Basketball, particularly college basketball, was a growing and increasingly popular sport in New York City.[3] Hockey was also highly popular and generated considerable profits; however, the arenas were not used often and generally remained empty.[3] Boston Gardenowner Walter A. Brown began to wonder what may happen if the hockey arenas hosted basketball games when no hockey games were being played.[3] On June 6, 1946, Brown and a group of eighteen other businessmen met at the Hotel Commodore in New York City and after discussion, charter franchises were granted and thus the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was formed.[4]
It was on this same day that Ned Irish, a college basketball promotor and retired sportswriter, was granted a franchise in New York.[5]Irish felt he could make professional basketball profitable and therefore felt New York was ready for a professional basketball team.[5] As President of Madison Square Garden, Irish was prepared to usher the sport of basketball into a new era.[5] He named his franchise the Knickerbockers following a meeting with staff members who chose various names out of a hat, selecting the name they liked the best.[2][6][7]
With no college draft in the league's initial year, there was no guarantee that the Knicks or the league itself would thrive especially without a league-wide structure.[6] The Knickerbockers held their first training camp in the Catskill Mountains at the Nevele Country Club.[8] Twenty-five players were invited to attend the three week session.[8] With a roster assembled and a head coach to guide the team in Neil Cohalan, the Knickerbockers faced the Toronto Huskies at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens on November 1, 1946 in what would be the franchise's first game—as well as the BAA's.[8] A low scoring affair presented in front of 7,090 spectators, the Knickerbockers defeated the Huskies 68–66 with Leo Gottlieb leading the Knicks in scoring with twelve points.[6][8]
With Madison Square Garden's crowded schedule, the Knicks were forced to play many of their home games at the 69th Armory Regiment during the team's early years.[5] The Knicks went on to finish their inaugural campaign with a 33–27 record and achieved a playoff berth under Cohalan despite a dismal shooting percentage of 28%.[6] The Knicks faced the Cleveland Rebels in the quarterfinals, winning the series 2–1.[9] However, the Knicks were swept by the Philadelphia Warriors in two games in the semi-finals.[9]
The following season, the Knicks added Japanese American guard Wataru Misaka, the first non-Caucasian professional basketball player, to their roster, in what was considered as an important step in basketball history.[10] Additionally, Cohalan was replaced by Joe Lapchick who quit his coaching job with St. John's University to accept the position with New York.[11] Under Lapchick, the Knicks made nine straight playoff appearances beginning in 1947.[12] In his first season, Lapchick guided the team to a 26–22 record, finishing second in the Eastern Division. The Knicks faced the Baltimore Bullets in the quarterfinals spliting the series 1–1. The Knicks could not overcome the Bullets and were ultimately eliminated from contention. Lapchick's second year produced similar results as the team finished with a 32–28 record and a third straight playoff appearance. The Knicks defeated the Bullets in a rematch of their previous encounter in 1947 winning the series 2–1. The team however struggled against the Washington Capitols and lost the series 1–2.
Prior to the beginning of the 1949–50 season, the BAA merged with the National Basketball League to form the National Basketball Association with the BAA absorbing six teams from its former competitor.[12] Despite division realignments, the Knicks remained in the Eastern Division.[12] The team continued its dominance under Lapchick winning 40 games however they lost the Eastern Division finals to the Syracuse Nationals.[12]
The following season, the Knicks made history signing Sweetwater Clifton to a contract thus, becoming the first professional basketball team to sign an African American player.[12] During this same season, the Knicks finished their year with a respectable 36–30 record. Though they placed third in their division, they managed to secure a playoff spot and began the first of three consecutive trips to the NBA Finals.[12] In spite of their success, the Knicks could not overcome the Rochester Royals despite a valiant comeback after losing the first three games of the Finals.[12] The next two years, in 1952 and 1953, New York fell to the Minneapolis Lakers in the Finals.[12]
It was during this early period, the Knicks developed their first standout players in Carl Braunwho retired as the Knicks leading scorer with 10,449 points before later being surpassed by the likes of Patrick Ewing, Walt Frazier and Willis Reed.[12] Harry Gallatin and Dick McGuire were also well-known standouts on the team and were later enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.[12]
Following these back-to-back losses, the Knicks made the playoffs in the subsequent two years with no success. Lapchick resigned as the team's head coach in January 1956 citing health-related issues.[13] Vince Boryla made his debut in February 1956 as the Knicks' new coach in a win over the St. Louis Hawks[14] however after two seasons of poor performances and no playoff appearances, Boryla tendered his resignation from the team in April 1958.[15]
Looking to regain their former dominance, Andrew Levane was named the head coach and in his first year, the results were significantly better as the team finished with a 40–32 record, securing their playoff spot.[16] However, the Knicks could not manage to get past the Eastern Division semi-finals.[16] The Levane-led squad fared poorly to begin the 1959–60 season and under mounting pressure Levane resigned and was immediately replaced by Carl Braun, who became the team's first player-coach.[17] The team did not fare much better under Braun and the Knicks hired Eddie Donovan, who helped build up St. Bonaventure's basketball team, in 1961.[18] During Donovan's tenure, New York failed to achieve a playoff berth. As a testament to their struggles, on March 2, 1962, the Knicks faced the Philadelphia Warriors in Hershey, Pennsylvania, where they infamously allowed Wilt Chamberlain to score an NBA-record 100 points in a 169–147 Warriors victory.[12][16]
In 1964, the franchise's fortunes began to take a steady turn. The Knicks drafted center Willis Reed, who made an immediate impact on the court and was named NBA Rookie of the Year for his efforts.[12] However, the leaders of the team still remained in flux. In an attempt to reorganize, the Knicks named former standout Harry Gallatin as head coach while re-assigning Donovan to general managerposition.[19] After a slow start in 1965, Dick McGuire, another former Knick, replaced his former teammate Gallatin midway through the season.[16] Though he failed to guide the Knicks to the playoffs in 1965, he managed to do so the following season, however the Knicks lost in the Eastern Division semi-finals.[16] McGuire was abruptly replaced midway through the 1967–68 season after the team began the season with a 15–22 record.[16] posted by oluwaseun lekan
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