The Portland Indians were a professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

team in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

. They were a member of the Pacific Coast Professional Basketball League for the duration of the league, which only lasted two seasons: 1946–47 and 1947–48. They played their home games in the Portland Armory.

Notable players

Norm Baker Norman Henry Baker (February 17, 1923 – April 23, 1989) was a Canadian professional basketball and lacrosse player. Early life and career Baker started his career at the age of ten while playing for the Nanaimo Mosquitoes. He became the young ...

(member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame) *

Don Durdan Donald Edgar Durdan (September 21, 1920 – June 28, 1971) was a professional American football and basketball player. Early life Durdan was born in Arcata, California and attended Eureka High School, where he played running back on the high sch ...

(

Oregon State Beavers The Oregon State Beavers are the athletic teams that represent Oregon State University, located in Corvallis, Oregon. The Beavers compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I ( Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for ...

basketball and football player, in

Oregon Sports Hall of Fame The Oregon Sports Hall of Fame honors Oregon athletes, teams, coaches, and others who have made a significant contribution to sports in Oregon. The first class was inducted in 1980, with new inductees added in the fall. Operated by the Oregon Sports ...

) *

Noble Jorgensen Noble Gordon "Jorgy" Jorgensen (May 18, 1925 – November 2, 1982) was an American professional basketball player. He was a center in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and other leagues. His brother was Basketball Association of America ...

, (future NBA center) * John Mandic (Oregon State Beavers, NBA, in Oregon Sports Hall of Fame) * Urgel (Slim) Wintermute (player/coach) (member of 1939

Oregon Ducks The Oregon Ducks are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Oregon, located in Eugene. The Ducks compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Pac-12 Conference. ...

NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship team, in Oregon Sports Hall of Fame)

League championships

In the 1946–47 season, the Indians posted the best overall record, but finished second in the round-robin playoffs to the Bellingham Fircrests. When the Fircrests declined an invitation to the

World Professional Basketball Tournament The World Professional Basketball Tournament was an annual invitational tournament held in Chicago from 1939 to 1948 and sponsored by the '' Chicago Herald American''. Many teams came from the National Basketball League, but it also included the b ...

in Chicago, the Indians went instead, but lost to the

Sheboygan Redskins The Sheboygan Red Skins (or Redskins) was a professional basketball team based in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, which was an original National Basketball Association franchise during the 1949–1950 season. History Overview The Redskins played in th ...

in the first round. In the 1947–48 season, the Indians entered the round-robin playoffs as a wildcard team, eventually reaching the best-of-five championship series against the Seattle Athletics. Portland won the first two games in Seattle, and Seattle won the third game in Portland. The fourth game was also played in Portland. With Portland leading 81–80 with 20 seconds left, the timekeeper sounded the final buzzer as Seattle's Al Brightman scored an open layup. Whether or not this was done inadvertently is not known, but the basket was disallowed and Portland was initially given the victory. Eventually, both teams agreed to replay the game two days later and Portland won the game 76–74, and with it, the championship.

References

{{Portland Indians Basketball teams established in 1946 Indians Sports clubs and teams disestablished in 1948 Defunct basketball teams in Oregon 1946 establishments in Oregon 1948 disestablishments in Oregon