History of the Whiting Ciesar All-Americans and Hammond Ciesar All-Americans

The Whiting Ciesar All-Americans, later known as the Hammond Ciesar All-Americans, were an early professional basketball franchise from northwest Indiana that competed during the formative years of the National Basketball League. Founded in 1936 by automobile dealer Edward "Eddie" Ciesar, the club began in Whiting, Indiana, before moving to nearby Hammond in 1938.

The Ciesar All-Americans played four official NBL seasons from 1937-38 through 1940-41. Their first year was easily their most successful. Playing as Whiting, the All-Americans went 12-3, reached the NBL playoffs and featured future basketball coaching legend John Wooden, who earned First Team All-NBL honors.

After relocating to Hammond, the franchise never regained that level of success. The All-Americans went 4-24 in 1938-39, 9-19 in 1939-40 and 6-18 in 1940-41. They folded before the 1941-42 season as declining attendance, financial problems and difficulties maintaining a roster made continued operation impractical.

Despite their short history, the Ciesar All-Americans featured several remarkable athletes. Wooden later became one of the greatest coaches in basketball history. Lou Boudreau became a Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop and manager. Other notable players included Vince McGowan, Ken Gunning, Bill Haarlow, Bobby Neu, Ralph Vaughn, Darwin Hutchins and Joe Sotak.

The Origins of the Ciesar All-Americans

The franchise was founded in 1936 by Whiting businessman and automobile dealer Edward "Eddie" Ciesar.

Whiting was a heavily industrialized community in northwest Indiana, located near Hammond, Gary and Chicago. The region's factories, oil refineries and steel mills provided fertile ground for the industrial and company-sponsored basketball teams that dominated the professional game during the 1930s.

Professional basketball at the time looked very different from the modern NBA. Teams were frequently owned by local businesses, played relatively short schedules and competed in gymnasiums or community centers rather than large arenas.

The Ciesar All-Americans emerged from this environment.

Eddie Ciesar

Eddie Ciesar was the driving force behind the franchise.

Ciesar owned an automobile dealership and used his business resources to support the basketball club.

Company and business sponsorship was extremely common in professional basketball before World War II. Teams such as the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons, Akron Firestone Non-Skids and Akron Goodyear Wingfoots were all closely tied to companies or industrial employers.

The Ciesar All-Americans followed the same model.

The Midwest Basketball Conference

Before the National Basketball League existed, the All-Americans participated in the Midwest Basketball Conference.

The Midwest Basketball Conference was formed in 1935 and included many of the organizations that later helped establish the NBL.

The All-Americans joined the conference during its second and final season.

In 1937, the Midwest Basketball Conference was reorganized and renamed the National Basketball League.

The Birth of the National Basketball League

The NBL officially began play during the 1937-38 season.

The league initially consisted largely of teams based in smaller Midwestern industrial cities.

Whiting became one of the charter organizations of the new league.

The league would eventually become one of the two major professional basketball circuits that combined to create the NBA in 1949.

Whitey Wickhorst

Paul "Whitey" Wickhorst became head coach of the Whiting Ciesar All-Americans.

Wickhorst had previously played professional basketball and had coached the Whiting Macks before taking over the All-Americans.

His 1937-38 club became one of the strongest teams in the inaugural NBL season.

John Wooden Joins Whiting

The most historically significant player ever to wear a Ciesar All-Americans uniform was John Wooden.

Wooden had starred at Purdue University, where he became one of the greatest college guards of his generation.

After college, Wooden played professional basketball while simultaneously pursuing a career as a teacher and coach.

He had previously played with the Indianapolis Kautskys before joining Whiting for the 1937-38 NBL season.

Wooden as a Professional Player

Modern basketball fans know Wooden primarily as the legendary head coach who won 10 NCAA championships at UCLA.

Before becoming a coaching icon, however, he was an outstanding professional guard.

Wooden appeared in 13 regular-season games for Whiting in 1937-38 and scored 143 points, an average of approximately 11.0 points per game.

That scoring average was extremely impressive in an era when entire teams often scored only 35 to 45 points per game.

John Wooden Earns First Team All-NBL Honors

Wooden's performance earned him a place on the 1937-38 All-NBL First Team.

