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1937–38 Akron Goodyear Wingfoots season
1937–38 Akron Goodyear Wingfoots season
NBL champions
Head coach	Lefty Byers
Arena	Goodyear Hall
Results
Record	13–5 (.722)
Place	Division: 2 (Eastern)
Playoff finish	Defeated Akron Firestone Non-Skids in NBL Championship, 2–1
	1938–39 >

The 1937–38 Akron Goodyear Wingfoots season was the Wingfoots' inaugural year in the United States' National Basketball League (NBL), which was also the first year the league existed.^[1] Thirteen teams competed in the NBL, comprising six teams in the Eastern Division (Akron Goodyear's division) and seven teams in the Western Division.^[2] The Wingfoots were one of two teams from Akron, Ohio in the league, the other being the Akron Firestone Non-Skids.^[1]

The Wingfoots played their home games at Goodyear Hall.^[3] They finished the season with a 13–5 record, placing second in the Eastern Division.^[2] However, they went on the win the league's playoffs championship against the Western Division's Oshkosh All-Stars, two games to one in a best-of-three series.^[2]

Head coach Lefty Byers won the league's first Coach of the Year Award, while players Chuck Bloedorn and Charley Shipp earned First Team All-NBL honors.^[2]

Roster

1937–38 Akron Goodyear Wingfoots roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	Name	Height	Weight	DOB	From
F	Bennett, Wesley	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	1913–03-31	Westminster (PA)
G	Bloedorn, Chuck	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	1912–05–28	Illinois Tech
F/C	Cope, Robert	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	1911–09–03	Mount Union
G/F	Fitts, Wilson	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	1915–06–16	Akron
G	Lins, Leroy	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	1913–06–21	Rutgers
G	McAdams, Johnny	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	147 lb (67 kg)	1912–04–15	Ohio Wesleyan
C	Mealy, Dean	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	1915–05–07	Muskingum
F/C	Morstadt, Ray	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	1913–03–10	Marquette
F	Ochsenhirt, Russ	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	1912–04–16	Pittsburgh
F	Rush, Mal	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	1909–04–02	Bethany (WV)
G/F	Shipp, Charley	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	1913–12–03	Catholic
G/F	Tamagno, Chelso	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	1912–03–20	Michigan

Head coach

Lefty Byers

Legend

(DP) Unsigned draft pick
(FA) Free agent
(S) Suspended
Injured

Roster

Note: Leroy Lins and Ray Morstadt were not on the playoffs roster.

Regular season

Season standings

Pos.	Eastern Division	Wins	Losses	Win %
1	Akron Firestone Non-Skids	14	4	.778
2	Akron Goodyear Wingfoots	13	5	.722
3	Pittsburgh Pirates	8	5	.615
4	Buffalo Bisons	3	6	.333
5	Warren Penns	3	9	.250
6	Columbus Athletic Supply	1	12	.091

Playoffs

Eastern Division Semifinals

(E2) Akron Goodyear Wingfoots vs. (E1) Akron Firestone Non-Skids: Wingfoots win series 2–0

Game 1 @ Wingfoots: Wingfoots 26, Non-Skids 21
Game 2 @ Non-Skids: Wingfoots 37, Non-Skids 31

NBL Championship

(E2) Akron Goodyear Wingfoots vs. (W1) Oshkosh All-Stars: Wingfoots win series 2–1

Game 1 @ Oshkosh: Akron 29, Oshkosh 28
Game 2 @ Akron: Oshkosh 39, Akron 31
Game 3 @ Akron: Akron 35, Oshkosh 27

Awards and honors

NBL Coach of the Year – Lefty Byers
First Team All-NBL – Chuck Bloedorn and Charley Shipp

References

^ ^a ^b "NBL Season Index". basketball-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 27, 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "1937–38 NBL Season Summary". basketball-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 27, 2019.
^ "Akron Goodyear → 1937–1938". Pro Basketball Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 27, 2019.