Maurice Podoloff

Maurice Podoloff
1st President of the NBA
In office
June 6, 1946 – September 1, 1963
Succeeded byJ. Walter Kennedy
Personal details
Born(1890-08-18)August 18, 1890
Yelisavetgrad, Kherson Governorate, Russian Empire
DiedNovember 24, 1985(1985-11-24) (aged 95)
New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Alma materYale University
OccupationLawyer

Maurice Podoloff (Yiddish: מוריס פודולוף; August 18, 1890 – November 24, 1985[1]) was an American lawyer and a basketball and ice hockey administrator. He served as the president of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) from 1946 to 1949, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1949 to 1963, making Podoloff the de facto 1st commissioner in NBA history.

  1. ^ Sprechman, Jordan; Shannon, Bill (1998). This Day in New York Sports. Sports Publishing LLC. ISBN 978-1-57167-254-4.