1939–40 National Basketball League (United States) season

The 1939–40 NBL season was the fifth National Basketball League (NBL) season. The regular season began on November 22, 1939, and ended on March 6, 1940. The playoffs began on the same day as the end of the regular season due to the Akron Firestone Non-Skids and Detroit Eagles both uniquely deciding to have their last regular season game against each other also count as a playoff game at the same time and ran until March 16, 1940, with the Akron Firestone Non-Skids once again defeating the Oshkosh All-Stars by 3 games to 2 in a rematch of the previous season's NBL Championship, with this rematch resulting in a reverse sweep by the Firestone Non-Skids after previously being down 0–2 early in the series., pp. 68–80

Teams The Pittsburgh Pirates did not field a team in the 1939–40 season. Instead, they would be replaced by the Chicago Bruins, who had previously competed in the American Basketball League in its first iteration before the long-term effects of the Great Depression forced it to shut down operations on a temporary basis. The Cleveland White Horses also relocated to Detroit, Michigan and were renamed the Detroit Eagles., p. 53, p. 70 +Eastern DivisionAkron Firestone Non-Skids Akron, OhioAkron Goodyear Wingfoots Akron, OhioDetroit Eagles Detroit, MichiganIndianapolis Kautskys Indianapolis, IndianaWestern DivisionChicago Bruins Chicago, IllinoisHammond Ciesar All-Americans Hammond, IndianaOshkosh All-Stars Oshkosh, WisconsinSheboygan Red Skins Sheboygan, Wisconsin +Coaching changesOffseason Team 1938–39 coach 1939–40 coachAkron Goodyear WingfootsLefty ByersRay DetrickIndianapolis KautskysBob NipperWard MeyersOshkosh All-StarsGeorge HotchkissLon DarlingSheboygan Red SkinsEdwin SchutteFrank ZummachIn-season Team Outgoing coach Incoming coachHammond Ciesar All-AmericansLou BoudreauEddie Ciesar (interim)Eddie Ciesar (interim)Leo Bereolos

Preseason Prior to the start of the season, the Oshkosh All-Stars sold shares of their team worth $25 each to raise funds following financial losses in the previous season. The NBL would also adopt the ten second backcourt violation in order to help speed up the game more as well as provide teams with more opportunities to score throughout the game., p. 16

Regular season Teams were scheduled to play a 28-game regular season, playing four games (two home, two away) against every other team. The final game of the regular season between the Akron Firestone Non-Skids and the Detroit Eagles also served as the first game in their playoff series.

Team standings Eastern Division

Western Division

Postseason Playoffs The top two teams from each division qualified for the playoffs. The Akron Firestone Non-Skids returned to the NBL Championship after sweeping the Detroit Eagles 2–0 in the Eastern Division playoff. The Oshkosh All-Stars also returned to the championship after defeating the Sheboygan Red Skins 2–1 in the Western Division playoff. In the rematch of last season's championship, Akron successfully defended its title, defeating the All-Stars by 3 games to 2. The result meant that Oshkosh had now finished second for three consecutive seasons.

World Professional Basketball Tournament

After the conclusion of the NBL season, three NBL teams, the Chicago Bruins, the Oshkosh All-Stars, and the Sheboygan Red Skins, competed in the 1940 edition of the World Professional Basketball Tournament. The Red Skins lost to the eventual third-placed Syracuse Reds in the quarterfinals, while the Bruins finished as runners-up to the Harlem Globetrotters after defeating the All-Stars in the quarterfinals.

Statistics Leaders Category Player Team Stat Points Leroy Edwards Oshkosh All-Stars 361 Free-Throws Leroy Edwards Oshkosh All-Stars 139 Field goals Ernie Andres Indianapolis Kautskys 130 Note: Prior to the 1969–70 NBA season, league leaders in points were determined by totals rather than averages. Also, rebounding and assist numbers were not recorded properly in the NBL like they would be in the BAA/NBA, as would field goal and free-throw shooting percentages.

Awards NBL Most Valuable Player: Leroy Edwards, Oshkosh All-Stars NBL Coach of the Year: Paul Sheeks, Akron Firestone Non-Skids NBL Rookie of the Year: Ben Stephens, Akron Goodyear Wingfoots

All-NBL First Team: G/F – Soup Cable, Akron Firestone Non-Skids G/F – Charley Shipp, Oshkosh All-Stars C/F – Leroy Edwards, Oshkosh All-Stars G/F – Ben Stephens, Akron Goodyear Wingfoots G/F – Wibs Kautz, Chicago Bruins All-NBL Second Team: G/F – Ernie Andres, Indianapolis Kautskys G/F – Otto Kolar, Sheboygan Red Skins G/F – Rube Lautenschlager, Sheboygan Red Skins G/F – Jack Ozburn, Akron Firestone Non-Skids G/F – Nat Frankel, Detroit Eagles

See also National Basketball League (United States)

References

External links NBL Standings, 1937–1949 on apbr.org National Basketball League III – 1939–40 NBL Season Overview on retroseasons.com