The Long Beach Chiefs were an American

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 based in

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...

(1961–62) and

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

(1962–63) that was a member of the American Basketball League.

History

The American Basketball League played one full season,

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 (K ...

–

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wor ...

, and part of the next season until the league folded on December 31, 1962. The ABL was the first basketball league to have a

three point shot A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or trey) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two po ...

for baskets scored far away from the goal. Other rules that set the league apart were a 30-second shooting clock and a wider free throw lane, 18 feet instead of the standard 12. The American Basketball League was formed when Abe Saperstein did not get the Los Angeles

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 ...

(NBA) franchise he sought. His Harlem Globetrotters had strong NBA ties. When

Minneapolis Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers franchise has a long and storied history, predating the formation of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Founded in 1947, the Lakers are one of the NBA's most famous and successful franchises. As of summer 2012, th ...

owner

Bob Short Robert Earl Short (July 20, 1917 – November 20, 1982) was an American businessman, sport teams owner, and politician. Background Short graduated from the College of Saint Thomas (now the University of St. Thomas) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, b ...

was permitted to move the Lakers to Los Angeles, Saperstein reacted by convincing

National Alliance of Basketball Leagues The National Alliance of Basketball Leagues (NABL) (founded 1961) is the descendant of the industrial-based basketball clubs that formed into the National Basketball League (NBL) in the early 1930s. History Origins in the 1930s The league was ...

(NABL) team owner Paul Cohen (Tuck Tapers) and

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

(AAU) National Champion

Cleveland Pipers The Cleveland Pipers were an American industrial basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio in the 1950s and early 1960s. The Pipers are mostly known for having played in the short-lived American Basketball League from 1961–62. They were also a p ...

owner

George Steinbrenner George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving own ...

to take the top NABL and AAU teams and players and form a rival league. League franchises were the

Chicago Majors The Chicago Majors was a basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, that was a member of the American Basketball League from 1961 to 1963. History The American Basketball League played one full season, 1961–1962, and part of the next season un ...

(1961–1963);

(1961–1962);

Kansas City Steers The Kansas City Steers were an American basketball team based in Kansas City, Missouri from 1961 to 1963. They were a member of the American Basketball League History The American Basketball League played one full season, 1961–1962, an ...

(1961–63); Long Beach Chiefs (1961–1963), as

Hawaii Chiefs Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is ...

in 1961–62;

Los Angeles Jets The Los Angeles Jets were an American basketball team based in Los Angeles, California, founded by Jack Blanck and Len Corbosiero, that was a member of the American Basketball League in the league's 1961–62 season. History The American Basketba ...

(1961–62, disbanded during season); Oakland Oaks 1961–1963, as San Francisco Saints in 1961–1962;

Philadelphia Tapers The Philadelphia Tapers were an American professional basketball team that played a partial 1962–1963 season in the American Basketball League (1961–62). It traces its history to the 1950s AAU New York Tapers. AAU New York Tapers Originall ...

1961–1963, as

Washington Tapers Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

in 1961–62; moved to New York during 1961–62 season; as

New York Tapers New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

in 1961–62 and the

Pittsburgh Rens The Pittsburgh Rens were an American basketball team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, that was a member of the American Basketball League from 1961–1963. History The American Basketball League played one full season, 1961–1962, and pa ...

(1961–1963). The team was known as the Hawaii Chiefs from 1961–62. The Chiefs were owned by Art Kim who was later the owner of the

Anaheim Amigos Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most ...

of the American Basketball Association.Pluto, Terry, ''Loose Balls: The Short, Wild Life of the American Basketball Association'' (Simon & Schuster, 1990), , p.41 They finished 13–28 (1961–1962) and 16–8 (1962–1963) under coaches

Red Rocha Ephraim J. "Red" Rocha (September 18, 1923 – February 13, 2010) was an American professional basketball player and coach. Basketball A 6'9" center from Oregon State University, he earned List of All-Pacific-12 Conference men's basketball tea ...

and

Al Brightman Horace Albert Brightman (September 22, 1923 – June 10, 1992) was an American professional basketball player and coach. Brightman played for the Boston Celtics of the Basketball Association of America during the 1946–47 season. He served a ...

. They started 10–0 in 1962–1963.

The Arenas

The Chiefs played at the

Long Beach Arena The Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center is a convention center located in Long Beach, California. Built on the former site of the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium, the venue is composed of the Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach Ar ...

. The arena is still in use by

Long Beach State University California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities i ...

athletics. The location is 300 E Ocean Blvd, Long Beach, CA 90802. In Honolulu they rotated between the Civic Auditorium, the Conroy Bowl at

Schofield Barracks Schofield Barracks is a United States Army installation and census-designated place (CDP) located in the City and County of Honolulu and in the Wahiawa District of the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Hawaii. Schofield Barracks lies adjacent to the t ...

and Bloch Arena. The Civic Auditorium in Honolulu was demolished in 1973. It was located on South King Street. It was replaced by an American Security Bank Building, now the Interstate Building. Conroy Bowl is now a medical facility on Schofield Barracks. The address is 627–699 Trimble Road, Wahiawa, HI 96786. Bloch Arena in Pearl Harbor is still in use today and also hosted the collegiate Pearl Harbour Basketball Invitational. The address is 224 A Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96818.

Notable alumni

* Bob Anderegg *

Frank Burgess Franklin D. Burgess (March 9, 1935 – March 26, 2010) was an American professional basketball player and United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. Early life Burgess was born in Eu ...

* Jeff Cohen *

Rick Herrscher Richard Franklin Herrscher (born November 3, 1936) is an American former professional baseball infielder who appeared in 35 Major League Baseball games for the 1962 New York Mets. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, he threw and batted right-handed an ...

* Bill Spivey * Govoner Vaughn

Year by year

References

{{reflist American Basketball League (1961–62) teams Sports in Long Beach, California Basketball teams in Hawaii Sports in Honolulu Basketball teams in Los Angeles Defunct basketball teams in California 1963 disestablishments in California