Published December 19, 2022
The NBA Time Machine:
1961
Welcoming the West
Los Angeles
During the 1959-60 season, the Minneapolis Lakers experimented with playing a few games in California – one in Los Angeles against the Philadelphia Warriors, and another couple against the St. Louis Hawks some weeks later. Franchise owner Bob Short took note of the significantly better fan attendance in those neutral settings than that of Minneapolis – he immediately hinted at considering relocation afterwards.
Once he proposed the idea, the NBA was hesitant on approving the decision – however, they allowed it under a couple costs:
- That Bob Short draw a satisfactory schedule amongst their home arenas
- And that he paid off travel costs for the rest of the league
Due to the latter, teams often played back-to-backs when in Los Angeles – it decreased the frequency of travel and therefore conserved funds.
Following the move, the Lakers not only became the NBA‘s first west coast team, but also the final member of the Western Division to abandon their original location. The Hawks had left Milwaukee, the Pistons abandoned Fort Wayne, and the Royals relocated from Rochester.
Two Guards
The top two picks in the 1960 draft were point guards Oscar Robertson and Jerry West, who both played excellently in college. Robertson regularly stuffed the stat sheet and was unstoppable offensively – standing at 6’5″, he was abnormally large for a guard and therefore succeeded scoring anywhere on the court.
West was nearly as versatile himself, averaging 29.3 points and 16.5 rebounds per game during his final college season. His resiliency was exciting to teams, and he co-captained the gold medal-winning Olympics team this year alongside Robertson.
Ultimately, Robertson was drafted first by the Cincinnati Royals via territorial rules. Coinciding with their move to California, the Los Angeles Lakers chose West with the second pick.
More and More
In light of stability amongst the league’s franchises, the NBA increased its amount of games for the second consecutive year. This time they reached for 79 from 75.
Standout Players
Around the League
Team Standings
Notes
An asterisk (*) indicates that the team qualified for the playoffs.