1949–50 Baltimore Bullets season

1949–50 Baltimore Bullets season
Head coach	Buddy Jeannette
Arena	Baltimore Coliseum
Results
Record	25–43 (.368)
Place	Division: 5th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	DNQ
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Radio	WBAL

The 1949–50 Baltimore Bullets season was the first season of the Maryland club in the newly formed National Basketball Association. Coming from two successful seasons in the BAA, including a championship run, this time their 25-43 record would not be sufficient for them to reach the division playoffs. Another change from the previous year was president Robert "Jake" Embry's decision not to televise the Bullets' games.^[1] The club would change hands towards the end of the season, to a group of local businessmen.^[2]

Draft picks

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	6	Ron Livingstone	C	United States	Wyoming
3	–	Paul Gordon	F	United States	Notre Dame

Roster

Baltimore Bullets 1949–50 roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. From F/C 12 Budko, Walt 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Columbia G/F 11 Byrnes, Tommy 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Seton Hall G/F Cloyd, Paul 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Wisconsin G 4/5 Dolhon, Joe 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) NYU G/F 6/20 Ezersky, Johnny 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Rhode Island G Feigenbaum, George 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Kentucky F 6 Gordon, Paul 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Notre Dame G/F 11 Hoffman, Paul 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Purdue F Janotta, Howie 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Seton Hall G 6/14 Jeannette, Buddy 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Washington & Jefferson C 19 Knorek, Lee 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Detroit G/F 20 Lewis, Freddie 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Eastern Kentucky C 17 Livingstone, Ron 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Wyoming F/C 17 Mandic, John 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Oregon State G 17 McCarron, Mike 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Seton Hall G 15 O'Donnell, Andy 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Loyola (MD) F/C 35 Pugh, Les 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Ohio State C 9/17 Sadowski, Ed 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Seton Hall F 4/8 Schatzman, Marv 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Saint Louis G/F 7 Tough, Bob 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) St. John's F/C 10 Towery, Carlisle 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Western Kentucky G/F 5 Triptow, Dick 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) DePaul G/F 4 Von Nieda, Whitey 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Penn State	Head coach Buddy Jeannette (Washington & Jefferson) Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Pre-season

1949 Pre-season Game Log: 4-4
#	Date	Opponent	Score	Location	Record
1	October 17	Syracuse Nationals	W 66-63	Baltimore Coliseum	1-0[3]
2	October 18	Syracuse Nationals	L 56-62	Baltimore Coliseum	1-1[4]
3	October 22	Philadelphia Warriors	L 74-82	Baltimore Coliseum	1-2[5]
4	October 24	Cumberland Dukes	W 59-57	Baltimore Coliseum	2-2[6]
5	October 26	Boston Celtics	W 66-65	Burlington, Vermont	3-2[7]
6	October 27	Hartford Hurricanes	W 80-74	Hartford, Connecticut	4-2[8]
7	October 29	Boston Celtics	L 72-74	Providence, Rhode Island	4-3[9]
8	October 30	Bridgeport Aerasols	L 54-56	Bridgeport, Connecticut	4-4[10]

Regular season

Season standings

Eastern Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Neutral	Div
x-Syracuse Nationals	51	13	.797	–	31–1	15–12	5–0	9–1
x-New York Knicks	40	28	.588	13	19–10	18–16	3–2	20–6
x-Washington Capitols	32	36	.471	21	21–13	10–20	1–3	13–13
x-Philadelphia Warriors	26	42	.382	25	15–15	8–23	3–4	9–17
Baltimore Bullets	25	43	.368	26	16–15	8–25	1–3	8–18
Boston Celtics	22	46	.324	29	12–14	5–28	5–4	11–15