The honor made him one of the league's premier players during its inaugural season.

His brief time with Whiting therefore represents an important but often overlooked part of Wooden's basketball career.

Vince McGowan

Vince McGowan was another major star of the inaugural All-Americans.

The center-forward appeared in all 15 regular-season games and scored 144 points, averaging 9.6 points per game.

McGowan earned Second Team All-NBL honors.

His interior scoring gave Whiting an important complement to Wooden's guard play.

Ken Gunning

Ken Gunning also played a major role in the success of the 1937-38 team.

The forward-guard appeared in all 15 games and scored 105 points.

Gunning later became a successful college basketball coach and athletic administrator.

Bill Haarlow

Bill Haarlow contributed another scoring threat.

The forward played in 10 regular-season games and scored 66 points.

Haarlow was part of a balanced Whiting roster that possessed considerably more offensive firepower than most of the league.

Joe Stack

Joe Stack appeared in 14 games for Whiting during the inaugural NBL season.

The guard-forward scored 60 points and provided another versatile perimeter option.

Bill Perigo

Bill Perigo played all 15 regular-season games.

He scored 55 points and later became better known as a college basketball coach, including a tenure at the University of Michigan.

The 1937-38 Whiting Ciesar All-Americans

The inaugural NBL season became the high point of franchise history.

Whiting finished with an outstanding 12-3 record.

The All-Americans' .800 winning percentage was one of the best marks in the league.

They finished second in the Western Division and qualified for the postseason.

A High-Scoring Team for Its Era

Whiting scored 620 points in 15 regular-season games.

That worked out to an average of 41.3 points per game, the second-highest scoring average among the NBL's 13 teams.

Opponents averaged 37.3 points.

The All-Americans therefore combined strong offense with enough defense to consistently win close games.

1937-38 Whiting Ciesar All-Americans

The First NBL Playoff Appearance

Whiting's 12-3 record earned the franchise a spot in the Western Division playoffs.

The All-Americans faced the Oshkosh All-Stars.

Oshkosh had finished first in the Western Division and was developing into one of the strongest professional basketball organizations in the country.

A Playoff Game in Hammond

Whiting could not use its usual home court for the first game of the playoff series because the Whiting Community Center was unavailable.

As a result, the All-Americans played their home playoff game in nearby Hammond, Indiana.

The event foreshadowed the franchise's permanent move to Hammond after the season.

1938 Western Division Semifinals

Oshkosh defeated Whiting 40-33 in the first game on February 22, 1938.

The teams then traveled to Wisconsin for Game 2.

Oshkosh won again, 41-38, completing a two-game sweep.

The series became the only postseason appearance in the history of the Ciesar All-Americans.

1938 NBL Playoffs

1937-38 Awards

• John Wooden - First Team All-NBL
• Vince McGowan - Second Team All-NBL

The Move from Whiting to Hammond

Following the successful 1937-38 season, Eddie Ciesar moved the franchise from Whiting to nearby Hammond, Indiana.

The team became the Hammond Ciesar All-Americans.

Hammond was larger than Whiting and offered a new civic arena that seemed capable of providing the franchise with a more stable home.

Hammond Civic Center

The All-Americans began playing at the Hammond Civic Center.

The arena had recently been completed and provided the team with a larger and more permanent professional basketball venue.

The facility remained Hammond's home court for the rest of the franchise's existence.

A Dramatic Change in Fortunes

The move to Hammond did not produce the expected improvement.

Instead, the franchise's basketball fortunes collapsed almost immediately.

The same organization that had gone 12-3 in Whiting finished only 4-24 during its first year in Hammond.

John Wooden Returns

Wooden initially remained with the franchise for the 1938-39 season.

However, he appeared in only a handful of games.

Wooden was dealing with knee problems, family responsibilities and increasing concerns about the demands of professional basketball.

He eventually returned to the Indianapolis Kautskys, the professional club for which he had played before joining Whiting.

The Loss of Wooden

Wooden's departure was a major blow.

The All-Americans had lost their First Team All-NBL guard and one of the central figures behind their 12-3 season.

Without him, Hammond lacked the elite perimeter scorer and floor leader who had made the Whiting team so effective.

