Owner: Ray W. Clark Arena: Portland Armory Capacity: 2,400
Standings
W L Pct. GB 1947 Portland Indians 33 10 .767 Won Championship 1948 Portland Indians 7 26 .212 15.5
Portland acquired Harry "swede" Roos, Otto Kerber and Noble Jorgensen from the Waterloo Pro-Hawks of the defunct Professional Basketball League of America in December 1947: the PBLA folding after only three weeks of operation.
The Indians had a league-high 24 players on their roster their first season.
Harry Roos would spend the rest of his life in Portland following his playing days for the Indians. Tragically, he would suffer a heart attack and die during a Portland Trailblazers game in 1979 at age 65.
The Indians played well in the World Professional Basketball Tournament and had the NBL champion Sheboygan Red Skins on the ropes. At the end of the third quarter the Indians lead the Red Skins 43-35. The Red Skins than completed one of the biggest turn arounds in basketball history in the fourt quarter outscoring the Indians 27-5 to win 62-48.
Portland was an oddity in that they did not follow the normal number system for player uniform numbers. In the early days of basketball teams either would go 1-13 for their uniform numbers, or 01-20 for guards, 21-25, 30-35 for forwards and 40-45, and 50-55 for centers. Portland used numbers such as 99, 77, 88, 00, 66, and 38. The primary reason for this number system was so that officials could more efficently communicate to the score keeper on foul calls.
Dave Teyema
The Indians became the first and only west coast team to ever play in the World Professional Basketball Tournament in 1947 where they finished tied for 9th place.
Game program between the Portland Indians and Seattle Blue Devils.
Center Noble Jorgensen inside a penalty box.
19 year old Ty Lovelace.
Harry "swede" Roos was an accomplished basketball star who had played in the NBL.
Portland's Ty Lovelace fights for the ball with Bellingham's Ken Hayes.
Program from a game between Portland and Seattle.
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