1950–51 Washington Capitols season

Aborted NBA professional basketball team season March 2026 August 2023 Washington Capitols 1951 10 25 Eastern 6 Bones McKinney Washington Coliseum Mike Uline Rob Foster WWDC Did not qualify WSC thumb|The 1950–51 Washington Capitols The 1950–51 Washington Capitols season was the Capitols' fifth and final season in the NBA.1950-51 Washington Capitols Roster and Stats https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/1951.html 2025-07-28 Basketball-Reference.com en Midway through the season, the franchise ceased operations. Despite this being their final season in the NBA, the Capitols would appear in the following season after this one under the original American Basketball League, though that team would also fold during the middle of that season as well (though that related to the NBA threatening to sue the new Capitols and the ABL if they tried to take the original franchise's history away from the NBA alongside the team's name).Washington Capitols https://nbahoopsonline.com/teams/Xdefunct/WashingtonCapitols/index.html 2025-07-28 nbahoopsonline.com One lesser known, yet notable aspect from this season had the Capitols be involved in multiple rigged games orchestrated by NBA referee Sol Levy, with Levy failing to rig a match between the Capitols and the Minneapolis Lakers on November 4 to favor the Capitols, but successfully rig a match against the Boston Celtics to have Boston win a week later on November 11, which later led to Levy being arrested for his actions and charged as an accomplice in the CCNY point-shaving scandal of 1951.2003-11-19 ESPN Classic - Explosion: 1951 scandals threaten college hoops https://www.espn.com/classic/s/basketball_scandals_explosion.html 2025-07-28 www.espn.com24 July 2007 When an NBA Referee Was Convicted of Shaving Points https://www.espn.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/3690/when-an-nba-referee-was-convicted-of-shaving-points BAA/NBA Draft 1950 NBA draft Round Pick Player Position(s) Nationality College 1 4 Dick Schnittker PF USA 1912 Ohio State 2 16 Bill Sharman SG USA 1912 United States USC 3 28 Alan Sawyer SF USA 1912 United States UCLA 4 40 Tommy O'Keefe PG/SG USA 1912 United States Georgetown 5 52 Claude Overton SG USA 1912 United States East Central State 6 64 Warren Cartier G USA 1912 United States North Carolina State 7 76 Jim Cathcart SF USA 1912 United States Arkansas 8 88 Joe Greenbach PG USA 1912 United States Santa Clara 9 100 Earl Lloyd F/C USA 1912 United States West Virginia State 10 112 Joe Noertker G USA 1912 United States Virginia Earl Lloyd would be the first African American player drafted to officially play in the NBA due to the Capitols making their regular season debut first over the Boston Celtics with Chuck Cooper and the New York Knickerbockers with Nathaniel Clifton. Lloyd's breaking of the racial barrier in the NBA would happen years after Jackie Robinson would do it for Major League Baseball and the all-black Dayton Rens had played in the NBA's precursor in the National Basketball League after replacing the Detroit Vagabond Kings during the NBL's final season of existence. However, this draft would also be the final draft that the Capitols would ever participate in, as well as become the only draft they'd ever take part in under the official NBA draft name, as they would have the magnanimous misnomer of being the first NBA team to fold operations during a season of play, with such a dubious feat not occurring again in the NBA until four seasons later in the 1954-55 NBA season. Roster Washington Capitols 1950–51 17 Edward Bartels F 6 5 195 NC State Tommy Byrnes F/G 6 3 175 Seton Hall 11 Chuck Gilmur F/C 6 4 225 Washington 14 Chick Halbert C 6 9 225 West Texas A&M 18, 23 Frank Kudelka basketball G/F 6 2 193 Saint Mary's Earl Lloyd SF 6 5 200 West Virginia State 12 Ariel Maughan F 6 4 190 Utah State 29 Bones McKinney SF 6 6 185 North Carolina 15 Ed Mikan C 6 8 230 DePaul 