# 1949–50 Syracuse Nationals season

The 1949–50 Syracuse Nationals season was the first season for the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Nationals played its previous three seasons in the National Basketball League, which merged with the Basketball Association of America to form the NBA.
Al Cervi, nicknamed "Digger" for his superior defensive skills, guided the team with his competitive nature while serving as a player-coach. As the Syracuse Post-Standard describes, "The Nationals shot poorly but succeeded because they played Cervi-style basketball: nasty, with an emphasis on defense."
The Nationals went to the NBA Finals after beating the Philadelphia Warriors and New York Knicks, but lost to the Minneapolis Lakers in six games.

## Draft picks

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |

## Regular season
### Standings

| Eastern Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div |
| x-Syracuse Nationals | 51 | 13 | .797 | – | 31–1 | 15–12 | 5–0 | 9–1 |
| x-New York Knicks | 40 | 28 | .588 | 13 | 19–10 | 18–16 | 3–2 | 20–6 |
| x-Washington Capitols | 32 | 36 | .471 | 21 | 21–13 | 10–20 | 1–3 | 13–13 |
| x-Philadelphia Warriors | 26 | 42 | .382 | 25 | 15–15 | 8–23 | 3–4 | 9–17 |
| Baltimore Bullets | 25 | 43 | .368 | 26 | 16–15 | 8–25 | 1–3 | 8–18 |
| Boston Celtics | 22 | 46 | .324 | 29 | 12–14 | 5–28 | 5–4 | 11–15 |

### Record vs. opponents

1949–50 NBA records :
| Team | AND | BAL | BOS | CHI | DEN | FWP | IND | MIN | NYK | PHI | ROC | SHE | STL | SYR | TCB | WAS | WAT |
| Anderson | — | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 4–3 | 1–1 | 2–5 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 5–2 | 2–0 | 3–4 | 7–2 | 1–1 | 7–0 |
| Baltimore | 1–1 | — | 2–4 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 1–5 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 1–1 |
| Boston | 2–0 | 4–2 | — | 0–6 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 1–5 | 3–3 | 0–6 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 |
| Chicago | 1–1 | 5–1 | 6–0 | — | 2–0 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 4–2 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 5–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–0 |
| Denver | 3–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | — | 0–2 | 0–7 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–4 | 0–2 | 1–6 | 0–7 | 0–2 | 2–5 |
| Fort Wayne | 1–1 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 2–0 | — | 1–1 | 2–4 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 5–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–4 | 1–1 |
| Indianapolis | 5–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 7–0 | 1–1 | — | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 5–2 | 1–1 | 2–7 | 4–3 | 1–1 | 5–2 |
| Minneapolis | 1–1 | 5–1 | 5–1 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 4–2 | 1–1 | — | 5–1 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 2–0 |
| New York | 1–1 | 5–1 | 5–1 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 1–5 | — | 1–5 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 2–0 |
| Philadelphia | 1–1 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 1–5 | — | 1–5 | 2–0 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 |
| Rochester | 2–0 | 3–3 | 6–0 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 5–1 | 5–1 | — | 1–1 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 2–0 |
| Sheboygan | 2–5 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 4–3 | 0–2 | 2–5 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | — | 0–2 | 1–6 | 3–4 | 2–0 | 4–3 |
| St. Louis | 0–2 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 1–5 | 2–0 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 2–4 | 4–2 | 1–5 | 2–0 | — | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–6 | 1–1 |
| Syracuse | 4–3 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 6–1 | 2–0 | 7–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 6–1 | 1–1 | — | 6–1 | 1–1 | 6–1 |
| Tri-Cities | 2–7 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 7–0 | 0–2 | 3–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 4–3 | 0–2 | 1–6 | — | 1–1 | 4–3 |
| Washington | 1–1 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 0–6 | 1–5 | 4–2 | 0–6 | 0–2 | 6–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | — | 1–1 |
| Waterloo | 0–7 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 5–2 | 1–1 | 2–5 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–4 | 1–1 | 1–6 | 3–4 | 1–1 | — |

