|
|
Post by wildojinx on Jul 31, 2016 13:24:27 GMT -5
But of the big 4 American sports, why is it that the NBA is an "association", while MLB, the NFL, and the NHL are "leagues"?
|
|
|
|
Post by Father Dougal McGuire on Jul 31, 2016 15:43:29 GMT -5
But of the big 4 American sports, why is it that the NBA is an "association", while MLB, the NFL, and the NHL are "leagues"? Back in the 30-40s there was a National Basketball League. They merged with another basketball league,the Basketball Association of America to form the NBA. I guess they combined the letters NBL and BBA to come up with the NBA. |
|
pegasuswarrior
El Dandy
Three Time FAN Idol Champion
@PulpPictionary
Posts: 8,748 
|
Post by pegasuswarrior on Jul 31, 2016 15:49:18 GMT -5
I think it's an awesome question. Very perceptive. Yeah, already got a good answer above, but I love your depth of curiosity about it. Unique and refreshing to see that type of insight instead of wondering who's going to make TMZ headlines next.
To add to the post above, there were multiple "associations" back in the day in sports and that was more of a buzz term then than it may be now. I'm pretty sure though that the BBA had dominance in a merger and just opted to keep the "BA" part since they had it first before getting rid of a bunch of teams with the group/league they merged with. "National" became more all-encompassing with the merger and was kept, therefore "NBA."
Plenty of others like the user above me would know way more about it and might add to the info provided so far.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2016 20:43:37 GMT -5
The NBL was mainly comprised of smallish-sized Midwestern teams. (My current hometown Hammond had a team. The Ciesar All-Americans. Baseball player/manager Lou Boudreau and legendary college coach John Wooden played for them. Wooden quit because he wanted to coach a high school team on the side - his first coaching job - and the team wouldn't let him.)
Anyway, after the war, more basketball players came home, and another league came into being, the BAA. They were based in big cities, to take advantage of college basketball's recent surge in popularity. Obviously, they would have a big advantage getting players.
But there was one guy the NBL had the BAA just could not get: a 6'10", 245 pound center from DePaul University was signed by the Chicago American Gears. George Mikan "was" pro basketball.
After 1947, Chicago left the NBL to form their own league, the Pro Basketball League of America. The 16-team league folded before finishing their season, so the Gears bought into the newer BAA; essentially killing the NBL with that move.
The two leagues had a meeting and would soon merge. (I didn't find out exactly why, but they probably combined the name when they added the extra teams.)
One of the crucial teams from the NBL added was the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons. Zollner had money that helped keep the league afloat those first few years.
(Just to tie this into wrestling: the Waterloo Hawks were an NBL team merged to the new NBA until 1950. The owner of Iowa's only big four pro sports franchise? P.L. "Pinkie" George, a member of the NWA when they first formed.)
|
|
