Like all other sports events, the National Basketball Association was born out of a group of people's passion for basketball. In 1946, a group of sports arena owners founded the Basketball Association of America. It became the first basketball league, which has games in huge arenas found in large cities.
It was in August of 1949 that the BAA merged with the National Basketball League and was later called as the NBA. The league had seventeen franchises that were found in cities and in various sports venues all over the country. In 1950, the NBA's number of franchises went down to 11 and it continued to go down to as low as eight by 1954. These are the Celtics, Knicks, Lakers, Warriors, Kings, 76ers, Hawks, and Pistons. But while contracting during the 1960s, the NBA's small franchises shifted to big ones found in large cities. Some of these shifters were Minneapolis Lakers who moved to Los Angeles Lakers, Syracuse Nationals to Philadelphia, and Philadelphia Warriors to San Francisco.
The NBA will also be remembered for the introduction of the 24-second shot clock. In 1954, the league came up with this rule to encourage their players to shoot and avoid stalling. It also showed diversity among its teams when players like Wataru Misaka, Chuck Cooper, Earl Lloyd, and Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton joined the league. Now, African-Americans comprise 80 percent of players.
In 1967, the NBA encountered a competitor in bidding for the best players. The American Basketball Association managed to snag Rick Barry, who is among the NBA's highest scorers, and some veteran referees like Norm Drucker, John Vanak, Joe Gushue, and Earl Strom. The NBA somehow got even when college football star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar joined the league.
It was in August of 1949 that the BAA merged with the National Basketball League and was later called as the NBA. The league had seventeen franchises that were found in cities and in various sports venues all over the country. In 1950, the NBA's number of franchises went down to 11 and it continued to go down to as low as eight by 1954. These are the Celtics, Knicks, Lakers, Warriors, Kings, 76ers, Hawks, and Pistons. But while contracting during the 1960s, the NBA's small franchises shifted to big ones found in large cities. Some of these shifters were Minneapolis Lakers who moved to Los Angeles Lakers, Syracuse Nationals to Philadelphia, and Philadelphia Warriors to San Francisco.
The NBA will also be remembered for the introduction of the 24-second shot clock. In 1954, the league came up with this rule to encourage their players to shoot and avoid stalling. It also showed diversity among its teams when players like Wataru Misaka, Chuck Cooper, Earl Lloyd, and Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton joined the league. Now, African-Americans comprise 80 percent of players.
In 1967, the NBA encountered a competitor in bidding for the best players. The American Basketball Association managed to snag Rick Barry, who is among the NBA's highest scorers, and some veteran referees like Norm Drucker, John Vanak, Joe Gushue, and Earl Strom. The NBA somehow got even when college football star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar joined the league.