Tick

Origin of the 24 Second Clock

The best basketball team of the early 1950s was the Minneapolis takers. They made scoring look easy, particularly when their star center, 6-foot-10 George Mikan, was in the game. There was only one way to keep them from running up a lot of points, and that was to stall. (The 24-second clock had not been invented.) Opponents tried to freeze the ball by passing it around, dribbling-anything to keep control of the ball.

Such strategy didn't work very often because the takers usually jumped into the lead, forcing the other team to take more shots. Big Mikan was always there to snatch the rebound. But once it did work. As a result of that game professional basketball changed drastically.

On November 22, 1950, the takers played against the Fort Wayne Pistons in Minneapolis. The Pistons went into their "slow motion" tactics immediately.

The fans didn't like what was happening, and they began to boo, whistle and stomp. The Pistons turned a deaf ear. The referee couldn't do anything, because the Pistons' tactics were legal at that time. At the end of the first period Fort Wayne was ahead, 8- 7.

Nothing much happened in the second period either. The Lakers rang up six points, the Pistons added only three, and at half time Minneapolis was ahead, 13-11.

There wasn't a great deal of difference in the third period. Minneapolis scored four, Fort Wayne tallied five, and at the end of the quarter the scoreboard read 17-16, Minneapolis.

The final period was incredible! It seemed that all the players on the court had fallen asleep. Then, with nine seconds to go and the Lakers leading, 18-17, Larry Foust of Fort Wayne drove in and scored the go-ahead points. Little Slater Martin of the Lakers tried to win the game with a desperation shot, but failed. Fort Wayne won the game, 19-18.

Without doubt it was the dullest game in the history of the National Basketball Association. Of course, several records were set, but they were the wrong kind of records:

Fewest shots at the basket, both teams.
Fewest points scored in a quarter.
Fewest points scored in a half.
Fewest points scored in a game.

George Mikan was the only Laker to score from the floor; he tossed in four baskets. He also made good on seven free throws, meaning that he scored 15 of his team's 18 points.

Fans, sportswriters and league officials were very angry. Maurice Podoloff, president of the NBA, declared, "It'll never

happen again! "

Soon afterward, the pros adopted the 24-second rule, which forces a team to shoot within 24 seconds or give up the ball. At least something good came out of basketball's dullest game.