1948–49 Baltimore Bullets season
| 1948–49 Baltimore Bullets season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Buddy Jeannette |
| Arena | Baltimore Coliseum |
| Results | |
| Record | 29–31 (.483) |
| Place | Division: 3rd (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | East Division Semifinals (eliminated 1–2) |
Stats at Basketball Reference | |
| Radio | WBAL |
The 1948–49 BAA season was the Bullets' 2nd season in the NBA/BAA and their fifth overall season including the time they spent in the American Basketball League.[1] Entering this season, the Bullets sought to officially acquire their third professional league championship in four seasons when combining their results from both the ABL and the BAA (though they would have personally considered this season their shot at four straight professional league championships due to them personally considering themselves the 1947 ABL champions for their overwhelming record as protest for that league's initial decision to constantly delay their playoff series of matches so many times beforehand). Despite entering this season as defending champions, the Bullets would end their second season in the BAA with a losing record of 29–31, though it was still good enough for a third place spot in the Eastern Division semifinal round. When entering the final playoffs ever holding the BAA's name, the Bullets ended up getting eliminated by the New York Knickerbockers 2–1 in the first round of what later ended up becoming the Bullets' second-to-last playoff appearance in league history, as well as their first of many seasons where they would end up having losing seasons going forward with their existence after previously being considered champions of both the ABL and BAA before the BAA would merge with the NBL to become the modern-day NBA.
Draft picks
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Walt Budko | F/C | United States | Columbia |
| – | – | Jim Black | – | United States | Occidental |
| – | – | Darrell Brown | F | United States | Humboldt State |
| – | – | Robert Carroll | – | United States | West Virginia |
| – | – | Jake Carter | F/C | United States | East Texas State |
| – | – | Marvin English | – | United States | Newberry |
| – | – | Gene Fellmoth | – | United States | Wittenberg |
| – | – | J.W. Fullerton | – | United States | Arkansas State |
| – | – | Marshall Gemberling | – | United States | Lebanon Valley |
| – | – | Vince Hansen | – | United States | Washington State |
| – | – | Joe Holland | F | United States | Kentucky |
| – | – | Wayne Jones | – | United States | American International |
| – | – | Dan Kraus | G | United States | Georgetown |
| – | – | Herb Krautblatt | G | United States | Rider |
| – | – | Paul Marcincin | – | United States | Moravian |
Roster
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Head coach
Legend
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Regular season
Season standings
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Game log
| # | Date | Opponent | Score | High points | Record |
| 1 | November 4 | Minneapolis | 72–84 | Connie Simmons (19) | 0–1 |
| 2 | November 6 | @ Chicago | 69–82 | Mahnken, Stutz (17) | 0–2 |
| 3 | November 7 | @ Fort Wayne | 78–77 | Chick Reiser (20) | 1–2 |
| 4 | November 9 | @ Indianapolis | 65–64 | Buddy Jeannette (22) | 2–2 |
| 5 | November 11 | Washington | 68–70 | Walt Budko (15) | 2–3 |
| 6 | November 13 | @ New York | 87–91 | Walt Budko (22) | 2–4 |
| 7 | November 18 | New York | 55–67 | Connie Simmons (15) | 2–5 |
| 8 | November 19 | vs St. Louis | 72–82 | Connie Simmons (20) | 2–6 |
| 9 | November 20 | @ St. Louis | 85–64 | Hal Tidrick (14) | 3–6 |
| 10 | November 21 | @ Minneapolis | 81–94 | Lewis, Simmons (17) | 3–7 |
| 11 | November 23 | @ Rochester | 90–108 | Connie Simmons (28) | 3–8 |
