NBA History in Missouri: Has Missouri Had an NBA Team?

The state of Missouri has been home to three NBA teams: Kansas City Kings, St. Louis Bombers, and St. Louis Hawks.

St. Louis Bombers

The St. Louis Bombers were founded in 1946 as a member of the Basketball Association of America (BAA). The Bombers joined the NBA in 1949 — a newly formed league after the merger of the BAA and National Basketball League (NBL).

A year later, in 1950, the Bombers ceased operations after poor on-court performance and low attendance at St. Louis Arena.

St. Louis Hawks

The NBA returned to St. Louis in 1955 when the Milwaukee Hawks moved to the city, with home games played at Kiel Auditorium.. But the franchise didn’t last long, moving to Atlanta in 1968 to become the Atlanta Hawks.

Kansas City Kings

The Kansas City Kings arrived from Cincinnati (as the Cincinnati Royals) in 1972 and departed for Sacramento (to become the Sacramento Kings) in 1985.

The team was shared with the city of Omaha, Nebraska, from 1972-75. Known as the Kansas City-Omaha Kings, home games were split between the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City and the Omaha Civic Auditorium in Omaha.

In 1975, the Kings left Omaha — though they did play several games in the city until 1978 — and became just the Kansas City Kings. They moved into the newly built Kemper Arena.

What Happened To the Kansas City Kings?

The Kings moved to Sacramento in 1985 after years of scandals, arena issues, declining fan interest, and poor on-court performance.

The move came two years after the franchise was sold to a Sacramento-based group. The group kept team in Kansas City for two more years per the terms of a lease with Kemper Arena before the move was approved in April 1985.