### Game log

1949–50 Game Log Total: 51–13 (Home: 31–1; Road: 15–12; Neutral: 5–0) :
November: 13–1 (Home: 8–0; Road: 3–1; Neutral: 2–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationHigh pointsRecord
1November 3Denver Nuggets78–58State Fair ColiseumAl Cervi (17)1–0
2November 5vs Denver Nuggets84–51(Auburn, New York)Billy Gabor (12)2–0
3November 6Philadelphia Warriors82–72State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (17)3–0
4November 9Indianapolis Olympians103–73State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (22)4–0
5November 10@ St. Louis Bombers67–73St. Louis ArenaGabor, Hannum (13)4–1
6November 12@ Anderson Packers84–69Anderson High School WigwamAl Cervi (23)5–1
7November 13New York Knicks80–66State Fair ColiseumBilly Gabor (20)6–1
8November 15@ New York Knicks77–74Madison Square Garden IIIDolph Schayes (13)7–1
9November 17Tri-Cities Blackhawks79–76State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (20)8–1
10November 20Denver Nuggets102–76State Fair ColiseumBilly Gabor (22)9–1
11November 21vs Denver Nuggets77–67(Oneida, New York)Andrew Levane (20)10–1
12November 24Anderson Packers125–123 (5OT)State Fair ColiseumJohnny Macknowski (21)11–1
13November 27Waterloo Hawks80–62State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (27)12–1
14November 30@ Boston Celtics87–71Boston GardenBilly Gabor (16)13–1 :
December: 11–3 (Home: 5–0; Road: 5–3; Neutral: 1–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationHigh pointsRecord
15December 4Indianapolis Olympians67–61State Fair ColiseumAl Cervi (18)14–1
16December 7@ Tri-Cities Blackhawks77–69Wharton Field HouseDolph Schayes (31)15–1
17December 8@ Sheboygan Red Skins86–72Sheboygan Municipal Auditorium and ArmoryDolph Schayes (18)16–1
18December 10@ Rochester Royals63–69Edgerton Park ArenaPeterson, Schayes (15)16–2
19December 11Sheboygan Red Skins89–72State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (23)17–2
20December 14Fort Wayne Pistons96–83State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (29)18–2
21December 15@ Anderson Packers88–100Anderson High School WigwamAl Cervi (17)18–3
22December 18Chicago Stags86–73State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (23)19–3
23December 20@ Waterloo Hawks95–70McElroy AuditoriumRatkovicz, Schayes (14)20–3
24December 21@ Tri-Cities Blackhawks96–84Wharton Field HouseBilly Gabor (23)21–3
25December 22@ Sheboygan Red Skins83–74Sheboygan Municipal Auditorium and ArmoryAlex Hannum (17)22–3
26December 25Anderson Packers94–88State Fair ColiseumPaul Seymour (24)23–3
27December 28@ Washington Capitols85–87Uline ArenaBilly Gabor (23)23–4
28December 29vs Philadelphia Warriors64–62(Atlantic City, New Jersey)Dolph Schayes (18)24–4 :
January: 9–3 (Home: 7–1; Road: 1–2; Neutral: 1–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationHigh pointsRecord
29January 1Washington Capitols79–73State Fair ColiseumBilly Gabor (20)25–4
30January 5Tri-Cities Blackhawks82–73State Fair ColiseumAl Cervi (18)26–4
31January 8Waterloo Hawks84–68State Fair ColiseumBilly Gabor (19)27–4
32January 10@ Waterloo Hawks84–86 (OT)McElroy AuditoriumPaul Seymour (14)27–5
33January 11@ Minneapolis Lakers88–98Minneapolis AuditoriumAl Cervi (19)27–6
34January 12@ Fort Wayne Pistons64–62North Side High School GymAl Cervi (17)28–6
35January 15Indianapolis Olympians82–69State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (23)29–6
36January 19Denver Nuggets107–86State Fair ColiseumJohnny Macknowski (19)30–6
37January 22Anderson Packers75–77 (OT)State Fair ColiseumGeorge Ratkovicz (15)30–7
38January 26Rochester Royals76–72State Fair ColiseumBilly Gabor (20)31–7
39January 29Sheboygan Red Skins85–70State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (21)32–7
40January 30vs Indianapolis Olympians91–75(Louisville, Kentucky)Dolph Schayes (24)33–7 :
February: 11–4 (Home: 7–0; Road: 3–4; Neutral: 1–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationHigh pointsRecord
41February 1@ Tri-Cities Blackhawks83–91Wharton Field HouseDolph Schayes (25)33–8
42February 2@ Indianapolis Olympians73–67Butler FieldhouseGeorge Ratkovicz (16)34–8
43February 3Waterloo Hawks103–79State Fair ColiseumBilly Gabor (32)35–8
44February 5Baltimore Bullets96–87State Fair ColiseumJohnny Macknowski (22)36–8
45February 8Sheboygan Red Skins106–81State Fair ColiseumBilly Gabor (19)37–8
46February 11@ Baltimore Bullets77–76Baltimore ColiseumAl Cervi (18)38–8
47February 12Waterloo Hawks102–98State Fair ColiseumAndrew Levane (21)39–8
48February 16Tri-Cities Blackhawks105–74State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (17)40–8
49February 19Indianapolis Olympians82–78State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (29)41–8
50February 21@ Denver Nuggets78–89Denver Auditorium ArenaDolph Schayes (31)41–9
51February 23@ Denver Nuggets108–80Denver Auditorium ArenaDolph Schayes (25)42–9
52February 24vs Indianapolis Olympians72–67(Chicago)George Ratkovicz (19)43–9
53February 26Chicago Stags73–64State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (24)44–9
54February 27@ Anderson Packers73–97Anderson High School WigwamDolph Schayes (17)44–10
55February 28@ Indianapolis Olympians72–110Butler FieldhouseAlex Hannum (13)44–11 :
March: 7–2 (Home: 4–0; Road: 3–2; Neutral: 0–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationHigh pointsRecord
56March 1@ Waterloo Hawks93–72McElroy AuditoriumDolph Schayes (24)45–11
57March 2@ Sheboygan Red Skins85–95Sheboygan Municipal Auditorium and ArmoryDolph Schayes (26)45–12
58March 5Minneapolis Lakers84–75State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (28)46–12
59March 9St. Louis Bombers85–74State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (19)47–12
60March 12Boston Celtics96–72State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (21)48–12
61March 14@ Indianapolis Olympians65–68Butler FieldhouseGeorge Ratkovicz (20)48–13
62March 16@ Sheboygan Red Skins88–75Sheboygan Municipal Auditorium and ArmoryDolph Schayes (18)49–13
63March 18@ Tri-Cities Blackhawks89–88 (OT)Wharton Field HouseJohnny Macknowski (25)50–13
64March 19Anderson Packers72–67State Fair ColiseumDolph Schayes (20)51–13 :
1949–50 Schedule :

