# Washington Capitols
The **Washington Capitols** were a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C., that played five seasons from 1946-47 to 1950-51 in the [Basketball Association of America](https://www.edgepedia.org/basketball-association-of-america) (BAA) and its successor, the [National Basketball Association](https://www.edgepedia.org/national-basketball-association) (NBA), and one further season in the American Basketball League.[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/) • [2](https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/106671) An original BAA franchise coached in its early years by [Red Auerbach](https://www.edgepedia.org/red-auerbach), the team reached the 1949 BAA Finals but never won a championship, and it folded during the 1950-51 season.[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Active years | 1946-47 to 1950-51 in the BAA/NBA; 1951-52 in the American Basketball League[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/) |
| Home arena | Uline Arena, Washington, D.C., planned to seat 8,500 for basketball[3](https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/pnp/habshaer/dc/dc1000/dc1043/data/dc1043data.pdf) |
| Franchise record | 157-114, a .579 winning percentage, with 4 playoff appearances and 0 championships[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/) |
| Best season | 1946-47: 49-11 under Red Auerbach, the BAA's best record[4](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/1947.html) |
| Finals appearances | Lost the 1949 BAA Finals to the Minneapolis Lakers, 4-2[3](https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/pnp/habshaer/dc/dc1000/dc1043/data/dc1043data.pdf) • [5](https://nutanica.com/Basketball_Association_of_America) |
| Notable coach | Red Auerbach, 1947-1949, 115-53 (.685), his first head coaching role[6](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/coaches.html) • [2](https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/106671) |
| End of franchise | Folded January 9, 1951, mid-season in 1950-51, after a 10-25 start[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/) |
## Origins and home arena
The Capitols were one of the eleven original clubs when the Basketball Association of America began play in 1946, alongside the [Boston Celtics](https://www.edgepedia.org/boston-celtics), New York Knicks, Philadelphia Warriors, Providence Steamrollers, Toronto Huskies, Chicago Stags, Cleveland Rebels, Detroit Falcons, Pittsburgh Ironmen, and St. Louis Bombers.[5](https://nutanica.com/Basketball_Association_of_America) The league's founders met in New York on June 6, 1946, and many of them owned the arenas their teams would fill.[7](https://time.com/4346827/early-nba-photos/)
The team played at Uline Arena at the corner of M and 2nd streets NE, a concrete barrel-roofed building completed in 1940-41 for ice executive Michael Uline. The arena was planned to seat 6,000 for hockey, 8,500 for basketball, and 10,000 for boxing.[3](https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/pnp/habshaer/dc/dc1000/dc1043/data/dc1043data.pdf)
## The Auerbach years, 1946-1949
The Capitols gave Arnold "Red" Auerbach, later the Hall of Fame coach of the Boston Celtics, his first head coaching position.[2](https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/106671) In the inaugural 1946-47 BAA season Washington went 49-11, a record that set the mark for the best record in the new league's history and stood until the 1966-67 [Philadelphia 76ers](https://www.edgepedia.org/philadelphia-76ers) surpassed it in the NBA twenty years later; it also held as the fewest losses in a BAA/NBA season until the 1995-96 [Chicago Bulls](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-bulls) broke that mark.[4](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/1947.html) Despite leading the league by fourteen games that first season, Washington lost to the [Chicago Stags](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-stags) in the 1947 BAA semifinals.[3](https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/pnp/habshaer/dc/dc1000/dc1043/data/dc1043data.pdf) • [10](https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/1947-baa-semifinals-stags-vs-capitols.html)
Auerbach's recorded coaching line with the franchise covers 1947 to 1949: 168 games, 115 wins, 53 losses, a .685 winning percentage, and 17 playoff games with 8 wins.[6](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/coaches.html) In 1948-49 the Capitols finished 38-22, first of six teams in their division, and advanced to the Finals.[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/) There they met [George Mikan](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-mikan)'s Minneapolis Lakers, who won the best-of-seven series four games to two in what is counted as the final BAA championship, though the first BAA/NBA championship had been won in 1947 by the Philadelphia Warriors.[5](https://nutanica.com/Basketball_Association_of_America) • [8](https://as.com/baloncesto/nba/mr-basketball-mikan-los-albores-del-baloncesto-y-la-primera-gran-estrella-de-la-nba-n/) • [11](https://www.nba.com/news/what-were-the-original-nba-teams)
## Decline and folding
Auerbach left after 1949, and the team declined. Washington went 32-36 in 1949-50, finishing third of six.[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/) The 1950-51 season began with a 10-25 record, sixth of six, before the franchise folded on January 9, 1951.[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/)
## Place in NBA history
The team's five seasons left a .579 all-time winning percentage and four playoff appearances, but no championship.[1](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/) Its principal legacy runs through Auerbach, who coached the Capitols from 1946 to 1949 before moving to the Tri-Cities Blackhawks and then the Boston Celtics, where his teams won nine championships between 1950 and 1966.[9](https://cdnc.heyzine.com/files/uploaded/da0a39db09d4c069736692bc6ace30dfb00338f7.pdf)
## References
1. [Washington Capitols Historical Statistics and All-Time Top Leaders, Basketball-Reference](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/)
2. [Washington Capitols (1946-1951): Early NBA Team and Auerbach's First Head Coaching Role, Alegsa Online](https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/106671)
3. [Uline Arena (Washington Coliseum), HAER No. DC-63, National Park Service](https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/pnp/habshaer/dc/dc1000/dc1043/data/dc1043data.pdf)
4. [1946-47 Washington Capitols Roster and Stats, Basketball-Reference](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/1947.html)
5. [Basketball Association of America, Nutanica](https://nutanica.com/Basketball_Association_of_America)
6. [Washington Capitols Coaches, Basketball-Reference](https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSC/coaches.html)
7. [See Photos From the NBA's Early Years, TIME](https://time.com/4346827/early-nba-photos/)
8. [Mr. Basketball: Mikan, los albores del baloncesto y la primera gran estrella de la NBA, AS.com](https://as.com/baloncesto/nba/mr-basketball-mikan-los-albores-del-baloncesto-y-la-primera-gran-estrella-de-la-nba-n/)
9. [Black-and-white profile of Red Auerbach, Heyzine publication](https://cdnc.heyzine.com/files/uploaded/da0a39db09d4c069736692bc6ace30dfb00338f7.pdf)
10. [1947 Baa Semifinals Stags vs Capitols, basketball-reference.com](https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/1947-baa-semifinals-stags-vs-capitols.html)
11. [What were the original NBA teams?, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/news/what-were-the-original-nba-teams)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Basketball and court team sports › NBA and WNBA (North American professional basketball) › NBA and WNBA teams and franchises › NBA teams*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license