship over the Philadelphia Warriors (now Golden State Warriors). In 1949, the BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL), and became the National Basketball Association (NBA).[6] The Bullets struggled on the court after their championship season, and never posted another winning record. In 1954, Ray Felix won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and became the second African-American to be named an All-Star. Felix was traded to the Knicks on September 17, 1954, and on November 27, the Bullets became the last NBA franchise to fold.
Season-by-season records
edit| ABL champions | BAA/NBA champions | Division champions | Playoff berth |
| Season | League | Division | Finish | Wins | Losses | Win% | GB | Playoffs | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1944–45 | ABL | — | 4th | 14 | 16 | .467 | 8 | Won First Round (Tigers) 2–1 Lost ABL Championship (SPHAs) 1–2 |
|
| 1945–46 | ABL | — | T-1st | 21 | 13 | .618 | — | Won Tiebreaker (SPHAs) 1–0 Won First Round (Gothams) 2–0 Won ABL Championship (SPHAs) 3–1 |
|
| 1946–47 | ABL | South | 1st | 31 | 3 | .912 | — | Won First Round (Gothams) 2–1 Forfeited[a] ABL Championship (Tigers) |
|
| 1947–48 | BAA | Western | 2nd | 28 | 20 | .583 | 1 | Won Division Tiebreaker (Stags) 1–0 Won First Round (Knicks) 2–1 Won BAA Semifinals (Stags) 2–0 Won BAA Finals (Warriors) 4–2 |
|
| 1948–49 | BAA | Eastern | 3rd | 29 | 31 | .483 | 9 | Lost Division Semifinals (Knicks) 1–2 | |
| 1949–50 | NBA | Eastern | 5th | 25 | 43 | .368 | 26 | ||
| 1950–51 | NBA | Eastern | 5th | 24 | 42 | .364 | 16 | ||
| 1951–52 | NBA | Eastern | 5th | 20 | 46 | .303 | 20 | ||
| 1952–53 | NBA | Eastern | 4th | 16 | 54 | .229 | 31 | Lost Division Semifinals (Knicks) 0–2 | |
| 1953–54 | NBA | Eastern | 5th | 16 | 56 | .222 | 28 | Ray Felix (ROY) | |
| 1954–55 | NBA | Eastern | N/A[b] | 3 | 11 | .214 | N/A |
Notes
edit- ^ After delays, the Bullets refused to wait for the ABL Championship to get underway and decided to play in the World Basketball Tournament; the ABL declared Trenton the champions, but Baltimore claimed the title as its own on the basis of its overwhelming regular season record.[7]
- ^ The Bullets folded during the season on November 27, 1954. Official records for the 1954–55 NBA season do not include the Bullets' games and team statistics, nor do they include the statistics of opposing players and teams in games played against the Bullets.[8]
List of notable personnel
editPlayers
editCoaches
edit- Ben Kramer
- Red Rosan[10]
- Buddy Jeannette
- Walt Budko
- Fred Scolari
- Chick Reiser
- Clair Bee
- Albert Barthelme
Basketball Hall of Fame members
edit| Baltimore Bullets Hall of Famers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | ||||
| No. | Name | Position | Tenure | Inducted |
| 26 6 14 |
Buddy Jeannette1 | G | 1947–1950 | 1994 |
| Coaches | ||||
| Name | Position | Tenure | Inducted | |
| Clair Bee | Head coach | 1952–1954 | 1968 | |
Notes:
- 1 He also coached the team in 1947–1951
Draft
edit| Year | Lg | Player | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | NBA | Frank Selvy | Furman University |
| 1954 | NBA | Slick Leonard | Indiana University |
| 1954 | NBA | Werner Killen | Lawrence Institute of Technology |
| 1954 | NBA | Burt Spice | University of Toledo |
| 1954 | NBA | Lou Scott | Indiana University |
| 1954 | NBA | Bob Heim | Xavier University |
| 1954 | NBA | Joe Pehanick | Seattle University |
| 1954 | NBA | Harry Brooks | Seton Hall University |
| 1954 | NBA | Ron Goerrs | Concord College |
| 1954 | NBA | Gary Shivers | University of Houston |
| 1954 | NBA | Elliot Karver | George Washington University |
| 1953 | NBA | Ray Felix | Long Island University |
| 1953 | NBA | Jack Carby | Kansas State University |
| 1953 | NBA | Bob Emmercik | Clarion University of Pennsylvania |
| 1953 | NBA | Russ Johnson | |
| 1953 | NBA | Bob Kraback | |
| 1953 | NBA | Dennis Murphy | Georgetown University |
| 1953 | NBA | Paul Nolen | Texas Tech University |
| 1953 | NBA | Bob Peterson | University of Oregon |
| 1953 | NBA | Joe Piorkowski | |
| 1953 | NBA | Connie Rea | Centenary College of Louisiana |
| 1953 | NBA | Bill Schyman | DePaul University |
| 1953 | NBA | Herman Sledzik | Pennsylvania State University |
| 1953 | NBA | Bob Speight | North Carolina State University |
| 1953 | NBA | Don Stemmerich | |
| 1953 | NBA | Elmer Tolson | Eastern Kentucky University |
| 1953 | NBA | Edward Walsh | |
| 1952 | NBA | Jim Baechtold | Eastern Kentucky University |
| 1952 | NBA | Blaine Denning | Lawrence Institute of Technology |
| 1952 | NBA | Chuck Grigsby | University of Dayton |
| 1952 | NBA | Frank Guisness | University of Washington |
