History of the Buffalo Bisons

The Buffalo Bisons, also known during portions of their pre-NBL history as the Buffalo Lincolns, were an early professional and semi-professional basketball organization based in Buffalo, New York. The team competed in independent basketball, the New York State Basketball League, the Midwest Basketball Conference and finally the National Basketball League during a four-year period from 1934 through 1938.

The Buffalo club was part of a much older basketball tradition in western New York, where independent professional teams had been active for decades. Records from the period are incomplete and the exact organizational relationship among various Buffalo teams using names such as the Lincolns, Bisons and earlier independent clubs is not always clear. However, the Buffalo team that emerged during the middle 1930s became one of the most significant professional basketball organizations in the city before World War II.

Buffalo went 11-7 in league games during the 1934-35 New York State Basketball League season, finishing particularly strongly by going 7-2 in the second half. The Bisons then joined the new Midwest Basketball Conference in 1935-36 and finished 7-8.

That 1935-36 team was historically important because it featured Hank Williams, a 6-foot-4 Black center from Buffalo who became one of the earliest African American players to compete in an established professional basketball league containing predominantly white teams.

Buffalo withdrew from the Midwest Basketball Conference after that season and returned to independent competition in 1936-37. The Bisons rejoined the circuit after it was reorganized as the National Basketball League for 1937-38. Led by future Hall of Fame guard Al Cervi, Buffalo finished its only official NBL season 3-6.

Professional Basketball in Buffalo Before the Bisons

Buffalo had already developed a substantial basketball tradition before the middle 1930s.

Like many northeastern industrial cities, Buffalo supported numerous independent, athletic-club and semi-professional basketball teams.

Professional basketball during this period was far less organized than it would later become. Teams frequently changed names, sponsors and leagues, and the distinction between amateur, semi-professional and professional basketball was often unclear.

Players commonly competed for several organizations during the same period and could change teams frequently.

The Buffalo Lincolns Name

The name Buffalo Lincolns appeared in connection with Buffalo professional and independent basketball during the early 1930s.

Some players who later appeared with Buffalo teams identified as the Bisons had previously played for the Lincolns.

Because recordkeeping from independent basketball was inconsistent, it is difficult to establish a modern-style franchise lineage between every Buffalo team of the period.

For historical purposes, however, the Lincolns form part of the local basketball background from which the mid-1930s Buffalo Bisons emerged.

Sam Siegel

One player who demonstrates the overlap between the Buffalo Lincolns and Bisons was veteran guard Sam Siegel.

Siegel had extensive professional experience dating back to the 1920s.

He played for teams in Rochester, Baltimore and Akron and was associated with the Buffalo Drydocks, Buffalo Bisons and Buffalo Lincolns during various stages of his career.

By 1934-35, Siegel was playing for Buffalo in the New York State Basketball League.

The 1934-35 New York State Basketball League

Buffalo entered the New York State Basketball League for the 1934-35 season.

The circuit included teams from:

• Buffalo
• Kingston
• Albany
• Schenectady
• Utica
• Syracuse
• Little Falls
• Rochester

The league used a split-season format.

A Slow First Half

Buffalo finished the first half with a 4-5 record.

The Bisons were tied with Schenectady and trailed unbeaten Kingston and second-place Albany.

At that point, Buffalo was a competitive club but not one of the league's leading teams.

A Dramatic Second-Half Improvement

The second half was completely different.

Buffalo went 7-2.

That .778 winning percentage was the best record in the second half of the league schedule.

The Bisons finished ahead of Kingston and Schenectady.

The turnaround demonstrated that Buffalo had developed into one of the stronger teams in the league by the end of the season.

1934-35 Buffalo League Record

The Midwest Basketball Conference

A major change came in 1935 with the creation of the Midwest Basketball Conference.

The new league brought together several of the strongest independent and industrial basketball organizations from Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York.

Buffalo became one of the original members.

One of the Original MBC Teams

The inaugural Midwest Basketball Conference included:

• Akron Firestone Non-Skids
• Buffalo Bisons
• Dayton Metropolitans
• Pittsburgh Y.M.H.A.
• Indianapolis Kautskys
• Indianapolis U.S. Tires
• Detroit Hed-Aids
• Windsor Cooper Buses

The Chicago Duffy Florals later joined during the season.

