Dick Öland Klein (September 16, 1920 – October 10, 2000) was an American athlete and businessman who founded the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
's
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...
in 1966. He served as the team's first
general manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
and later worked as a
scout for the
Phoenix Suns.
Background
Hailing from
Iowa
Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...
, Klein played basketball at
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
for
Hall of Fame coach
Dutch Lonborg.
He then competed for the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
's
Great Lakes Blue Jackets,
who traveled throughout the United States raising money for the
Navy Relief Society
The Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society (NMCRS) is an American non-profit organization that was founded in 1904. The society was created "to provide, in partnership with the United States Navy, Navy and United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, f ...
.
From 1945 to 1946, Klein played professionally for the
National Basketball League's
Chicago American Gears
The Chicago American Gears were a National Basketball League (NBL) team who played from 1944 to 1947. The team also played in the Professional Basketball League of America (PBLA) in 1947–48 after leaving the NBL.
About
They are notable in prof ...
. He also dabbled in
minor league baseball, spending one summer as a pitcher in the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...
' farm system.
Once his playing days were over, he moved to the
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
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, coordinates =
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, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
suburbs and embarked on a highly successful career distributing promotional items to banks and other companies.
Founding of the Chicago Bulls
The late 1940s through early 1960s were a low point for professional basketball in Chicago. The American Gears suddenly folded in 1947 due to poor financial decisions by owner Maurice White. Three years later, the
Chicago Stags
The Chicago Stags were a National Basketball Association team based in Chicago from 1946 to 1950.
History
1946–47 season
In the BAA's inaugural year, the Chicago Stags were placed in the Western Division, and after 60 games were tied with the ...
of the early
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
disbanded due to lack of fan interest. The NBA returned to Chicago with the
Chicago Packers
The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...
in 1961, but their poor first season record (18-62) turned off many fans, and the team was sold to a group of
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
investors in 1962.
The Chicago Packers were scheduled to relocate to
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
by the fall of 1963. In the meantime, the team adopted a new nickname, the Chicago Zephyrs. Hoping to keep the Zephyrs in Chicago, Dick Klein tried to purchase the team in 1963, but he failed, and the team left the city after posting a 25-55 second season record.
However, Klein was determined to bring professional basketball back to Chicago, and started recruiting local businessmen to help him found an expansion team.
Most investors were skeptical of Klein's venture, given the failure of the Zephyrs and their predecessors. A turning point occurred when Klein received the support of the
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Cali ...
, who was negotiating with the NBA for
television rights. ABC believed a successful Chicago team would help boost ratings, and once Klein had their backing, he was able to attract more partners.
On January 26, 1966, his group was finally awarded an NBA expansion franchise at a cost of $1.6 million,
[Hirsley, Michael.]
Dick Klein, Bulls' founder and 1st CEO, dies at 80
. ''Chicago Tribune''. October 12, 2000. p. 7. and Klein was named general manager.
Klein's first task was to coin a nickname for the new Chicago team. He wanted a name that evoked images of the
Chicago stockyards, which were close to the stadium where the team was expected to play. According to Klein, he had originally considered Matadors or Toreadors, but when his youngest son dismissed these prospective nicknames as "a bunch of bull," he decided to name the team the Chicago Bulls.
He then recruited a neighbor to design the Bulls' familiar team logo. He chose the colors red and black from his former alma mater, Fort Madison High School, where he went to school and played basketball from 1934 to 1938.
Team management
Klein selected
Johnny "Red" Kerr
John Graham "Red" Kerr (July 17, 1932 – February 26, 2009) was an American basketball player, coach, and color commentator. He played in the NBA from 1954 to 1966, mainly as a member of the Syracuse Nationals. He later held several coaching ...
and
Al Bianchi to serve as the Bulls' head coach and assistant coach, respectively. Since both were former players who were still under contract with their old teams, Klein actually drafted his coaching staff via the NBA
Expansion Draft
An expansion draft, in professional sports, occurs when a sports league decides to create one or more new expansion teams or franchises. This occurs mainly in North American sports. One of the ways of stocking the new team or teams is an expansio ...
