Philadelphia Warriors win ABA Title
On April 22, 1947 – 1947: The Philadelphia Warriors, behind Jumpin’ Joe Fulks’ 34 points, win the first Basketball Association of America championship with a 83-80 victory over the Chicago Stags in Game 5.
Fulks, the league’s leading scorer, nets 10 of the Stags’ 26 field goals and hits on 14-of-18 foul shots before a crowd of 8,221 in Philadelphia. Guard Howie Dallmar’s field goal with less than a minute remaining and forward Ralph Kaplowitz’s free throw provide the winning margin for coach Eddie Gottlieb’s team.
The Warriors (35-25) had finished the regular season in second place in the six-team Eastern Division, 14 games behind Red Auerbach’s Washington Capitols (49-11). But the Capitols were upset by the Stags, winners of the West, in six games in the playoff semifinals.
Players on the Warriors pocket about $2,000 per man in prize money — almost half a season’s pay for most.
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