SLBSt. Louis Bombers

Franchise history

The Bombers were one of eleven charter franchises when the Basketball Association of America launched in 1946, and they were genuinely competitive in the league's first two seasons under coach Ken Loeffler. St. Louis went 38-23 in 1946-47, finishing second in the Western Division before losing in the quarterfinals to the eventual champion Philadelphia Warriors, then won the division outright in 1947-48 and advanced to the BAA semifinals, again falling to Philadelphia in a seven-game series.

The team never matched that early success after Loeffler's 1948 departure, and the 1949 merger of the BAA with the rival National Basketball League to form the NBA left St. Louis competing in a larger, more competitive circuit. By January 1950, ownership was openly shopping the franchise, citing poor results and attendance that had fallen to roughly 3,550 fans a game. The Bombers folded on April 22, 1950, one of several weaker-market teams the NBA shed in its early consolidation, leaving no continuing franchise lineage.

Sources

• St. Louis Bombers — Wikipedia
• 1946-47 St. Louis Bombers season — Wikipedia