Evening star., 1951-01-09
Mckinney and Sco|ari'
Wind Up Long Service.
With Caps Tonight
By Bill Fuchs


The Caps play their last game
in the National Basketball Asso-
citation tonight against the War
riors in Philadelphia, thus mark
ing the end of a rocky road that
extended through AZ years of
disappointment.
The Caps never sold themselves
to Washington and it's safe to say
they won't be sorely missed, ex-
cept by handful of loyal fans,
the sports writers who followed
them and the two Caps who were
around when the team started in
1916 and will be around for the
finish tonight. Freddie Scolari
and Bones Mckinney.
The last hope to keep pro
basketball in Washington died
yesterday when the board of di-
rectors of the Heurich Brewing
Co. decided against buying the
team. Owner M. j. (Mike) Uline
had made up his mind either to
sell to Heurich or to disband.
Scolari has been delegated to-
Syracuse. Bones. whose first year
as a coach met with disaster, will
resume playing role with Boston.
Among the rockies, Dick Schnitt-
ker will go to Minneapolis, Alan
Sawyer to Tri-Cities and Bill
Sharman to Fort Wayne. Chuck
Halbert will go to Baltimore and
Frank Kudelka to Boston, while
Syracuse has first call on Earl
Lloyd. the sensational rookie who
was inducted into the Army.
Five Players Footloose.
The others on the squad-Ed
Mikan. Ed Bartels. Ace Maughan,
Tommy Byrnes and Chuck Gilmur
were not selected when league
officials met last week to allocate
the players.
While the death of a ball club
always is tough on all the players,
it hits hardest those who have
been around the longest; in this
case, Mckinney and Scolari.
Admittedly shocked, Scolari says
he still has trouble believing it
actually happened.
I'm not ready for it," he says.
Il really didn't think we'd fold
I know we haven't been winning
but it was our first really bad
year. know Mr.. Uline lost money
but / thought he'd finish out the
year and hope for a better season
next year."
Bones, one of the most colorful
figures in basketball. says he half
way expected it. but it's still a
shock.
Il hate to see the fellows have
to pick up their belongings and
scatter. It isn't easy. The boys
tell me it costs a man $500 to be
traded. When you have children
tBones, himself. has FOUR 1t costs
considerably more. .
Loyal Few Really Loyal.
Its shame. 1t seems that
Washington just didn't go for US.
But, I'll say one thing: The fans
we did have were terrific"
The few fans who did follow the
Caps will miss Bones and Scolari
in particular.
Scolari. the chubby set-shot
artist. was one of the most popular
players ever to wear a Washing
ton uniform. He was the top
scorer for his team this season,
with his dazzling one-handers
from outside counting most of his
points.
Scolari was an amazing figure
on the court, short and dumpy-
looking in league of angular
giants and partially blind in one
eye. He looked so unlike a bas-
ketball player that he sat on the
bench at San Francisco Univer-
sity while his team lost II straight
games. He quit school then and
took up amateur ball, and that's
what started him on his way to
Washington.
Bones, the skinny North Caro-
linian. was one of the leagues top
showmen as player. In his first
two years as a Cap he was a
bigger drawing card on the road
than Joe Fulks, then the rage of
pro basketball. Bones could toss
in a two-handed lump shot with
deadly accuracy, but he was even
more popular for his antics toward
the officials to whom he would
bow, scrape and fall to his knees
when called on a foul.
Under Auerbach Again.
Bones took up coaching this
year and presumably put his play
ing days behind him. But up in
Boston. once more lnder Red
Auerbach, the first Washington
coach. he'll assume a players role
again. He says he will be in shape
in no time.
The Caps were banded TO-
gether by Auerbach in the summer
OF 1946. Red signed Bob Feerick