1949–50 Syracuse Nationals season

The 1949–50 Syracuse Nationals season was the 1st season for the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Nationals played their previous three seasons in the National Basketball League, which merged with the Basketball Association of America to form the NBA. Al Cervi, nicknamed "Digger" for his superior defensive skills, guided the team with his competitive nature while serving as a player-coach. As the Syracuse Post-Standard describes, "The Nationals shot poorly but succeeded because they played Cervi-style basketball: nasty, with an emphasis on defense."[1] The Nationals went to the NBA Finals after beating the Philadelphia Warriors and New York Knicks, but lost to the Minneapolis Lakers in six games.

1949–50 Syracuse Nationals season
Division champions
Head coachAl Cervi
ArenaState Fair Coliseum
Results
Record51–13 (.797)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Eastern)
Playoff finishNBA Finals
(eliminated 2–4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
RadioWSYR

Draft picks
Main article: 1949 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College

Roster
Syracuse Nationals 1949–50 roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#Nat.NameHt.Wt.From
G/F 15 Cervi, Al 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 170 lb (77 kg) East High School
(Buffalo)
F 9 Chollet, Leroy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Canisius College
G 4 Corley, Ray 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Georgetown
G/F 7 Gabor, Bill 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Syracuse
F/C 10 Hannum, Alex 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Southern California
G/F 14 Levane, Andrew 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) St. John's
G/F 5 Macknowski, Johnny 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Seton Hall
C 50 Peterson, Ed 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Cornell University
F/C 65 Ratkovicz, George 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Lindblom High School
(Chicago)
F/C 55 Schayes, Dolph 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) New York University
G/F 25 Seymour, Paul 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Toledo
Head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Roster

Regular season

Standings
Eastern Division W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
x-Syracuse Nationals5113.797–31–115–125–09–1
x-New York Knicks4028.5881319–1018–163–220–6
x-Washington Capitols3236.4712121–1310–201–313–13
x-Philadelphia Warriors2642.3822515–158–233–49–17
Baltimore Bullets2543.3682616–158–251–38–18
Boston Celtics2246.3242912–145–285–411–15

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 —1–10–21–14–31–12–51–11–11–10–25–22–03–47–21–17–0
Baltimore 1–1—2–41–51–13–31–11–51–53–33–32–03–30–20–22–41–1
Boston 2–04–2—0–61–12–41–11–51–53–30–61–12–40–20–23–31–1
Chicago 1–15–16–0—2–02–41–12–42–44–22–42–05–10–21–13–32–0
Denver 3–41–11–10–2—0–20–70–20–20–20–23–40–21–60–70–22–5
Fort Wayne 1–13–34–24–22–0—1–12–44–24–23–32–05–10–22–02–41–1
Indianapolis 5–21–11–11–17–01–1—1–11–12–01–15–21–12–74–31–15–2
Minneapolis 1–15–15–14–22–04–21–1—5–14–23–31–15–11–12–06–02–0
New York 1–15–15–14–22–02–41–11–5—1–51–51–14–20–21–15–12–0
Philadelphia 1–13–33–32–42–02–40–22–41–5—1–52–02–40–21–12–42–0
Rochester 2–03–36–04–22–03–31–13–35–15–1—1–15–11–12–06–02–0
Sheboygan 2–50–21–10–24–30–22–51–11–10–21–1—0–21–63–42–04–3
St. Louis 0–23–34–21–52–01–51–11–52–44–21–52–0—1–12–00–61–1
Syracuse 4–32–02–02–06–12–07–21–12–02–01–16–11–1—6–11–16–1
Tri-Cities 2–72–02–01–17–00–23–40–21–11–10–24–30–21–6—1–14–3
Washington 1–14–23–33–32–04–21–10–61–54–20–60–26–01–11–1—1–1
Waterloo 0–71–11–10–25–21–12–50–20–20–20–23–41–11–63–41–1—

Game log
1949–50 Game Log

Total: 51–13 (Home: 31–1 ; Road: 15–12 ; Neutral: 5–0)

November: 13–1 (Home: 8–0 ; Road: 3–1 ; Neutral: 2–0)
December: 11–3 (Home: 5–0 ; Road: 5–3 ; Neutral: 1–0)
January: 9–3 (Home: 7–1 ; Road: 1–2 ; Neutral: 1–0)
February: 11–4 (Home: 7–0 ; Road: 3–4 ; Neutral: 1–0)
March: 7–2 (Home: 4–0 ; Road: 3–2 ; Neutral: 0–0)
1949–50 Schedule

Playoffs

East Division Semifinals

East Division Finals
  • Eastern Division: (1) Syracuse Nationals vs. (2) New York Knicks: Nationals win series 2–1
  • Game 1 @ Syracuse: Syracuse 91, New York 83 (OT)
  • Game 2 @ New York: New York 80, Syracuse 76
  • Game 3 @ Syracuse: Syracuse 91, New York 80

NBA Semifinals

The Nationals had an NBA Semifinal bye.

NBA Finals
  • (E1) Syracuse Nationals vs. (C1) Minneapolis Lakers: Lakers win series 4–2
  • Game 1 @ Syracuse: Minneapolis 68, Syracuse 66
  • Game 2 @ Syracuse: Syracuse 91, Minneapolis 85
  • Game 3 @ Minneapolis: Minneapolis 91, Syracuse 77
  • Game 4 @ Minneapolis: Minneapolis 77, Syracuse 69
  • Game 5 @ Syracuse: Syracuse 83, Minneapolis 76
  • Game 6 @ Minneapolis: Minneapolis 110, Syracuse 95

Awards and records

References
  1. Al Cervi, Hall of Fame N.B.A. Player-Coach, Dies at 92, New York Times, November 10, 2009.
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