| 1952 | NBA | Bill Lea | Missouri State University |
| 1952 | NBA | Mike Magula | Youngstown State University |
| 1952 | NBA | Bud Penwell | Oklahoma City University |
| 1952 | NBA | Bob Peterson | University of Oregon |
| 1952 | NBA | Art Press | Western Maryland College |
| 1952 | NBA | Bob Priddy | New Mexico State University |
| 1952 | NBA | Benny Purcell | Murray State University |
| 1952 | NBA | Jim Walsh | Stanford University |
| 1951 | NBA | Gene Melchiorre | Bradley University |
| 1951 | NBA | Jack Stone | Kansas State University |
| 1951 | NBA | Bill Mann | Bradley University |
| 1951 | NBA | Bill Hagler | University of California |
| 1951 | NBA | Leroy Ishman | American University |
| 1951 | NBA | Glen Duggins | University of Utah |
| 1951 | NBA | Tom Riach | University of Southern California |
| 1951 | NBA | Bill Harper | Oregon State University |
| 1951 | NBA | Bob Crowe | San Jose State University |
| 1951 | NBA | Dan Torrey | Oregon State University |
| 1951 | NBA | Clem Pavilonis | DePaul University |
| 1951 | NBA | John Burke | Springfield College |
| 1950 | NBA | Don Rehfeldt | University of Wisconsin |
| 1950 | NBA | John Pilch | University of Wyoming |
| 1950 | NBA | Dick Dickey | North Carolina State University |
| 1950 | NBA | Jerry Reed | University of Wyoming |
| 1950 | NBA | Norm Mager | City College of New York |
| 1950 | NBA | Rick Harman | Kansas State University |
| 1950 | NBA | Frank Comerford | La Salle University |
| 1950 | NBA | George Bush | University of Toledo |
| 1950 | NBA | Jack Laub | University of Cincinnati |
| 1950 | NBA | Mike Zedalis | Loyola College in Maryland |
| 1949 | BAA | Ron Livingstone | University of Wyoming |
| 1949 | BAA | Paul Gordon | University of Notre Dame |
| 1949 | BAA | Bill Evans | Drake University |
| 1949 | BAA | Tom Gallagher | St. Francis College |
| 1949 | BAA | Jim McMullen | Xavier University |
| 1949 | BAA | Eppa Rixey | Kenyon College |
| 1949 | BAA | Roger Wiley | University of Oregon |
| 1949 | BAA | Bill Zipple | Lafayette College |
| 1948 | BAA | Walt Budko | Columbia University |
| 1948 | BAA | Jim Black | Occidental College |
| 1948 | BAA | Darrell Brown | Humboldt State University |
| 1948 | BAA | Robert Carroll | West Virginia University |
| 1948 | BAA | Jake Carter | East Texas State University |
| 1948 | BAA | Marvin English | Newberry College |
| 1948 | BAA | Gene Fellmoth | Wittenberg University |
| 1948 | BAA | J.W. Fullerton | Arkansas State University |
| 1948 | BAA | Marshall Gemberling | Lebanon Valley College |
| 1948 | BAA | Vince Hansen | Washington State University |
| 1948 | BAA | Joe Holland | University of Kentucky |
| 1948 | BAA | Wayne Jones | American International College |
| 1948 | BAA | Dan Kraus | Georgetown University |
| 1948 | BAA | Herb Krautblatt | Rider University |
| 1948 | BAA | Paul Marcincin | Moravian College |
| 1947 | BAA | Larry Killick | University of Vermont |
| 1947 | BAA | Robert Bolyard | University of Toledo |
| 1947 | BAA | Elmer Gainer | DePaul University |
| 1947 | BAA | Harry Gallatin | Truman State University |
| 1947 | BAA | Scotty Hamilton | West Virginia University |
| 1947 | BAA | Hugh Hampton | High Point University |
| 1947 | BAA | Bob Jake | University of Vermont |
| 1947 | BAA | Charles Raynor | University of Houston |
| 1947 | BAA | Chick Reiser | New York University |
| 1947 | BAA | John Rusinko | Pennsylvania State University |
References
edit- ^ "Bullets Fold For Season". The Daily Chronicle. Centralia, Washington. November 27, 1954. p. 5. Retrieved May 27, 2018.
- ^ NBA Teams that don’t Exist anymore All About Basketball
- ^ NBA & ABA team index at Basketball Reference
- ^ Vecsey, George (November 12, 1995). "Sports of The Times;Say Goodbye To 'Bullets' As Nickname". The New York Times. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ Lee, Michael (December 24, 2011). "Former Wizards owner Irene Pollin wouldn't have a problem with name changing back to Bullets". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
- ^ "NBL, BAA merge, end pro net war". The Republic. Columbus, Indiana. UP. August 4, 1949. p. 11. Retrieved June 21, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ 1946–47 Baltimore Bullets (ABL) Peach Basket Society
- ^ 1954–55 Baltimore Bullets Roster and Stats Basketball Reference
- ^ "GEARS DEFEATED BY BALTIMORE IN EXHIBITION TEST". Chicago Tribune. December 22, 1946. p. 28.
- ^ "Howard Rosan, basketball pro". The Philadelphia Inquirer. September 5, 1976. p. 34. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
- ^ "Baltimore Bullets Draft Picks | Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 17, 2018.