Indianapolis Olympians

• 1. Introduction

  ›

  On the 6th of January 1951, the Indianapolis Olympians and the Rochester Royals played basketball through six overtime periods. The Olympians won 75-73 in a game that remains the longest in NBA history. That record belongs to a franchise that lasted just four seasons. The Olympians were founding members of the NBA. Their home arena, Butler Fieldhouse on the Butler University campus, is now known as Hinkle Fieldhouse. They folded on the 23rd of April 1953, with a career record of 132-137. What connected these players before they ever set foot in Indianapolis? How did a founding NBA franchise simply cease to exist?

  34567

• 2. The Olympic Core

  ›

  Alex Groza and Ralph Beard were the Olympians' two most prominent players, both graduates of the University of Kentucky. Both had been key contributors on the gold medal-winning 1948 US Olympic basketball team. The franchise's very name reflected that shared achievement.

  Wallace Jones and Cliff Barker, also Kentucky alumni, had won gold on that same 1948 team. Joe Holland, a Kentucky graduate and Olympic alternate, played forward for Indianapolis through the 1952 season.

  24

• 3. Four Years in the West

  ›

  The National Basketball League and the Basketball Association of America merged in 1949, creating the NBA. The new Indianapolis franchise entered the league essentially in place of the Indianapolis Jets, which had previously held the city's spot. In their debut season, 1949-50, the Olympians won the Western Division with a 39-25 record. Cliff Barker coached that campaign. The Olympians won the division semifinals over the Red Skins before losing the division finals to the Packers.

  Wally Jones joined Barker as co-coach for the 1950-51 campaign, when the team dropped to fourth place in the Western Division at 31-37. They lost in the first round of that postseason, falling to the Lakers 1-2.

  145

• 4. Scandal and the Collapse

  ›

  After the 1951 season, NBA Commissioner Maurice Podoloff suspended Alex Groza and Ralph Beard from the league for life. Both men had admitted to shaving points during their college careers at Kentucky. The franchise lost two of its central players in a single ruling.

  Herm Schaefer took over as head coach for the 1951-52 season. The reshuffled roster managed a 34-32 record and returned to the playoffs, only to fall in the first round. The final season in 1952-53 ended at 28-43. The franchise folded after that year. The Indiana Pacers eventually brought NBA basketball back to Indianapolis in 1976, one of four teams admitted into the league from the American Basketball Association.

  2567