Record vs. opponents

1949–50 NBA records
Team	AND	BAL	BOS	CHI	DEN	FWP	IND	MIN	NYK	PHI	ROC	SHE	STL	SYR	TCB	WAS	WAT
Anderson	—	1–1	0–2	1–1	4–3	1–1	2–5	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	5–2	2–0	3–4	7–2	1–1	7–0
Baltimore	1–1	—	2–4	1–5	1–1	3–3	1–1	1–5	1–5	3–3	3–3	2–0	3–3	0–2	0–2	2–4	1–1
Boston	2–0	4–2	—	0–6	1–1	2–4	1–1	1–5	1–5	3–3	0–6	1–1	2–4	0–2	0–2	3–3	1–1
Chicago	1–1	5–1	6–0	—	2–0	2–4	1–1	2–4	2–4	4–2	2–4	2–0	5–1	0–2	1–1	3–3	2–0
Denver	3–4	1–1	1–1	0–2	—	0–2	0–7	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	3–4	0–2	1–6	0–7	0–2	2–5
Fort Wayne	1–1	3–3	4–2	4–2	2–0	—	1–1	2–4	4–2	4–2	3–3	2–0	5–1	0–2	2–0	2–4	1–1
Indianapolis	5–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	7–0	1–1	—	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	5–2	1–1	2–7	4–3	1–1	5–2
Minneapolis	1–1	5–1	5–1	4–2	2–0	4–2	1–1	—	5–1	4–2	3–3	1–1	5–1	1–1	2–0	6–0	2–0
New York	1–1	5–1	5–1	4–2	2–0	2–4	1–1	1–5	—	1–5	1–5	1–1	4–2	0–2	1–1	5–1	2–0
Philadelphia	1–1	3–3	3–3	2–4	2–0	2–4	0–2	2–4	1–5	—	1–5	2–0	2–4	0–2	1–1	2–4	2–0
Rochester	2–0	3–3	6–0	4–2	2–0	3–3	1–1	3–3	5–1	5–1	—	1–1	5–1	1–1	2–0	6–0	2–0
Sheboygan	2–5	0–2	1–1	0–2	4–3	0–2	2–5	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	—	0–2	1–6	3–4	2–0	4–3
St. Louis	0–2	3–3	4–2	1–5	2–0	1–5	1–1	1–5	2–4	4–2	1–5	2–0	—	1–1	2–0	0–6	1–1
Syracuse	4–3	2–0	2–0	2–0	6–1	2–0	7–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	6–1	1–1	—	6–1	1–1	6–1
Tri-Cities	2–7	2–0	2–0	1–1	7–0	0–2	3–4	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	4–3	0–2	1–6	—	1–1	4–3
Washington	1–1	4–2	3–3	3–3	2–0	4–2	1–1	0–6	1–5	4–2	0–6	0–2	6–0	1–1	1–1	—	1–1
Waterloo	0–7	1–1	1–1	0–2	5–2	1–1	2–5	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	3–4	1–1	1–6	3–4	1–1	—

Game log

1949–50 Game log
#	Date	Opponent	Score	Record
1	November 2	at Washington	61–66	0–1
2	November 3	St. Louis	65–81	0–2
3	November 5	Minneapolis	77–92	0–3
4	November 10	Washington	72–88	0–4
5	November 12	Fort Wayne	82–75	1–4
6	November 15	at Boston	81–76	2–4
7	November 17	Denver	86–71	3–4
8	November 19	Boston	82–91	3–5
9	November 20	at Sheboygan	97–92	4–5
10	November 23	at Minneapolis	71–84	4–6
11	November 24	at St. Louis	65–53	5–6
12	November 27	at Denver	61–68	5–7
13	November 30	at Chicago	50–57	5–8
14	December 1	Rochester	70–64	6–8
15	December 3	at New York	55–85	6–9
16	December 7	Chicago	72–84	6–10
17	December 8	New York	60–82	6–11
18	December 10	St. Louis	69–66	7–11
19	December 15	Minneapolis	87–68	8–11
20	December 16	vs Waterloo	75–77	8–12
21	December 17	at Washington	89–72	9–12
22	December 18	at Fort Wayne	95–106	9–13
23	December 20	at Indianapolis	88–79	10–13
24	December 21	at Philadelphia	60–70	10–14
25	December 22	Washington	86–82	11–14
26	December 25	Philadelphia	63–64	11–15
27	December 26	vs Boston	57–82	11–16
28	December 28	at Minneapolis	77–88	11–17
29	December 29	at St. Louis	63–90	11–18
30	January 1	at Tri-Cities	66–79	11–19
31	January 2	at Anderson	75–92	11–20
32	January 5	Rochester	74–71	12–20
33	January 6	at Boston	53–74	12–21
34	January 7	Indianapolis	61–85	12–22
35	January 10	at Rochester	67–85	12–23
36	January 14	Chicago	78–83	12–24
37	January 19	Washington	68–81	12–25
38	January 21	Philadelphia	68–58	13–25
39	January 22	vs Sheboygan	76–69	14–25
40	January 24	at Rochester	56–70	14–26
41	January 26	New York	77–79 (2OT)	14–27
42	January 27	at Philadelphia	74–71	15–27
43	January 28	Fort Wayne	77–64	16–27
44	February 2	Rochester	79–69	17–27
45	February 3	vs Chicago	81–98	17–28
46	February 4	Anderson	90–70	18–28
47	February 5	at Syracuse	87–96	18–29
48	February 9	St. Louis	79–67	19–29
49	February 11	Syracuse	76–77	19–30
50	February 15	at New York	67–80	19–31
51	February 16	Fort Wayne	83–77	20–31
52	February 18	Philadelphia	73–100	20–32
53	February 19	at Fort Wayne	71–79	20–33
54	February 20	at Tri-Cities	73–82	20–34
55	February 21	at Chicago	64–72	20–35
56	February 22	at Waterloo	84–77	21–35
57	February 24	at Philadelphia	77–69	22–35
58	February 25	Boston	66–82	22–36
59	March 1	at New York	76–82	22–37
60	March 2	Minneapolis	68–88	22–38
61	March 4	Chicago	77–72	23–38
62	March 8	at Washington	80–88	23–39
63	March 9	New York	91–79	24–39
64	March 11	Boston	79–75	25–39
65	March 12	at Fort Wayne	75–86	25–40
66	March 15	at Minneapolis	62–96	25–41
67	March 16	at St. Louis	63–71	25–42
68	March 19	at Rochester	66–97	25–43