Lou Boudreau

The most remarkable athlete to join Hammond during the 1938-39 season was Lou Boudreau.

Boudreau had been a standout in both basketball and baseball at the University of Illinois.

He became ineligible for further college competition after agreeing to a professional baseball arrangement with the Cleveland Indians.

During this transition, Boudreau played professional basketball for the Hammond Ciesar All-Americans.

A Future Baseball Hall of Famer Plays in the NBL

Boudreau appeared in 23 games during the 1938-39 season.

He scored 189 points, averaging 8.2 points per game.

That made him Hammond's leading scorer.

Boudreau later became one of the greatest shortstops in baseball history, winning the 1948 American League Most Valuable Player Award and leading Cleveland to a World Series championship as player-manager.

He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1970.

Joe Sotak

Joe Sotak also became a key member of the Hammond roster.

The forward-center appeared in 23 games and scored 142 points in 1938-39.

Sotak remained associated with the team through several seasons and became one of the more durable players in franchise history.

The 1938-39 Collapse

Hammond finished the 1938-39 regular season 4-24.

The .143 winning percentage was the worst in the league.

The All-Americans averaged only 34.7 points per game while allowing 40.6.

All four victories came at home.

The Coaching Change

Whitey Wickhorst remained the team's coach for most of the season.

As the losses accumulated, however, Hammond eventually made a coaching change.

Wickhorst finished his portion of the season with a 3-20 record.

Lou Boudreau then served as player-coach for the final five games, going 1-4.

John Wooden Leaves the Franchise

Wooden's professional basketball career was already beginning to wind down.

After leaving Hammond, he returned to the Indianapolis Kautskys.

He eventually shifted his focus toward teaching and coaching.

That decision ultimately led to one of the greatest coaching careers in sports history.

The 1939-40 Season

Hammond improved slightly in 1939-40 but remained near the bottom of the NBL.

The All-Americans finished 9-19.

Their .321 winning percentage represented a substantial improvement over the previous season, but Hammond again finished last in the Western Division.

A Season of Coaching Changes

The 1939-40 team went through three different head coaches.

Lou Boudreau began the season as player-coach and went 1-4.

Eddie Ciesar temporarily took over and went 0-2.

Leo Bereolos then became coach and went 8-13 over the remainder of the season.

Bobby Neu

Bobby Neu became one of Hammond's most important players during the final years of the franchise.

The guard-forward appeared in 24 games in 1939-40 and scored a team-high 159 points.

His scoring and versatility made him a central figure as Hammond attempted to rebuild following the loss of Wooden and Boudreau.

Darwin Hutchins

Darwin Hutchins also emerged as a major contributor.

The center-forward appeared in 24 games and scored 156 points.

He provided interior scoring and remained with Hammond into the club's final season.

1939-40 Team Performance

Hammond averaged 36.9 points per game.

Opponents averaged 40.8.

The All-Americans still struggled offensively but were noticeably more competitive than the 4-24 club of the previous year.

The Final Season: 1940-41

The 1940-41 season became the final campaign in franchise history.

Hammond entered the year hoping that the modest improvement of 1939-40 could continue.

Instead, the team fell back to a 6-18 record.

Carl Anderson Becomes Player-Coach

Hammond replaced Leo Bereolos with Carl Anderson, who served as player-coach.

Anderson became the final head coach in the history of the Ciesar All-Americans.

Bobby Neu Leads the Team

Neu again became Hammond's leading scorer.

He scored 195 points during the 1940-41 season.

His performance earned him Second Team All-NBL honors.

Ralph Vaughn

Ralph Vaughn also produced one of Hammond's strongest individual performances.

The guard-forward earned Second Team All-NBL honors.

Vaughn later played for the Chicago Bruins during the same season.

Darwin Hutchins Remains a Contributor

Hutchins remained one of Hammond's better scorers in the final season.

His presence gave the team some continuity despite frequent roster turnover.

The 1940-41 Offense

Hammond scored 926 points over 24 regular-season games.

The All-Americans allowed 1,065 points, the most surrendered by any NBL team that season.

The defensive problems helped explain the 6-18 record.

The Final Standings

The NBL did not use divisions during the 1940-41 season.

Hammond finished seventh in the league.