. He then acquired
Guy Rodgers
Guy William Rodgers (September 1, 1935 – February 19, 2001) was an American professional basketball player born in Philadelphia. He spent twelve years (1958–1970) in the NBA, and was one of the league's best playmakers in the early to mid-19 ...
,
Jerry Sloan
Gerald Eugene Sloan (March 28, 1942 – May 22, 2020) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He played 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before beginning a 30-year coaching career, 23 of which were spent ...
,
Len Chappell,
Jim Washington,
Erwin Mueller,
Don Kojis
Donald R. Kojis (January 15, 1939 – November 19, 2021) was an American professional basketball player who played twelve seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA)..
Career
Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he attended Marquette Universi ...
, and
Bob Boozer
Robert Louis Boozer (April 26, 1937 – May 19, 2012) was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Boozer won a gold medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics and won an NBA Championship as a member of the ...
to form the core playing unit for the Bulls. In support of the new team, Klein and Kerr paraded through Chicago in a flatbed truck, accompanied by a live bull.
Though the Bulls finished the
1966–67 NBA season with a 33-48 record, they still managed to reach the postseason. This was the first time any expansion franchise reached the playoffs in their first year, a feat that has not been repeated. They lost in the first round to the
St. Louis Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...
in four games. Klein considered the season a success, saying, "We had good players led by good men, so we became competitive".
However, the Bulls regressed the following season, winning just 29 games, and as the team struggled to increase attendance figures, tensions emerged between Klein and Kerr. Klein openly criticized Kerr in the local media, and he frequently sent notes to his coaching staff during games, which contained messages such as "That's seven turnovers this quarter". Tired of Klein's involvement, Kerr finally left the team in 1968 and was replaced by
Dick Motta
John Richard Motta (born September 3, 1931) is an American former basketball coach whose career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) spanned 25 years. Motta coached the Washington Bullets to the 1978 NBA Championship, and he won the 1971 ...
.
Unfortunately, Klein feuded with Motta, as well. After Klein sent Erwin Mueller to the
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...
for cash in 1969, Motta reportedly said, "You can't play with money; money won't play!".
Motta then ordered Klein to consult him before any trade he made in the future. Facing pressure from other members of team management,
Klein stepped down as general manager before the start of the Bulls fourth season, but he retained his share of the ownership and saw the Bulls improve significantly under Motta during the next few seasons. The team won 51 games during the
1970–71 season and 57 games the next season, and the Bulls began to secure a steady fan base.
After the Bulls
Klein orchestrated the sale of several owners' shares of the team (including his own) to a new ownership group that included
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division i ...
owner
Arthur Wirtz
Arthur Michael Wirtz (January 23, 1901 – July 21, 1983) was an American entrepreneur. He was the founder of Wirtz Corporation, a holding company that owned Chicago Stadium, the Bismarck Hotel in Chicago, the Chicago Black Hawks, and the Chic ...
in the summer of 1972. "In my opinion, with Wirtz at the steering wheel, the Bulls were in good hands," he later said.
The Bulls eventually became one of the NBA's most profitable franchises, due in large part to the presence of
Michael Jordan during the 1980s and 1990s (Wirtz, in turn, sold the Bulls to current owner
Jerry Reinsdorf
Jerry Michael Reinsdorf (born February 25, 1936) is the owner of the NBA's Chicago Bulls and MLB's Chicago White Sox. He started his professional life as a tax attorney with the Internal Revenue Service. He has been the owner of the White So ...
in 1984). Many of Klein's personnel selections blossomed into long-term NBA successes, including Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan, and sports magnate
Jerry Colangelo
Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939) is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Ari ...
, who worked in Klein's front office in the Bull's early years. Klein's friendship with Colangelo and continued passion for the sport led him to serve as a Southeastern scout for the Phoenix Suns. He served in that capacity until shortly before his death in
Greenville, South Carolina in 2000.
[
]
References
Bibliography
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klein, Dick
1920 births
2000 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American men's basketball players
United States Navy personnel of World War II
Basketball players from Iowa
Centers (basketball)
Charleston Senators players
Chicago American Gears players
Chicago Bulls executives
Chicago Bulls owners
Flint Arrows players
Northwestern Wildcats men's basketball players
People from Fort Madison, Iowa
Phoenix Suns scouts