Edward "Eddie" Gottlieb

Armed with a great smile and a razor-sharp memory, “The Mogul” of basketball, Ed Gottlieb was an innovator, successful coach, and masterful promoter. In 1918, Gottlieb organized and coached the South Philadelphia Hebrew Association. From the late 1920s to early 1940s, the SPHAs dominated the Eastern and American Basketball Leagues, winning multiple championships and beating the Original Celtics and New York Rens in the same season. In 1946, Gottlieb helped establish a new professional league, the Basketball Association of America. As owner, general manager, coach, and chief ticket seller of the Philadelphia Warriors, the team won the BAA’s first championship in 1946-47. In 1949, Gottlieb played a pivotal role in the merger of the BAA with the National Basketball League to form the National Basketball Association. Gottlieb still owned the Philadelphia Warriors in 1956, the year the team captured the NBA title. He continued his relationship with the NBA as chairman of the NBA Rules Committee, schedule maker of the NBA, and consultant to the commissioner.