1948 Baltimore Bullets

Baltimore came over from the American Basketball League and went 28-20, second in the BAA's Western Division. Jeannette coached from the floor as a starting guard, a common setup in the era. The Bullets allowed the fewest points of any contender and graded out as the league's strongest team by point margin.

Hermsen averaged 12.0 points and Chick Reiser 11.5. Jeannette added 10.7 while leading the team in assists and pacing the BAA in shooting accuracy. Rookie Paul Hoffman and Connie Simmons scored inside, and Mike Bloom gave them another big body off the bench.

The Bullets reached the Finals through a division tiebreaker and two playoff rounds, then beat the Warriors four games to two. Simmons turned up in the postseason and led the team in scoring across the run.

No BAA or NBA team has matched it: Baltimore won the title in its very first season in the league. The franchise folded in 1954 and is separate from the later Baltimore Bullets. Jeannette, the player-coach, was elected to the Hall of Fame.

The starting five was Chuck Reiser, Joe Holland, Don Barksdale, Paul Hoffman, and Connie Simmons. Buddy Jeanette coached the group with Grady Lewis as the primary bench scorer.

The full roster ran deeper than the headline names. Role players who mattered included Kleggie Hermsen (team's leading scorer at 12.0 a game); Paul Seymour (rookie, later a Syracuse star and coach).

Playoff formats in the late 1940s were still settling. The 1948 Baltimore Bullets had to win multiple series against the best teams in the BAA, with travel and rest unlike the modern schedule.

The Baltimore Bullets have only this one title in the record covered on Ring Holders Club. That makes the 1948 run the whole of the franchise's championship story in our archive.

Looking back, the Baltimore Bullets joined the BAA for the 1947-48 season and won the championship in their first year in the league, beating the Philadelphia Warriors four games to two. Buddy Jeannette ran the team as player-coach, led it in assists, and shot the best field-goal percentage in the league. Kleggie Hermsen, a 6-9 center, was the leading scorer.

For the full roster beyond the featured starters, see the table on this page. For other Baltimore Bullets titles, use the franchise hub linked below.