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Where the National BasketballLeague was made up of smaller town teams, generally sponsored by industrial firms, the ABL was much more ethnic and big city.
The ABL for many years was the top pro basketballleague in the United States of America, but the teams were generally run by promoters with little or no money.
Hence the Basketball Association of America was formed and the Cleveland Rosenblums became the Cleveland Rebels; the Boston Whirlwinds became the Boston Celtics, and the original Celtics were supplanted by the New York Knickerbockers.