The league was one of the direct predecessors of the National Basketball League.

The 1935-36 Eastern Division

Buffalo competed in the Eastern Division with Akron Firestone, Pittsburgh and Dayton.

The division was highly competitive.

Akron finished first at 11-7, Pittsburgh finished second at 10-7 and Buffalo finished third at 7-8.

Dayton finished fourth at 4-6.

1935-36 Midwest Basketball Conference Standings

Hank Williams

The most historically significant player on the 1935-36 Buffalo Bisons was Hank Williams.

Williams was a 6-foot-4 center from Buffalo.

He had starred at Burgard Vocational High School and later became one of the best players on Buffalo's amateur and semi-professional basketball scene.

Williams was known as a strong rebounder and defender who could also handle the ball and pass unusually well for a center.

A Pioneer in Professional Basketball

Williams' presence on the Buffalo Bisons was historically significant because professional basketball remained largely segregated.

Black teams such as the New York Renaissance and Harlem Globetrotters played extremely high-level basketball, but predominantly white professional leagues generally excluded Black players.

Williams broke that pattern.

He became one of the earliest African American players to compete in an established professional basketball league alongside white teammates and opponents.

One of the First Black Major-League Players

Basketball historians generally identify Williams as one of only a handful of Black players to appear in an integrated professional basketball league before World War II.

His appearance came years before the NBL began broader integration during the 1940s and approximately 15 years before the NBA began using Black players.

Williams therefore occupies an important place in the history of racial integration in professional basketball.

Buffalo's Leading Player

Contemporary and later accounts describe Williams as one of Buffalo's top performers during the 1935-36 season.

His rebounding, defense and passing made him valuable at both ends of the floor.

Despite his strong performance, Buffalo withdrew from the Midwest Basketball Conference after the season.

Williams did not receive an offer from another MBC team.

The Tragic Death of Hank Williams

Williams' promising basketball career was brief.

He died in 1938 at only 24 years old after an illness.

Because his career ended so early and occurred before comprehensive professional basketball statistics were maintained, his pioneering role was largely forgotten for decades.

Buffalo Leaves the MBC

After finishing 7-8 in 1935-36, Buffalo withdrew from the Midwest Basketball Conference.

The decision was apparently intended to be temporary rather than a complete end to the basketball organization.

The Bisons continued playing independently during the 1936-37 season.

The 1936-37 Independent Season

Buffalo's absence from the MBC meant the club does not appear in the official conference standings for 1936-37.

The Bisons continued to schedule independent and exhibition games.

This type of arrangement was common during early professional basketball.

Independent teams could sometimes earn more from arranging their own games than by committing to a fixed league schedule.

The MBC Becomes the NBL

After the 1936-37 season, the Midwest Basketball Conference underwent a major reorganization.

The league adopted the name National Basketball League.

The change represented an effort to establish a more professional and nationally recognizable organization.

Buffalo returned for the inaugural season under the new name.

The 1937-38 Buffalo Bisons

The Bisons entered the NBL's Eastern Division for the 1937-38 season.

The division included:

• Akron Firestone Non-Skids
• Akron Goodyear Wingfoots
• Pittsburgh Pirates
• Buffalo Bisons
• Warren Penns
• Columbus Athletic Supply

Buffalo would play only nine official league games.

Al Cervi

The most famous player on the 1937-38 Bisons was Al Cervi.

Cervi was a Buffalo native who had starred at East High School.

He joined the Bisons as a young guard-forward and played all nine NBL games.

Cervi scored 44 points, averaging 4.9 points per game.

A Future Hall of Famer

Cervi's Buffalo season represented the beginning of one of the most distinguished careers of the NBL and early NBA era.

He later became a star with the Rochester Royals and Syracuse Nationals.

Cervi earned multiple All-NBL selections and became known as one of the best defensive guards in professional basketball.

He later served as player-coach and head coach of the Syracuse Nationals.

Cervi guided Syracuse to the 1955 NBA championship.

He was eventually inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Eddie Malanowicz

Eddie Malanowicz had the highest scoring average on the Buffalo roster.

