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A coaching change prior to the
start of the 1947-48 regular season threatened to
derail the Billikens' momentum, but the selection of Ed Hickey instead
lifted the program to the next level. Hickey's three-lane fast break was
perfectly suited to Macauley's style. Kiel Auditorium blowouts became the
norm, while the new head coach and the burgeoning team star became
affectionately known as "Mutt & Jeff". St. Louis finished the season with a
24-3 record, earning a berth in the 1948 NIT tournament – then the premiere
collegiate tournament in the land. Macauley repeated as an All-Missouri
Valley First Team selection, while receiving Helms Foundation First Team
All-America and National Player of the Year honors.
The best was yet to come. The
Billikens rode its fast break into the finals of the NIT tournament,
defeating New York University for the championship and touching off a wild
celebration back home in St. Louis. Macauley was named the MVP of the
tournament. And while the train ride home took three days, thousands of
frenzied fans were there to greet the team upon its return.
Macauley's senior season started
with the team ranked No. 1 in the nation. He ended it by being named a
Consensus First Team All-America, and by being named the Associated Press
Player of the year. The Billikens failed to repeat as NIT champions, but
Macauley had firmly established himself as one of the greatest collegiate
players of his generation.
In the NBA's early years, when teams were
struggling to build fan bases, the draft included territorial
picks. Before the start of the draft, a team could forfeit its first-round
pick and instead select a player from its immediate area, presumably with a
strong local following. The NBA's St. Louis Bombers wasted little time in
forfeiting its own No. 1 to snag the hometown hero who had put the
Billikens' basketball program on the map. Macauley spent one largely
unforgettable season in a Bombers' uniform, averaging 16 points-per-game and
proving that his game was equally suited to the pros. The Bombers folded
after that season, the players were thrown into a dispersal draft, and
Macauley was awarded to the Boston Celtics.
The year was 1950, and the addition of
Macauley was one in a series of franchise-defining moves for team owner
Walter Brown. The Celtics were struggling on the court, Brown was losing
money, and the team was searching to find an audience. Brown responded by
hiring a fiery young coach named Arnold "Red" Auerbach. He then got lucky
on two other fronts: The Celtics backed into the rights to Holy Cross point
guard Bob Cousy, who had been the property of the Chicago franchise until it
folded, and Macauley came to Boston via St. Louis. The three men instantly
formed the nucleus of the Boston Celtics, giving the team credibility in a
town where college hoops had long been king.
Like
Hickey at St. Louis, Auerbach preached an attacking brand of basketball,
which played to the strengths of both Cousy (passer extraordinaire) and
Macauley (deadeye marksman). Macauley averaged 20.4 points-per-game during
his first season in a Boston uniform, while earning All-NBA First Team and
NBA All-Star honors. The inaugural NBA All-Star Game was also held that
season, with Macauley representing the Celtics in front of the partisan
Boston Garden crowd. His game-high 20 points earned him Most Valuable
Player honors and, as the first MVP of the league’s midwinter classic, a
special piece of NBA history.
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