John Hogrogian

Professional Basketball in 1939-40 John Hogrogian

Professional Basketball in 1939-40: On the Cusp of Depression and War

By: John Hogrogian



Professional basketball began its modern history in 1946, when the postwar economy put money in the hands of working people. Basketball promoters were invested in the professional game as a new winter spectator sport. Only after 1960 did the sport begin to achieve the big-time status that it now enjoys.

The postwar sport was built on an ill-funded, unglamorous industry that survived through the hard times of the Great Depression. There is little historical treatment of that earlier game. Pro Basketball in 1939-40 takes a detailed view of one season, as the Depression ground on. World War II, however, had started in Europe and would soon change everything about pro basketball in the United States.



About the Author

John Hogrogian is an attorney living in Brooklyn, NY. He is retired from a career as a lawyer for the New York City government. For most of his life, he has played baseball, football, and basketball for fun, if not very well. For most of his adult life, John has done historical research into those three sports in their pre-World War II days. He finds it a great thrill, a kind of time travel.