Player statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Season

Player	GP	FG%	FT%	APG	PPG
Walt Budko	66	.304	.757	2.2	9.0
Tommy Byrnes	53	.302	.702	1.7	6.2
Paul Cloyd	3	.125	1.000	0.3	1.7
Joe Dolhon	64	.312	.734	2.4	6.9
Johnny Ezersky	38	.305	.697	1.7	8.1
George Feigenbaum	12	.246	.444	0.8	3.0
Paul Gordon	4	.000	.600	0.8	0.8
Paul Hoffman	60	.341	.665	2.7	14.4
Howie Janotta	9	.300	.813	0.4	3.4
Buddy Jeannette	37	.284	.820	2.5	5.2
Lee Knorek^X	1	.000	–	0.0	0.0
Freddie Lewis^X	18	.227	.684	1.0	3.5
Ron Livingstone^X	16	.245	.761	1.5	5.3
John Mandic^X	3	.100	1.000	0.3	1.3
Mike McCarron	3	.200	.667	0.3	1.3
Andy O'Donnell	25	.352	.778	0.7	3.6
Les Pugh^X	56	.249	.846	0.3	4.5
Ed Sadowski^X	52	.328	.745	1.9	14.0
Marv Schatzman	34	.247	.580	1.1	3.4
Bob Tough	8	.282	.833	0.3	3.4
Carlisle Towery	68	.327	.757	2.1	8.8
Dick Triptow^X	4	.000	1.000	0.3	0.5
Whitey Von Nieda^X	33	.364	.638	3.2	6.2

^x Statistics with the Baltimore Bullets

Transactions

Players Added Draft Ron Livingstone Paul Gordon Free agency Les Pugh (November, 1949) John Mandic (January 5, 1950)

Players Lost Released Dick Triptow (December 13, 1949) Free agency Freddie Lewis (December 29, 1949) (to Philadelphia)

Trades

September 28, 1949	To Baltimore Bullets Cash considerations	To Washington Capitols Chick Reiser
December 5, 1949	To Baltimore Bullets Dick Triptow	To Fort Wayne Pistons Cash considerations
December 7, 1949	To Baltimore Bullets Ed Sadowski Cash considerations	To Philadelphia Warriors Ron Livingstone
December 8, 1949	To Baltimore Bullets Lee Knorek	To New York Knicks Cash considerations
December 9, 1949	To Baltimore Bullets Whitey Von Nieda	To Tri-Cities Blackhawks Cash considerations

References

1. Bullets Ban Video, Reading Eagle, August 5, 1949
2. 20 Businessmen Take Over Bullets, Milwaukee Sentinel, February 14, 1950
3. BULLETS DOWN SYRACUSE FIVE, The Baltimore Sun, October 17, 1949
4. SYRACUSE FIVE TOP BULLETS, The Baltimore Sun, October 18, 1949
5. BULLETINS BOW TO WARRIORS, The Baltimore Sun, October 23, 1949
6. BULLETS TOP CUMBERLAND, The Baltimore Sun, October 22, 1990
7. BULLETS EDGE BOSTON QUINTET, The Baltimore Sun, October 26, 1949
8. Baltimore Five Nips Hurricane Rally To Pull Out 80-74 Win, The Hartford Courant, October 28, 1949
9. Boston Celtics Nip Bullets, 74-72, The Baltimore Sun, October 30, 1949
10. BULLETS DROP 54-56 CONTEST TO BRIDGEPORT, The Baltimore Sun, October 31, 1949