The Eastern Professional Basketball League Quiz

Answer: Syracuse University

Boeheim also coached in the Olympics, won National Coach of the Year honors, and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005. He had a chance to play in the NBA after being drafted by the Detroit Pistons but chose to coach at Syracuse instead. Boeheim played for the Scranton Miners where he led the team to two EPBL championships.

Answer: The EPBL preceded the NBA in allowing African American players to play

The NBA did not sign its first African American ball players until 1950. The EPBL was integrated from the start. Three black players played for the Hazelton Mountaineers in 1946 (the first season in the EPBL). Additionally, in 1955 Hazelton put the first all black line-up on the basketball court.

The NBA did not do that until nine years later. In fact, the NBA had only nine players total in their eight-team league in 1955. The EPBL was instrumental in showing the NBA that black players could excel in their league and would be accepted by the fans.

Answer: California

Arizin was considered one of the early pioneers of the jump shot. He was named to the NBA's Silver Anniversary Team in 1970. He did not want to leave Pennsylvania, so he stayed in Philadelphia, worked for IBM, and played ball in the EPBL.

Answer: The three-point shot

The three-point shot, introduced by the ABL in 1961, awarded three points to a made shot of twenty-five feet or more. The ABA folded in 1963, but the EPBL had already picked up the three-point shot concept and made it an integral part of the game. The shot's popularity motivated the newly formed American Basketball Association to adopt the rule when it was started in 1967.

In 1976 the ABA merged with the NBA and brought with it the three-point shot that was adopted in the NBA in 1979. The EPBL's role in keeping the three point shot alive sped up its arrival to the NBA.

Answer: Tommy Lasorda

According to a "Sports Illustrated" article entitled "This Zebra Turned Dodger Blue" (Steve Rushin, October 22, 1990) Lasorda got hired to referee EPBL games even though he had no basketball officiating experience. As the Dodgers' manager, Lasorda won almost 1600 games and two World Series championships.

Answer: They both were head coaches in the NBA

Hubie Brown's stint in the EPBL was short, playing for the Rochester Colonels in 1958-1959. After coaching in high school, college, and the ABA he became the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks in 1976. He went on to coach the New York Knicks and Memphis Grizzlies.

In between his NBA coaching stints he was a broadcaster of NBA games. In 2005 he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Bob Weiss played for the Wilmington Blue Bombers in EPBL in between his time with the Philadelphia 76ers. After playing for six NBA teams in twelve years, he got into coaching and eventually landed his first head coaching with the San Antonio Spurs in 1986.

He has been a head coach for three other NBA teams and in China. M.L Carr, York Larese and Larry Costello also were Eastern League stars who coached in the NBA.

Answer: Harlem Globetrotters

Saperstein founded the Globetrotters in 1927 while working in Illinois and added the name "Harlem" to let people know that it was a team made up of African American ballplayers. In the early days many of their early games were played in small all-white towns. But, the Globetrotters eventually became so popular that NBA teams brought them in to play a team before their game to draw a crowd.

However, the grueling schedule and travel required to be a Globetrotter took its toll and several players, including Tom Spencer, Charlie Hoxie, Carl Green and Roman Turmon decided to play for the less demanding EPBL. In 1948, the Globetrotters defeated the all-white Minneapolis Lakers showing that African Americans could compete against the best the NBA had to offer. That game, along with the fact that the EPBL was becoming increasingly integrated and remaining popular motivated the NBA to begin adding black players.

Answer: The NBA banned players involved in the gambling scandal so they played in EPBL

About thirty -two of the nation's top collegiate players were caught up in the point shaving scandal. Many of the players involved were the nation's best players and were destined for NBA stardom. After initially banning the same players, the EPBL decided to allow them to play in the league to bolster attendance and bring in more NBA talent into the league. That decision harmed the relationship between the two leagues, but in the short-term gave the EPBL some star power that drew larger crowds.

Answer: Temple University

Chaney also coached at Cheyney State University winning almost 805 of his games before going to Temple. He was known for his tough match up zone defenses, high expectations and early morning practices. He won national Coach of the Year honors six times and was indicted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Answer: Anchorage (Alaska) Northern Knights

Accepting Anchorage as one of the league's new expansion teams brought some much-needed publicity, but with the new team's nearest competitor being 5,000 miles away it was not feasible for very long. The first game brought with it more publicity due to a confrontation between the league commissioner and the owner of the opposing team that travelled from Pennsylvania and because the backboard came crashing down before the game.

The game was delayed until another backboard could be found and installed.

The experiment lasted until the team folded in 1982. The EPBL was no more when the Continental Basketball Association took it over in 1978. Eventually, all the EPBL teams disbanded because they could not compete with the bigger cities in the new league. By 1985 there were no EPBL teams left.