The center appeared in five games and scored 36 points.

His average of 7.2 points per game led the team.

Bello Snyder

Bello Snyder led Buffalo in total points.

The forward appeared in eight games and scored 46 points.

He averaged 5.8 points per game.

Neil O'Donnell

Neil O'Donnell played forward and center.

He appeared in all nine league games and scored 35 points.

O'Donnell averaged 3.9 points per contest.

Paul Coleman

Paul Coleman appeared in six games at guard.

He scored 25 points, averaging 4.2 per game.

Coleman had also been active in western New York basketball before joining the NBL Bisons.

Danny Carnevale

Danny Carnevale played guard in all nine games.

He scored 26 points.

Stan Raiman

Stan Raiman appeared in all nine games at guard and forward.

He scored 22 points.

Jim O'Donnell

Jim O'Donnell played forward and center.

He appeared in eight games and scored 10 points.

Stan Jackson

Stan Jackson appeared in seven games at forward and scored 18 points.

Johnny Lenhart

Johnny Lenhart played three games at forward and center.

He did not score an official NBL point.

1937-38 Buffalo Bisons Roster

The 1937-38 Season Begins

Buffalo opened its NBL schedule on November 28, 1937 against the Akron Firestone Non-Skids.

The game was played in Buffalo.

Firestone defeated the Bisons 21-19.

The contest was particularly unusual because the teams experimented with playing three 15-minute periods rather than the NBL's more common four 10-minute quarters.

December 1 at Pittsburgh

Buffalo traveled to Pittsburgh for its second league game.

The Pirates defeated the Bisons 34-28.

Buffalo therefore opened the NBL season 0-2.

First NBL Victory

Buffalo earned its first official NBL victory on December 5, 1937.

The Bisons hosted the Pittsburgh Pirates and won 27-26.

The one-point victory became one of only three NBL wins in franchise history.

Loss to Goodyear

On December 10, Buffalo traveled to Akron to face the Goodyear Wingfoots.

Goodyear defeated the Bisons 36-19.

The 19-point output demonstrated the offensive problems that would follow Buffalo throughout the season.

Warren Penns Rivalry

Buffalo played two official games against the nearby Warren Penns.

Warren defeated Buffalo 33-25 on December 18.

The teams met again in Buffalo on December 26.

This time, the Bisons won 33-21.

Another Experimental Game

The December 26 victory over Warren was another contest in which the league experimented with three 15-minute periods.

Early professional basketball had not yet standardized every aspect of game structure.

The inaugural NBL season included experimentation with scheduling, period lengths and other rules.

A Close Loss to Firestone

Buffalo came within one point of defeating one of the league's strongest teams on January 5, 1938.

The Bisons lost to Akron Firestone 38-37.

The close result showed that Buffalo could compete with elite opposition despite its losing record.

The Final NBL Victory

Buffalo's final official NBL victory came against Columbus Athletic Supply.

The Bisons won 45-26.

The 45 points represented Buffalo's highest official scoring output of the season.

1937-38 Buffalo Bisons Schedule

Only Nine Official Games

One of the strangest features of Buffalo's NBL season was its length.

The Bisons played only nine official league games.

Other teams played substantially more.

Fort Wayne, for example, completed 20 official games.

The reasons Buffalo's schedule ended after only nine contests are not completely clear from surviving records.

A League Without a Balanced Schedule

The NBL did not use a modern balanced schedule.

Teams played dramatically different numbers of games.

Travel problems, financial issues, arena availability and weather could all affect schedules.

Buffalo's geographic distance from many Midwestern teams created an additional challenge.

The Harsh Buffalo Winter

The winter of 1937-38 also created significant transportation problems throughout western New York.

Heavy winter weather and infrastructure problems may have contributed to Buffalo's abbreviated schedule, although no single surviving source provides a definitive explanation for all of the unplayed games.

A 3-6 Record

The Bisons finished the season 3-6.

The .333 winning percentage placed Buffalo fourth in the Eastern Division.

The Bisons finished behind Akron Firestone, Akron Goodyear and Pittsburgh but ahead of Warren and Columbus.