16 Johnny Norlander F 6 3 180 Hamline 13 Dick O'Keefe G/F 6 2 185 Santa Clara Tommy O'Keefe G 6 2 185 Georgetown 15 Don Otten C 6 10 240 Bowling Green 17, 29 Alan Sawyer F 6 5 195 UCLA 22 Dick Schnittker SF 6 5 200 Ohio State 20 Fred Scolari PG 5 10 180 San Francisco 10 Bill Sharman SG 6 1 175 USC Bones McKinney Regular season Season standings WSC Game log Washington Capitols 1951 Total: 10–25 Washington Capitols October yes y y |- | 1 | October 31 | @ Rochester | L 70–78 | Fred Scolari (18) | | 0–1 Washington Capitols November y y |- | 2 | November 1 | Indianapolis | W 100–84 | Alan Sawyer (17) | | 1–1 |- | 3 | November 4 | Minneapolis | L 85–91 | Sawyer, Sharman (19) | | 1–2 |- | 4 | November 8 | Baltimore | W 86–81 | Fred Scolari (24) | | 2–2 |- | 5 | November 11 || Boston | L 77–78 | Fred Scolari (21) | | 2–3 |- | 6 | November 12 | @ Fort Wayne | L 73–87 | Fred Scolari (14) | | 2–4 |- | 7 | November 14 | New York | L 87–92 | Fred Scolari (16) | | 2–5 |- | 8 | November 15 || vs Boston | L 74–79 | Bill Sharman (20) | | 2–6 |- | 9 | November 18 | Fort Wayne | W 118–75 | Schnittker, Scolari (20) | | 3–6 |- | 10 | November 19 | @ Boston | W 81–75 | Frank Kudelka (15) | | 4–6 |- | 11 | November 21 | @ Philadelphia | L 78–83 | Frank Kudelka (13) | | 4–7 |- | 12 | November 22 | Tri-Cities | W 65–60 | Fred Scolari (13) | | 5–7 |- | 13 | November 23 | @ New York | L 78–109 | Schnittker, Scolari (17) | | 5–8 |- | 14 | November 25 | Syracuse | L 67–77 | Don Otten (22) | | 5–9 |- | 15 | November 26 | @ Syracuse | L 76–90 | Chick Halbert (17) | | 5–10 |- | 16 | November 28 | @ Rochester | L 71–87 | Fred Scolari (17) | | 5–11 |- | 17 | November 29 | Rochester | L 71–72 | Bill Sharman (20) | | 5–12 |- | 18 | November 30 | @ Boston | W 85–81 | Fred Scolari (23) | | 6–12 Washington Capitols December y y |- | 19 | December 2 | Boston | L 75–83 | Bill Sharman (18) | | 6–13 |- | 20 | December 6 | Indianapolis | L 79–101 | Dick Schnittker (16) | | 6–14 |- | 21 | December 9 | New York | W 91–84 | Fred Scolari (22) | | 7–14 |- | 22 | December 10 | @ Fort Wayne | L 81–97 | Dick Schnittker (18) | | 7–15 |- | 23 | December 13 | Boston | W 110–79 | Fred Scolari (24) | | 8–15 |- | 24 | December 16 | Philadelphia | L 88–96 | Fred Scolari (15) | | 8–16 |- | 25 | December 20 | Rochester | L 76–94 | Bill Sharman (15) | | 8–17 |- | 26 | December 23 | Indianapolis | L 79–87 (OT) | Dick Schnittker (19) | | 8–18 |- | 27 | December 25 | @ Minneapolis | L 79–93 | Fred Scolari (17) | | 8–19 |- | 28 | December 26 | @ Indianapolis | W 88–81 | Fred Scolari (24) | | 9–19 |- | 29 | December 28 | @ Tri-Cities | L 80–97 | Fred Scolari (19) | | 9–20 |- | 30 | December 30 | @ Rochester | L 77–91 | Bill Sharman (19) | | 9–21 Washington Capitols January y y |- | 31 | January 1 | @ Baltimore | L 71–83 | Bill Sharman (18) | | 9–22 |- | 32 | January 3 | Baltimore | W 92–82 | Bill Sharman (21) | | 10–22 |- | 33 | January 6 | Fort Wayne | L 76–91 | Bill Sharman (17) | | 10–23 |- | 34 | January 7 | @ Boston | L 86–91 (OT) | Fred Scolari (19) | | 10–24 |- | 35 | January 9 | @ Philadelphia | L 74–102 | Bill Sharman (17) | | 10–25 Dispersal Draft After the Capitols franchise folded operations on January 9, 1951, the NBA would conduct a dispersal draft on the team's players later that same day. It effectively became the final dispersal draft of the 1950–51 season, following the dispersal drafts involving the Waterloo Hawks, Anderson Packers, St. Louis Bombers, and Chicago Stags franchises earlier in the 1950 offseason period. As such, the following teams acquired these players from the Capitols during the dispersal draft period. Baltimore Bullets: Chick Halbert Boston Celtics: Bones McKinney & Frank Kudelka Fort Wayne Pistons: Bill Sharman Minneapolis Lakers: Dick Schnittker Syracuse Nationals: Earl Lloyd & Fred Scolari Tri-Cities Blackhawks: Alan Sawyer References Category:Washington Capitols seasons Washington Washington Capitols Washington Capitols