Baltimore Bullets (1944–1954)

The Baltimore Bullets were a professional basketball team based in Baltimore. The Bullets competed in the American Basketball League, the Basketball Association of America, and the National Basketball Association. On November 27, 1954, the team List of defunct [National Basketball Association teams|folded] with a 3–11 record on the season, making the Bullets the last NBA franchise to fold. Out of all defunct NBA teams, the Bullets were members of the association for the longest time and the only defunct team to win a championship.
The Bullets name was revived in 1963, when the former Chicago Zephyrs relocated to Baltimore; even after these Bullets relocated to Washington in 1973, they kept their name for 24 more years until they were renamed the Wizards.

Franchise history

The Baltimore Bullets began play in 1944 as an American Basketball League team. The Bullets acquired their name in reference to the Phoenix Shot Tower. In the ABL, Baltimore reached the championship round all three seasons, winning the ABL title in 1946. The Bullets won a division title in 1947, but forfeited that season's championship in favor of playing in the World Professional Basketball Tournament.

The Bullets moved to the Basketball Association of America in 1947, and won the BAA Finals|1948 championship] over the Philadelphia Warriors. In 1949, the BAA merged with the National Basketball League, and became the National Basketball Association. The Bullets struggled on the court after their championship season, and never posted another winning record. In 1954, Ray Felix won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and became the second African-American to be named an All-Star. Felix was traded to the Knicks on September 17, 1954, and on November 27, the Bullets became the last NBA franchise to fold.

Season	League	Division	Finish	Wins	Losses	Win%	GB	Playoffs	Awards
1944–45	ABL	—	4th	14	16		8	Won First Round 2–1 Lost ABL Championship 1–2
1945–46	ABL	—	T-1st	21	13		—	Won Tiebreaker 1–0 Won First Round 2–0 Won ABL Championship 3–1
1946–47	ABL	South	1st	31	3		—	Won First Round 2–1 Forfeited ABL Championship
1947–48	BAA	Division (NBA)\|Western]	2nd	28	20		1	Won Division Tiebreaker 1–0 Won First Round 2–1 Won BAA Semifinals 2–0 Won BAA Finals 4–2
1948–49	BAA	Eastern	3rd	29	31		9	Lost Division Semifinals 1–2
1949–50	NBA	Eastern	5th	25	43		26
1950–51	NBA	Eastern	5th	24	42		16
1951–52	NBA	Eastern	5th	20	46		20
1952–53	NBA	Eastern	4th	16	54		31	Lost Division Semifinals 0–2
1953–54	NBA	Eastern	5th	16	56		28		Ray Felix
1954–55	NBA	Eastern	N/A	3	11		N/A