1937-38 Eastern Division Standings

A Strong Defense

Buffalo's record was mediocre, but the defense was surprisingly strong.

The Bisons allowed only 275 points in nine games.

That amounted to 30.6 points per game.

Buffalo ranked third among the 13 NBL teams in points allowed per game.

Offensive Problems

The Bisons scored only 262 points.

That was an average of 29.1 points per game.

Buffalo ranked eighth in the league in scoring.

The Bisons were therefore frequently involved in low-scoring games.

A Narrow Point Differential

Buffalo was outscored by only 13 points over its nine games.

That average deficit of fewer than two points per game suggests the team was considerably more competitive than its 3-6 record might initially indicate.

Four of Buffalo's six losses came by eight points or fewer, including one-point defeats against Akron Firestone and the opening 21-19 loss.

1937-38 Buffalo Bisons Team Statistics

No NBL Playoff Appearance

Buffalo did not qualify for the inaugural NBL playoffs.

The Bisons' short nine-game schedule also worked against any postseason opportunity.

Akron Goodyear ultimately represented the Eastern Division in the championship series.

The Wingfoots defeated the Oshkosh All-Stars to become the first NBL champions.

Buffalo Leaves the NBL

The Bisons did not return for the 1938-39 season.

Buffalo was one of several inaugural NBL organizations that disappeared or left the league after the first year.

Columbus Athletic Supply, Dayton Metropolitans, Fort Wayne General Electrics and Kankakee Gallagher Trojans were among the other clubs that did not continue.

Did the Bisons Continue Independently?

There is evidence that basketball teams using the Buffalo Bisons identity may have continued playing independent games after leaving the NBL.

Because independent basketball records are incomplete, it is difficult to determine exactly how long the same organizational structure survived.

What is clear is that the 1937-38 season was the final year in which this Buffalo club competed in the National Basketball League.

1934-38 Buffalo Basketball Timeline

Known League Record, 1934-38

Using only the seasons for which formal league standings survive, Buffalo went:

This total does not include the 1936-37 independent schedule or other exhibition games.

Notable Buffalo Players

• Hank Williams
• Al Cervi
• Sam Siegel
• Bello Snyder
• Eddie Malanowicz
• Neil O'Donnell
• Jim O'Donnell
• Danny Carnevale
• Paul Coleman
• Stan Raiman
• Stan Jackson
• Johnny Lenhart

Two Historically Important Buffalo Players

The most significant part of the Buffalo story may be the presence of two players whose careers represented very different chapters in basketball history.

Hank Williams became an early pioneer of racial integration in professional basketball.

Al Cervi became one of the greatest guards and coaches of the NBL and early NBA eras.

Few short-lived professional franchises produced connections to two such important parts of basketball history.

Hank Williams and Integration

Williams played at a time when most major professional basketball leagues excluded Black athletes.

His 1935-36 appearance with Buffalo demonstrated that integration was possible long before it became common.

Unfortunately, Williams' career did not lead immediately to broader opportunities for Black players.

Buffalo left the league after the season, and Williams did not receive another MBC contract.

Al Cervi and the Future NBA

Cervi's career moved in the opposite direction.

His Buffalo season was only the beginning.

He later became a major NBL star, entered the NBA with Syracuse and coached one of the league's championship teams.

The future Hall of Famer therefore gave the 1937-38 Buffalo Bisons a direct connection to the development of the modern professional game.

Not the 1946 Buffalo Bisons

The 1934-38 Buffalo organization should not be confused with the Buffalo Bisons that entered the NBL in 1946.

The later Bisons were owned by Ben Kerner and Leo Ferris.

That organization played only 13 games in Buffalo before relocating to Moline, Illinois, and becoming the Tri-Cities Blackhawks.

The Blackhawks later became the Milwaukee Hawks, St. Louis Hawks and finally the modern Atlanta Hawks.

No Established Connection to the Atlanta Hawks

Although both organizations used the Buffalo Bisons name and competed in the NBL, the 1937-38 Bisons are not generally considered the same franchise as the 1946 Buffalo team that became the Atlanta Hawks.

The clubs were separated by nearly a decade and had different ownership and personnel.

The earlier Buffalo club should therefore be treated as a distinct historical organization.

