How Many Teams Were in the NBA in 1960?
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How Many Teams Were in the NBA in 1960? There were 8 teams in the NBA in 1960.
The NBA in 1960
The National Basketball Association (NBA) was founded in 1946, and by the 1960 season there were nine teams in the league. The league expanded to ten teams for the 1961 season, and then to fourteen teams for the 1968 season.
The teams in the NBA in 1960
In 1960, there were 8 teams in the NBA:
-Boston Celtics
-Cincinnati Royals
-Detroit Pistons
--Los Angeles Lakers
-New York Knicks
-Philadelphia Warriors
-St. Louis Hawks
-Syracuse Nationals
The expansion of the NBA in 1960
In 1960, the NBA expanded from 8 to 14 teams. This was largely in response to the popularity of the game, as well as the success of the league’s first television contract. The new teams were the Chicago Packers (now the Washington Wizards), the Minneapolis Lakers (now the Los Angeles Lakers), the Pittsburgh Pipers (now the Brooklyn Nets), and the Cleveland Pipers (no current NBA affiliations).
The new teams in the NBA in 1960
The National Basketball Association (NBA) was founded in 1946 with 11 teams. The league has since expanded and contracted numerous times, with new teams being added and existing teams being removed. As of 2020, the NBA consists of 30 teams.
1960 was a big year for the NBA, as the league added four new expansion teams the Chicago Packers (now the Washington Wizards), the Cleveland Pipers (disbanded in 1963), the Minneapolis Lakers (now the Los Angeles Lakers), and the Philadelphia Warriors (now the Golden State Warriors). These four teams increased the number of teams in the NBA to 15.
The teams that left the NBA in 1960
In 1960, there were seventeen teams in the NBA. But that number didn’t last long. That same year, four Teams Announced they were leaving the NBA to join a new Basketball League the American Basketball league (ABL). The ABL only lasted for two years before folding, but those four teams never returned to the NBA. So in 1960, the seventeen teams in the NBA were:
-Boston Celtics
-New York Knicks
-Philadelphia Warriors
-Chicago Packers
-Detroit Pistons
-Baltimore Bullets
-St. Louis Hawks
--Los Angeles Lakers
-Cincinnati Royals
– Minneapolis/St. Paul Lakers
– Portland Trail Blazers (then known as the Portland Rosebuds) Seattle SuperSonics (then known as the Seattle Pilots) Syracuse Nationals (now the Philadelphia 76ers) Toronto Raptors (then known as the Toronto Huskies)
The impact of the new teams on the NBA in 1960
In 1960, the NBA was made up of 17 teams. The new teams that joined the league were the Chicago Packers, the Los Angeles Lakers the Minneapolis Lakers, and the San Francisco Warriors The league was also split into two divisions, the Eastern and Western Divisions. Each division had eight teams. The new teams impacted the league in a few ways. First, it increased competition among teams. Second, it increased the geographical reach of the NBA. Third, it increased the number of games that each team played.
The legacy of the NBA in 1960
In 1960, the National Basketball Association (NBA) was in its infancy. There were only eight teams in the league: the Boston Celtics Chicago Packers (now the Washington Wizards), Los Angeles Lakers Minneapolis Lakers (now the Los Angeles Lakers), New York Knicks Philadelphia Warriors (now the Golden State Warriors), Pittsburgh Steelers (now the Los Angeles Clippers) and Syracuse Nationals (now the Philadelphia 76ers).
The 1960 season was also significant because it was the first time an African American player, Wilt Chamberlain was named MVP of the league. Chamberlain would go on to have a Hall of Fame career with the Warriors, Lakers and Sixers.
The 1960s were a decade of growth for the NBA. The league added six Expansion Teams between 1961 and 1968, including the Chicago Bulls Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns By 1970, there were 17 teams in the NBA.
The NBA today
The NBA today consists of 30 teams, 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. But it wasn’t always this way. The league was founded in 1946 with just 11 teams, 8 in the US and 3 in Canada. Throughout the years, the number of teams has fluctuated as franchises have come and gone. Here’s a look at the history of team changes in the NBA.
1946-1949: The league starts with 11 teams and remains stable for its first three years.
1950: The NBA expands to 13 teams with the addition of the Minneapolis Lakers and the Syracuse Nationals.
1953: The NBA drops down to 12 teams as the National Basketball League absorbs four of its franchises.
1955-1966: The NBA expands and contracts several times, bouncing back and forth between 10 and 14 teams.
1967: The NBA reaches its current size of 30 teams with the addition of 16 new franchises.
The future of the NBA
In 1960, the NBA was made up of just nine teams. The league wouldn’t expand again until 1974, when the NBA added eight more teams. Today, the NBA is made up of 30 teams.
The impact of the 1960 NBA on today’s NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) was founded in 1946 and has been one of the most popular professional sports leagues in the United States ever since. Today, the NBA is made up of 30 teams, but that hasn’t always been the case. The league has seen a number of team additions and subtractions over the years, with the 1960s being a particularly tumultuous decade.
In 1960, there were only 8 teams in the NBA. This was following a period of rapid expansion in the 1950s, when the league nearly doubled in size from 9 teams to 17 teams. However, by 1963, that number had shrunk back down to 9 teams. It would remain at 9 teams until 1974, when the league finally stabilized at its current 30-team size.
The 1960s were thus a turbulent time for the NBA, and it’s interesting to think about how things might have turned out differently if different decisions had been made. For example, if the league had not contracted back down to 9 teams in 1963, would we have seen more expansionary periods like we did in the 1980s and 1990s? Or would 30 teams have been too many for the league to handle at that time?
Interestingly, one of the original 8 teams from 1960 is no longer in existence today. The Montreal Royals were a charter member of the NBA but only lasted 3 seasons before folding due to financial difficulties. So while it’s impossible to say exactly how many teams there would be in today’s NBA if not for Business Decision_1 or 2__, we can say for certain that at least one team would be missing.
In any case, the 1960s were an important time for the NBA, laying the foundation for today’s widely-popular 30-team league.