The club failed to qualify for the postseason for the third consecutive season.

1940-41 Honors

• Bobby Neu - Second Team All-NBL
• Ralph Vaughn - Second Team All-NBL

Why the Ciesar All-Americans Folded

The franchise's problems extended beyond its losing record.

Professional basketball remained a difficult business during the early 1940s.

Smaller teams depended heavily on local attendance and relatively modest sponsorship revenue.

Hammond struggled to generate enough fan interest to offset rising operating costs.

The team had also failed to recreate the excitement and success of its original Whiting season.

Declining Local Interest

Historical accounts of the NBL noted that Hammond and Indianapolis were experiencing declining local interest during this period.

For a team without a major corporate sponsor comparable to Fort Wayne's Zollner organization or Akron's tire-company teams, weakening attendance was a serious problem.

The Military Draft Complicates the Roster

The approach of the United States' involvement in World War II also began affecting professional basketball.

Military obligations made it increasingly difficult for smaller teams to maintain stable rosters.

According to local historical accounts, Hammond had difficulty filling a complete roster as players entered military service.

Eddie Ciesar Withdraws the Team

After the 6-18 season, Eddie Ciesar decided that continuing the franchise was no longer financially practical.

He withdrew the All-Americans from the NBL in October 1941.

The organization never returned.

Whiting/Hammond Ciesar All-Americans Season-by-Season Record

Franchise Record

Whiting Record

Hammond Record

The Contrast Between Whiting and Hammond

Few franchises in early professional basketball experienced such a dramatic change after relocation.

The Whiting All-Americans went 12-3 and reached the playoffs.

After moving to Hammond, the same franchise went only 19-61 over three seasons.

The loss of Wooden and other members of the original roster was a major reason for the decline.

The move also demonstrated how fragile professional basketball franchises were during the 1930s and early 1940s.

Notable Ciesar All-Americans Players

• John Wooden
• Lou Boudreau
• Vince McGowan
• Ken Gunning
• Bill Haarlow
• Bobby Neu
• Ralph Vaughn
• Darwin Hutchins
• Joe Sotak
• Joe Stack
• Bill Perigo
• Ed Campion
• Pick Dehner
• Charles Chuckovits
• Emil Benko

Ciesar All-Americans Head Coaches

Home Courts

Major Individual Honors

The John Wooden Connection

John Wooden gives the Ciesar All-Americans a unique place in basketball history.

Before becoming synonymous with UCLA, Wooden was an elite professional guard in the Midwest.

His 1937-38 season in Whiting was one of the finest professional seasons of his playing career.

He led the team in scoring average, earned First Team All-NBL honors and helped the All-Americans reach the postseason.

Decades later, Wooden became one of the most famous coaches in sports history.

At UCLA, he won 10 NCAA championships in 12 seasons, including seven consecutive titles from 1967 through 1973.

His association with Whiting means that one of basketball's greatest coaching careers contains an important chapter in the earliest years of the NBL.

The Lou Boudreau Connection

Lou Boudreau provides another extraordinary link between the All-Americans and American sports history.

Boudreau was accomplished enough in basketball to become Hammond's leading scorer and briefly serve as player-coach.

Yet basketball ultimately became only a footnote in his athletic career.

In baseball, he became an eight-time All-Star, American League MVP, World Series champion and Hall of Famer.

Few professional basketball teams can claim both a future Basketball Hall of Fame coaching legend and a future Baseball Hall of Fame player among their alumni.

Bill Perigo and the Coaching Connection

Bill Perigo also went on to a notable coaching career.

After his playing days, he coached at several levels of basketball and eventually became head coach at the University of Michigan.

His career further demonstrates how many future coaches passed through the early professional leagues.

Ken Gunning's Later Career

Ken Gunning also transitioned into coaching and athletic administration.

The careers of Wooden, Perigo and Gunning illustrate how early professional basketball often served as a bridge between college playing careers and later coaching careers.

The NBL's Industrial Roots

The history of the Ciesar All-Americans reflects the industrial roots of the National Basketball League.

The NBL did not begin as a league dominated by New York, Los Angeles, Boston or other major metropolitan markets.