Buffalo and the Origins of the NBL

The Bisons were present at two important moments in professional basketball history.

They participated in the inaugural Midwest Basketball Conference season in 1935-36.

They then returned when that league became the National Basketball League in 1937-38.

The NBL survived until 1949 and became one of the two principal leagues that formed the modern NBA structure.

Buffalo therefore occupied a small but important place near the beginning of that development.

The NBL's Experimental First Season

Buffalo's nine-game schedule helps illustrate how different the first NBL season was from modern professional basketball.

There was no standardized number of games.

Teams played uneven schedules.

Period lengths were still being experimented with.

Franchises could enter, relocate or disappear rapidly.

The NBL was still evolving from its semi-professional and industrial roots.

The Bisons' Defensive Identity

The 1937-38 Bisons played a low-scoring style even by contemporary standards.

They averaged only 29.1 points, but opponents averaged only 30.6.

Buffalo's defensive performance ranked among the best in the league.

The team simply lacked enough consistent scoring to turn close games into victories.

Buffalo Bisons NBL Franchise Record

Buffalo Bisons / Lincolns Timeline

Why the Buffalo Bisons Matter

The 1934-38 Buffalo Bisons never won a major league championship.

They played only one official NBL season.

Their surviving records are incomplete.

Yet the organization is important for several reasons.

Buffalo participated in the New York State Basketball League, became an original member of the Midwest Basketball Conference and then returned for the first season played under the National Basketball League name.

The club therefore connected three different eras of organized professional basketball.

A Pioneer in Basketball Integration

Even more important was the presence of Hank Williams.

Williams played center for Buffalo in 1935-36 at a time when racial segregation remained common throughout American professional sports.

His appearance made Buffalo one of the earliest integrated professional basketball teams.

That achievement came years before the more widely documented NBL integration of the 1940s.

The Beginning of Al Cervi's Career

Two seasons later, Buffalo introduced another historically important player.

Al Cervi made his professional league debut with the Bisons.

Cervi went on to become a Hall of Fame guard and championship coach.

His career connected the obscure 1937-38 Buffalo franchise directly to the early NBA era.

Legacy of the Buffalo Bisons / Buffalo Lincolns

The Buffalo Bisons and Buffalo Lincolns represent an important but often overlooked chapter in western New York basketball history.

The organization emerged from Buffalo's extensive independent basketball scene and entered the New York State Basketball League in 1934-35.

Buffalo struggled to a 4-5 first-half record before producing a remarkable 7-2 second half, giving the club an 11-7 combined league mark.

The following season, the Bisons became one of the original members of the Midwest Basketball Conference.

Buffalo finished 7-8 and third in the Eastern Division.

The most important player on that team was Hank Williams, the 6-foot-4 Burgard Vocational High School star who became one of the earliest Black athletes to compete in an integrated professional basketball league.

Williams' presence gave Buffalo a pioneering role in the racial history of professional basketball.

After the season, Buffalo temporarily withdrew from the MBC and returned to independent competition.

The Bisons came back when the league became the National Basketball League in 1937.

The 1937-38 team featured future Basketball Hall of Famer Al Cervi.

Bello Snyder led Buffalo with 46 points, while Eddie Malanowicz averaged a team-high 7.2 points in five games.

The Bisons played only nine official league games and finished 3-6.

Despite the losing record, Buffalo allowed only 30.6 points per game, the third-best defensive average in the 13-team NBL.

The team's three victories came against Pittsburgh, Warren and Columbus.

Buffalo left the NBL after the season.

Its official NBL history consisted of only nine games, three victories, six losses and no playoff appearances.

The club should not be confused with the unrelated 1946 Buffalo Bisons that eventually became the Tri-Cities Blackhawks and modern Atlanta Hawks.

The older Buffalo organization has its own place in professional basketball history.

Its legacy rests on its participation in the leagues that preceded the NBL, its role in the NBL's inaugural season, the early professional career of Al Cervi and, most importantly, Hank Williams' pioneering role as one of the earliest Black players in integrated professional basketball.

For a team that played only nine official NBL games, the Buffalo Bisons left behind a surprisingly important historical legacy.