| Anchorage Northern Knights | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1977 |
| League | EBA 1977–1978 CBA 1978–1982 |
| Team history | Anchorage Northern Knights 1977–1982 |
| Arena | West Anchorage High School Gym |
| Team colors | Gold & Purple |
| Championships | 1 1979–80 |
| Division titles | 2 1978–79, 1979–80 |
The Anchorage Northern Knights were a team in the Continental Basketball Association from 1977 to 1982.
At the time they joined the league then known as the Eastern Basketball Association, the franchise attracted national attention as perhaps the most misplaced franchise in the history of professional sports. They were 5,000 miles away from their nearest competitor, as all the other squads were located in the eastern Pennsylvania-New York-New Jersey area. League officials "began to see the publicity value a team in Alaska would have for the EBA, which, with an enlarged talent pool since the ABA folded, had been trying to upgrade its image from that of a nickel-and-dime Pennsylvania mill-town circuit—which is mostly what it had been—to something on the order of baseball's Triple-A leagues," wrote John Papnek in Sports Illustrated.
During the team's first two seasons, the Knights began their regular schedule with an extended homestand; then began a mid-season bus trip to every CBA team in the league; then finished out the season with another homestand.
The Knights experienced success from the outset of the franchise, leading the league in attendance and often playing before sellout crowds. They won the Western Division with a 24–7 record in their inaugural season, and advanced to the CBA Finals the following year, where they were swept in four games by the Rochester Zeniths, with whom they had begun to develop an impassioned rivalry. The Northern Knights then captured the CBA Championship the following season by defeating Rochester in seven games.
Brad Davis played for the Northern Knights in the 1978/79 and 1979/80 seasons, capturing the CBA Newcomer of the Year Award in 1978–79. Davis then embarked on a long NBA career, highlighted by twelve seasons with the NBA's Dallas Mavericks where he became the first player to have his jersey number retired by the NBA franchise. Future NBA Clipper Ron Davis was a two-time CBA Scoring Leader and 1979–80 CBA Most Valuable Player for the Anchorage squad.
Other favorite Northern Knights included Freeman Blade, Tico Brown, Steve Hawes, Arvid Kramer, Steve Hayes, Brad Branson, and Al Fleming. The Knights were coached by Bill Klucas.
| Year | League | Record | Reg. Season | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977/78 | EBA | 24–7 | 1st, Western | Semifinals |
| 1978/79 | CBA | 27–22 | 2nd, Northern | Finals |
| 1979/80 | CBA | 29–16 | 2nd, Northern | Champion |
| 1980/81 | CBA | 25–17 | 2nd, Western | Western Division Semifinals |
| 1981/82 | CBA | 14–32 | 4th, Western | Did not qualify |
The Northern Knights played their home games in West Anchorage High School's Gymnasium for the all of their seasons. Here's an article from Sports Illustrated about their first game including two backboards that shattered.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1093370/index.htm
"North For Sure but also East", Sports Illustrated, February 27, 1978
CBA Museum Anchorage Northern Knights page
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