1947–48 Rochester Royals season
| 1947–48 Rochester Royals season | |
|---|---|
Division champions | |
| Head coach | Eddie Malanowicz |
| Owners | Jack Harrison Les Harrison |
| Arena | Edgerton Park Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 44–16 (.733) |
| Place | Division: 1st (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | NBL Championship (lost to Minneapolis Lakers 1–3) |
Stats at Basketball Reference | |
| Radio | WHAM |
The 1947–48 Rochester Royals season was the franchise's third season in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team finished with a 44–16 record, which became the best record in the NBL by one game over the upstart Minneapolis Lakers. Rochester would end up beating their league rivaling Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons 3–1 in the quarterfinal round and then beat the Anderson Duffey Packers 2–1 before returning to the NBL Finals for the third and final time in their history. Once again, they saw themselves go up against the towering star center George Mikan (who had been picked up by what was considered to be the newly-established Lakers squad despite them picking up their past history from an awful Detroit Gems squad after the Chicago American Gears left the NBL for the short-lived Professional Basketball League of America and folded after that league went down a lot earlier than they expected it to and the American Gears weren't allowed back into the NBL), and once again, Mikan's presence as a player proved to be too much for the Royals to overcome, as they ended up losing the NBL Championship 3–1 for the second straight year in a row, this time to the newly-established Lakers (who would soon grow to be a powerhouse force in basketball history) instead. Following this season's conclusion, both the Royals and defending NBL champion Lakers, alongside the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons and Indianapolis Kautskys would end up leaving the NBL to play for the Basketball Association of America (now known as the National Basketball Association), though the Zollner Pistons would drop the Zollner part of their name and the Kautskys would rename themselves to the Indianapolis Jets due to that league not allowing teams to have sponsorships to also be a part of their team names. Since then, the Jets folded operations entirely, while the other surviving NBL teams that switched teams moved elsewhere, with the Pistons moving to Detroit, Michigan to become the Detroit Pistons, the Lakers moving from Minneapolis to Los Angeles to become the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Royals rebranding themselves multiple times and going from their original Rochester, New York location to Sacramento to become the Sacramento Kings.
League standings
Eastern standings
| Pos. | Eastern Division | Wins | Losses | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 44 | 16 | .733 | |
| 2 | Anderson Duffey Packers | 42 | 18 | .700 |
| 3 | Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons | 40 | 20 | .667 |
| 4 | Syracuse Nationals | 24 | 36 | .400 |
| 5 | Toledo Jeeps | 22 | 37 | .373 |
| 6 | Flint Dow A.C.'s | 8 | 52 | .133 |
Western Division
| Pos. | Western Division | Wins | Losses | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minneapolis Lakers | 43 | 17 | .717 |
| 2 | Tri-Cities Blackhawks | 30 | 30 | .500 |
| 3 | Oshkosh All-Stars | 29 | 31 | .483 |
| 4 | Indianapolis Kautskys | 24 | 35 | .407 |
| 5 | Sheboygan Red Skins | 23 | 37 | .383 |
Team statistics
Regular season
| Rank | Player | Position | Games played | Field goals | Free throws made | Free throws attempted | Points per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al Cervi | G-F | 49 | 4.8 | 3.8 | 4.9 | 13.4 |
| 2 | Red Holzman | G | 60 | 4.1 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 10.2 |
| 3 | Andy Duncan | F-C | 60 | 3.3 | 2.0 | 3.3 | 8.7 |
| 4 | Bob Davies | G-F | 48 | 3.7 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 9.8 |
| 5 | Arnie Risen | C-F | 28 | 5.2 | 4.2 | 5.8 | 14.5 |
| 6 | Andrew Levane | F-G | 54 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 1.1 | 6.3 |
| 7 | Arnie Johnson | F-C | 57 | 1.8 | 1.7 | 2.6 | 5.2 |
| 8 | George Ratkovicz | C-F | 234 | 1.5 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 4.4 |
| 9 | Bobby Wanzer | G | 40 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 1.7 | 4.2 |
| 10 | Bill Calhoun | F-G | 42 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 1.9 |
| 11 | John Mandic | F-C | 33 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 2.3 |
| 12 | Leroy King | C | 12 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 1.0 |
| 13 | Joseph Lord | G | 4 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 1.5 |
| 14 | Ocie Richie | F | 1 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Playoffs
| Rank | Player | Position | Games played | Field goals | Free throws made | Free throws attempted | Points per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Davies | G-F | 11 | 5.1 | 4.5 | 5.8 | 14.6 |
| 2 | Andy Duncan | F-C | 11 | 3.5 | 2.1 | 3.1 | 9.2 |
| 3 | Arnie Risen | C-F | 7 | 5.0 | 4.3 | 6.3 | 14.3 |
| 4 | Red Holzman | G | 10 | 3.5 | 1.0 | 1.5 | 8.0 |
| 5 | Bobby Wanzer | G | 11 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 6.0 |
| 6 | Arnie Johnson | F-C | 11 | 2.1 | 1.8 | 2.2 | 6.0 |
| 7 | George Ratkovicz | C-F | 60 | 2.0 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 5.5 |
| 8 | Al Cervi | G-F | 6 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 3.2 | 8.3 |
| 9 | Andrew Levane | F-G | 9 | 2.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 4.7 |
| 10 | Bill Calhoun | F-G | 8 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 3.0 |
| 11 | John Mandic | F-C | 5 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 1.2[1] |
Awards and honors
- 1st Team: Al Cervi, Red Holzman
- 2nd Team: Bob Davies[2]