1937–38 National Basketball League (United States) season

The 1937–38 NBL season was the third season of the National Basketball League (NBL), and its first season after the rebranding of the Midwest Basketball Conference as the NBL. The regular season began on November 27, 1937, and ended on February 20, 1938. The playoffs began on February 22, 1938, and concluded on March 4, 1938, with the Akron Goodyear Wingfoots defeating the Oshkosh All-Stars in the NBL Championship by 2 games to 1.^[2] This season would be considered the loosest structured of the twelve NBL seasons played, as the lack of proper formatting in mind made this season feel a bit too similar to the two Midwest Basketball Conference seasons played before this one began.

Four teams would compete in the NBL this season that did not play in the MBC during the previous season, with three of them being new to the rebranded league in general. Both the Kankakee Gallagher Trojans and the Richmond King Clothiers played their inaugural (and only) seasons as professional basketball teams during this season in the NBL, while the barnstorming Oshkosh All-Stars joined the league following their high-profile, seven-game championship series of exhibition games against the New York Renaissance, though Oshkosh would not officially join the NBL until December 1937, with their first game in the NBL being played on January 1, 1938.^[3][4] In addition to them, the Buffalo Bisons (who are considered to potentially have existing ties with the Buffalo Bisons ABL team^[5]) returned to the now newly rebranded NBL after a one-year hiatus from them.^[6][7]

By contrast, three MBC teams from the previous season (the final season under the MBC name) in the inaugural MBC champion Chicago Duffy Florals, the Detroit Altes Lagers, and the Indianapolis U.S. Tires all either departed from the league, folded operations entirely, or in the case of the Indianapolis U.S. Tires team, merged operations with the Indianapolis Kautskys prior to the season and did not compete in what can be considered the inaugural NBL season.^[8]

Three other teams also renamed themselves prior to the season beginning. First, the Dayton London Bobbys returned to their previous name, the Dayton Metropolitans, after their previous sponsor sold off their sponsorship back to the team's original sponsor, the Dayton Metropolitan Clothing Store. Then, the Pittsburgh Y.M.H.A. team would adopt the Pittsburgh Pirates moniker in honor of the baseball team representing Major League Baseball. Finally, the Warren HyVis Oils renamed themselves to the Warren Penns under team owner/player-coach Gerry Archibald's shrewd and clever thinking for keeping his team sponsorship with HyVis Penn Oil while still promoting their brand during this time.^[9]

The Richmond King Clothiers unofficially folded in December 1937; they sold their franchise to Augustino "Gus" Comello on January 5, 1938. Comello moved the team from Richmond, Indiana to Cincinnati and renamed the team the Cincinnati Comellos. The Comellos resumed play on January 16, 1938, but their season was cut short by the aftermath of the Ohio River flood of 1937.^[10]

Prior to the season, the Midwest Basketball Conference submitted an organizational name change to the National Basketball League, which was made official on October 6, 1937.^[20] The purpose of the name change was to help give the league more of a "national effect" and have it feel less like a regional league, according to Warren Penns owner, general manager, head coach, and player Gerry Archibald.^[3]

There was a lack of rule standardization in the league, with the home team deciding on timekeeping rules and whether to perform a jump ball after each basket. There were also a number of scheduling issues, with widespread forfeits and unbalanced schedules.^[21] In addition to those issues, two of the NBL's games this season also utilized the rivaling American Basketball League's rules of play (which involved three 15-minute period) instead of what would eventually become the NBL's own standard time period of four 10-minute quarters.

The top two teams from each division qualified for the playoffs. Both the division playoffs and the NBL Championship were played under a best-of-three format. The Akron Goodyear Wingfoots upset the Akron Firestone Non-Skids 2–0 in the Eastern Division playoff and the Oshkosh All-Stars 2–1 in the NBL Championship to win the title. The All-Stars had swept the Whiting Ciesar All-Americans 2–0 in the Western Division playoff to qualify for the NBL Championship.

Leroy Edwards of the Oshkosh All-Stars scored a then league-high 28 points in a single game on February 2, 1938, in a win over the Kankakee Gallagher Trojans.^[22] The Columbus Athletic Supply team's 1–12 record stands as the worst winning percentage in NBL history for a team that completed a full season.^[23]

Note: Prior to the 1969–70 NBA season, league leaders in points were determined by totals rather than averages. Rebound and assist statistics as well as shooting percentages were not recorded properly in the NBL.

• NBL Most Valuable Player: Leroy Edwards, Oshkosh All-Stars
• NBL Coach of the Year: Lefty Byers, Akron Goodyear Wingfoots
• NBL Rookie of the Year: Robert Kessler, Indianapolis Kautskys

^[27]

• National Basketball League (United States)

• "National Basketball League 1937-38 to 1948-49". Association for Professional Basketball Research. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
• "National Basketball League III". RetroSeasons. 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2026-01-09.