| 12 | November 25 | Fort Wayne | 69–64 | Fred Lewis (16) | 4–8 |
| 13 | November 27 | @ Providence | 91–71 | Connie Simmons (21) | 5–8 |
| 14 | December 2 | Indianapolis | 90–78 | Reiser, Simmons (15) | 6–8 |
| 15 | December 4 | @ Washington | 82–83 | Connie Simmons (22) | 6–9 |
| 16 | December 8 | @ Philadelphia | 83–78 | Connie Simmons (19) | 7–9 |
| 17 | December 9 | Philadelphia | 92–91 | Hal Tidrick (17) | 8–9 |
| 18 | December 11 | @ New York | 71–72 | Jake Pelkington (21) | 8–10 |
| 19 | December 13 | vs Chicago | 70–75 | Walt Budko (20) | 8–11 |
| 20 | December 14 | vs Indianapolis | 88–75 | Hal Tidrick (24) | 9–11 |
| 21 | December 16 | St. Louis | 82–85 (OT) | Simmons, Tidrick (17) | 9–12 |
| 22 | December 17 | @ Boston | 74–63 | Lewis, Reiser (16) | 10–12 |
| 23 | December 23 | Chicago | 96–89 | Fred Lewis (20) | 11–12 |
| 24 | December 25 | @ Providence | 88–83 | Connie Simmons (23) | 12–12 |
| 25 | December 29 | Providence | 88–98 | Connie Simmons (25) | 12–13 |
| 26 | December 30 | Rochester | 100–89 | Connie Simmons (23) | 13–13 |
| 27 | January 1 | Boston | 72–67 | Fred Lewis (16) | 14–13 |
| 28 | January 4 | @ Boston | 69–75 | Fred Lewis (17) | 14–14 |
| 29 | January 5 | @ Washington | 88–68 | Connie Simmons (18) | 15–14 |
| 30 | January 6 | Philadelphia | 93–88 | Connie Simmons (25) | 16–14 |
| 31 | January 8 | @ New York | 83–81 | Chick Reiser (23) | 17–14 |
| 32 | January 12 | Washington | 106–92 | Stanley Stutz (27) | 18–14 |
| 33 | January 13 | Rochester | 85–102 | Jake Pelkington (27) | 18–15 |
| 34 | January 15 | @ Philadelphia | 87–94 | Budko, Pelkington (16) | 18–16 |
| 35 | January 20 | New York | 82–68 | Connie Simmons (21) | 19–16 |
| 36 | January 22 | @ Providence | 86–89 | Connie Simmons (15) | 19–17 |
| 37 | January 26 | Washington | 96–86 | Connie Simmons (28) | 20–17 |
| 38 | January 27 | Providence | 89–95 | Fred Lewis (20) | 20–18 |
| 39 | January 29 | @ Rochester | 86–90 | Jake Pelkington (30) | 20–19 |
| 40 | January 30 | @ Fort Wayne | 93–78 | Connie Simmons (23) | 21–19 |
| 41 | February 2 | @ Chicago | 67–77 | Chick Reiser (19) | 21–20 |
| 42 | February 3 | Boston | 84–76 | Pelkington, Tidrick (17) | 22–20 |
| 43 | February 5 | Indianapolis | 87–75 | Walt Budko (18) | 23–20 |
| 44 | February 7 | @ Boston | 83–95 | Jake Pelkington (24) | 23–21 |
| 45 | February 10 | Rochester | 76–90 | Chick Reiser (25) | 23–22 |
| 46 | February 12 | @ St. Louis | 73–74 | Hal Tidrick (15) | 23–23 |
| 47 | February 13 | @ Minneapolis | 74–91 | Connie Simmons (14) | 23–24 |
| 48 | February 15 | @ Indianapolis | 82–69 | Sid Tanenbaum (18) | 24–24 |
| 49 | February 16 | @ Fort Wayne | 68–84 | Chick Reiser (15) | 24–25 |
| 50 | February 17 | Providence | 100–102 | Stanley Stutz (24) | 24–26 |
| 51 | February 19 | @ Washington | 88–92 | Jake Pelkington (17) | 24–27 |
| 52 | February 24 | Chicago | 68–87 | Jake Pelkington (14) | 24–28 |
| 53 | February 26 | Minneapolis | 114–115 (2OT) | Jake Pelkington (33) | 24–29 |
| 54 | March 3 | St. Louis | 94–66 | Hal Tidrick (21) | 25–29 |
| 55 | March 5 | Philadelphia | 99–85 | Stanley Stutz (21) | 26–29 |
| 56 | March 10 | New York | 94–99 | Jake Pelkington (18) | 26–30 |
| 57 | March 12 | Boston | 89–77 | Sid Tanenbaum (21) | 27–30 |
| 58 | March 15 | @ Philadelphia | 76–84 | Jake Pelkington (13) | 27–31 |
| 59 | March 17 | Minneapolis | 101–67 | Chick Reiser (23) | 28–31 |
| 60 | March 19 | Fort Wayne | 99–79 | Connie Simmons (21) | 29–31 |
Playoffs
East Division Semifinals
(2) New York Knicks vs. (3) Baltimore Bullets: Knicks win series 2-1
- Game 1 @ New York: Baltimore 82, New York 81
- Game 2 @ Baltimore: New York 84, Baltimore 74
- Game 3 @ New York: New York 103, Baltimore 99 (OT)
Last Playoff Meeting: 1948 BAA Quarterfinals (Baltimore won 2–1)
Player statistics
| 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 |