Instead, places such as Whiting, Hammond, Akron, Fort Wayne, Oshkosh and Sheboygan formed the backbone of early professional basketball.

Many teams depended on local businesses for financial support.

The All-Americans were a perfect example of that model.

Hammond Basketball After the Ciesar All-Americans

The disappearance of the Ciesar All-Americans did not permanently end NBL basketball in Hammond.

During the league's final season, the city was represented by the Hammond Calumet Buccaneers in 1948-49.

That franchise was unrelated to the Ciesar All-Americans.

The Buccaneers lasted only one season before the NBL merged with the Basketball Association of America to form the NBA.

The Ciesar All-Americans and NBA History

The Ciesar All-Americans never became an NBA franchise.

They disappeared eight years before the creation of the NBA in 1949.

Nevertheless, they remain part of the same basketball family tree.

The NBL eventually supplied franchises such as the Fort Wayne Pistons, Minneapolis Lakers, Rochester Royals and Syracuse Nationals to the league that became the NBA.

The All-Americans therefore competed in the direct predecessor of modern professional basketball.

Franchise Timeline

The Franchise's Most Successful Season

There is little question that the 1937-38 Whiting team was the greatest Ciesar All-Americans club.

The .800 winning percentage was dramatically better than anything the franchise accomplished after moving to Hammond.

The team featured two All-NBL players in Wooden and McGowan and ranked among the league's highest-scoring clubs.

Whiting was only two playoff victories away from advancing deeper into the inaugural NBL postseason.

A Franchise Changed by Relocation

The story of the Ciesar All-Americans also serves as an early example of how relocation does not guarantee success.

Moving to the larger city of Hammond and the new Civic Center appeared logical.

Instead, the franchise lost several important players and its winning culture.

The three Hammond teams combined to win only 19 of 80 NBL games.

Why the Franchise Matters

The All-Americans never won an NBL championship and spent only four seasons in the league.

Their historical importance comes from their connections to the birth of professional basketball.

They were part of the inaugural National Basketball League season.

They competed against franchises and organizations that ultimately helped form the NBA.

And they featured several athletes whose later achievements became far more famous than their years in Whiting and Hammond.

Legacy of the Whiting and Hammond Ciesar All-Americans

The history of the Ciesar All-Americans spans only a few years, but it captures the character of professional basketball before the NBA.

Eddie Ciesar founded the club in Whiting in 1936 during an era when businessmen, factories and local sponsors routinely financed professional basketball teams.

The All-Americans entered the National Basketball League during its inaugural 1937-38 season and immediately became one of its strongest clubs.

John Wooden starred at guard and earned First Team All-NBL honors. Vince McGowan earned Second Team honors, while Ken Gunning, Bill Haarlow, Joe Stack and Bill Perigo helped produce a 12-3 record.

Whiting reached the Western Division playoffs but was swept by the Oshkosh All-Stars.

The franchise then moved to Hammond, where its fortunes changed dramatically.

Wooden soon left the club, and Hammond finished only 4-24 during its first season.

That team nevertheless produced one of the most unusual chapters in professional basketball history when future Baseball Hall of Famer Lou Boudreau became its leading scorer and later served as player-coach.

Hammond improved to 9-19 in 1939-40 behind players such as Bobby Neu and Darwin Hutchins but remained outside the playoff picture.

The final team went 6-18 in 1940-41. Neu and Ralph Vaughn earned Second Team All-NBL honors, but individual success could not overcome the franchise's financial difficulties.

Declining attendance, rising operating costs and the growing impact of military service made continued operation increasingly difficult.

Eddie Ciesar withdrew the team from the NBL in October 1941.

Across four official NBL seasons, the Whiting/Hammond Ciesar All-Americans compiled a 31-64 record with one playoff appearance.

The numbers alone do not explain the franchise's importance.

John Wooden's presence connects the All-Americans to one of basketball's greatest coaching dynasties. Lou Boudreau connects the club to Major League Baseball history. The team's participation in the first NBL season links Whiting and Hammond directly to the league that later helped create the NBA.

The Ciesar All-Americans therefore remain an important part of early professional basketball history: a small-market, business-backed Midwestern team that briefly became one of the best clubs in the newborn NBL before disappearing on the eve of World War II.