## Playoffs

1950 playoff game log :
Division Semifinals: 2–0 (home: 1–0; road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh assistsLocationSeries
1
March 22
Philadelphia
W 93–76
George Ratkovicz (25)
Dolph Schayes (6)
State Fair Coliseum
1–0
2
March 23
@ Philadelphia
W 59–53
Dolph Schayes (16)
Al Cervi (2)
Philadelphia Arena
2–0 :
Division Finals: 2–1 (home: 2–0; road: 0–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh assistsLocationSeries
1
March 26
New York
W 91–83 (OT)
Dolph Schayes (26)
Andrew Levane (4)
State Fair Coliseum
1–0
2
March 30
@ New York
L 76–80
George Ratkovicz (17)
Al Cervi (4)
Madison Square Garden III
1–1
3
April 2
New York
W 91–80
Dolph Schayes (24)
Schayes, Cervi (3)
State Fair Coliseum
2–1 :
NBA Finals: 2–4 (home: 2–1; road: 0–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
April 8
Minneapolis
L 66–68
Dolph Schayes (19)
State Fair Coliseum 7,552
0–1
2
April 9
Minneapolis
W 91–85
George Ratkovicz (17)
State Fair Coliseum 8,280
1–1
3
April 14
@ Minneapolis
L 77–91
Johnny Macknowski (25)
Paul Seymour (5)
St. Paul Auditorium 10,288
1–2
4
April 16
@ Minneapolis
L 69–77
Schayes, Hannum (18)
Bill Gabor (6)
St. Paul Auditorium 10,512
1–3
5
April 20
Minneapolis
W 83–76
Dolph Schayes (19)
State Fair Coliseum 9,024
2–3
6
April 23
@ Minneapolis
L 95–110
Dolph Schayes (23)
Johnny Macknowski (5)
Minneapolis Auditorium 9,812
2–4 :
1950 schedule :
* Nationals had a bye in the NBA Semifinals as the team with the best record amongst teams who advanced past the Division Finals.

## Awards and records

* Al Cervi, All-NBA Second Team
* Dolph Schayes, All-NBA Second Team