1949 BAA Finals

1949 BAA Finals
TeamCoachWins
Minneapolis LakersJohn Kundla4
Washington CapitolsRed Auerbach2
DatesApril 4–13
Hall of FamersLakers:
George Mikan (1959)
Jim Pollard (1978)
Coaches:
Red Auerbach (1969)
John Kundla (1995)
Eastern finalsCapitols defeated Knicks, 2–1
Western finalsLakers defeated Royals, 2–0

The 1949 BAA Finals was the championship round following the Basketball Association of America (BAA)'s 1948–49 season, its third and last. Later that year, the BAA and National Basketball League merged to create the National Basketball Association (NBA).

6'10" George Mikan and the Minneapolis Lakers proved dominant. They routed the Washington Capitols in six games. This was the first of several successive NBA titles for the Lakers. It was the beginning of the George Mikan and the Lakers Dynasty. This was the first professional sports championship ever won by a Minneapolis-St. Paul-based team.

As for the Capitols, they would never reach the Finals again, but their coach in Red Auerbach would do so several times over the next two decades, and this represented his only loss in a Final until 1958 (Auerbach would win nine of his eleven appearances in a Final); this would be the first of six overall finals that featured Auerbach against the Lakers, for which he beat them five times, including in 1959 when he beat Kundla in his last game as head coach of the Lakers.

The six games of the final series were played in ten days – Monday, April 4, to Wednesday, April 13 – with one day off except after game three, the first of three played in Washington (Minneapolis led 3–0). Prior to its start, however, Minneapolis had been idle for five days, having qualified on the preceding Tuesday; Washington idle for only one day, having qualified on Saturday. The entire playoff tournament extended 23 days.[1]

Series summary

GameDateHome teamResultRoad team
Game 1April 4Minneapolis Lakers88–84 (1–0)Washington Capitols
Game 2April 6Minneapolis Lakers76–62 (2–0)Washington Capitols
Game 3April 8Washington Capitols74–94 (0–3)Minneapolis Lakers
Game 4April 9Washington Capitols83–71 (1–3)Minneapolis Lakers
Game 5April 11Washington Capitols74–65 (2–3)Minneapolis Lakers
Game 6April 13Minneapolis Lakers77–56 (4–2)Washington Capitols

Lakers win series 4–2

Team rosters

Minneapolis Lakers

1948–49 Minneapolis Lakers roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.PlayerHeightWeightDOBFrom
F/C11Mike Bloom6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)190 lb (86 kg)1915-01-14Temple
G/F15Don Carlson6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)170 lb (77 kg)1919-03-22Minnesota
G/F19Jack Dwan6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)200 lb (91 kg)1921-05-03Loyola Chicago
C18Ray Ellefson6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)230 lb (104 kg)1922-11-18West Texas A&M
G/F18Arnie Ferrin6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)180 lb (82 kg)1925-07-29Utah
G22Donnie Forman5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)175 lb (79 kg)1926-01-17NYU
F14Earl Gardner6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)195 lb (88 kg)1923-09-18DePauw
G/F13Tony Jaros6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)185 lb (84 kg)1920-02-22Minnesota
G/F16Johnny Jorgensen6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)185 lb (84 kg)1921-12-28DePaul
G20Whitey Kachan6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)175 lb (79 kg)1925-09-15DePaul
C99George Mikan6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)245 lb (111 kg)1924-06-18DePaul
SF17Jim Pollard6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)185 lb (84 kg)1922-07-09Stanford
G/F24Herm Schaefer6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)175 lb (79 kg)1918-12-20Indiana
G/F12Don Smith6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)190 lb (86 kg)1920-07-27Minnesota
F19Jack Tingle6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)205 lb (93 kg)1924-12-30Kentucky
Head coach

John Kundla

Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster

Washington Capitols

1948–49 Washington Capitols roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.PlayerHeightWeightDOBFrom
G/F10Bob Feerick6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)190 lb (86 kg)1920-01-02Santa Clara
F/C11Kleggie Hermsen6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)225 lb (102 kg)1923-03-12Minnesota
G29Sonny Hertzberg5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)175 lb (79 kg)1922-07-29CCNY
G23Leo Katkaveck6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)185 lb (84 kg)1923-04-17NC State
SF17Bones McKinney6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)185 lb (84 kg)1919-01-01North Carolina
PF15Jack Nichols6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)222 lb (101 kg)1926-04-09Washington
F16Johnny Norlander6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)180 lb (82 kg)1921-03-05Hamline
G/F13Dick O'Keefe6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)185 lb (84 kg)1923-09-29Santa Clara
G/F22Dick Schulz6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)192 lb (87 kg)1917-01-03Wisconsin
PG20Fred Scolari5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)180 lb (82 kg)1922-03-01San Francisco
F/C15Jack Toomay6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)215 lb (98 kg)1922-08-09Pacific
G/F18Matt Zunic6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)195 lb (88 kg)1919-12-19George Washington
Head coach

Red Auerbach

Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster

Box scores

April 4
Boxscore
Washington Capitols 84, Minneapolis Lakers 88
Scoring by quarter: 13–23, 27–25, 21–19, 23–21
Pts: Fred Scolari 20Pts: George Mikan 42
Minneapolis leads series, 1–0
April 6
Boxscore
Washington Capitols 62, Minneapolis Lakers 76
Scoring by quarter: 13–20, 19–27, 13–11, 17–18
Pts: Sonny Hertzberg 13Pts: Don Carlson 16
Minneapolis leads series, 2–0
Minneapolis Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Attendance: 10,212
Referees: Pat Kennedy, Phil Fox
April 8
Boxscore
Minneapolis Lakers 94, Washington Capitols 74
Scoring by quarter: 26–14, 17–15, 28–24, 23–21
Pts: George Mikan 35Pts: Nichols, Zunic 12 each
Minneapolis leads series, 3–0
Uline Arena, Washington, D.C.
Attendance: 4,919
April 9
Boxscore
Minneapolis Lakers 71, Washington Capitols 83
Scoring by quarter: 23–22, 12–23, 16–20, 20–18
Pts: George Mikan 27Pts: Jack Nichols 27
Minneapolis leads series, 3–1
Uline Arena, Washington, D.C.
Attendance: 4,471
April 11
Boxscore
Minneapolis Lakers 65, Washington Capitols 74
Scoring by quarter: 12–22, 18–19, 22–15, 13–18
Pts: George Mikan 22Pts: Hermsen, Nichols 13 each
Minneapolis leads series, 3–2
Uline Arena, Washington, D.C.
Attendance: 3,840
April 13
Boxscore
Washington Capitols 56, Minneapolis Lakers 77
Scoring by quarter: 12–19, 12–21, 17–22, 15–15
Pts: Kleggie Hermsen 12Pts: George Mikan 29
Minneapolis wins series, 4–2

References

  1. ^ "1948–49 BAA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-03-02.
      Select "Next Season" from the heading for 1949–50, and so on. Select "Finals" from League Playoffs for the daily schedule of the final series, and so on.
  • 1949 Finals at NBA.com
  • 1949 BAA Playoffs at Basketball-Reference.com
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