Haskell Cohen
| Haskell Cohen | |
|---|---|
| Born |
March 12, 1914 Worcester, Massachusetts, United States |
| Died | June 28, 2000 (aged 86) Fort Lee, New Jersey, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | National Basketball Association public relations director |
Haskell Cohen (March 12, 1914 – June 28, 2000) was the public relations director of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1950 to 1969. He is known as the creator of the NBA All-Star Game. He was inducted to the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame for his contributions in basketball.
In 1951, Cohen joined the NBA as the league's publicity director. He teamed up with NBA President Maurice Podoloff, forming a two-man office. At that time, the basketball world had just been stunned by the college basketball point-shaving scandal. Cohen came up with an idea of hosting an All-Star Game featuring the league's best player, similar to the Major League Baseball's All-Star Game. He believed that such showcase would regain fans' interest in basketball. Podoloff and the majority of team owners were pessimistic that the idea would go bad and taint the league's image. However, Boston Celtics owner remained confident with Cohen's idea. He offered to host the game and to cover all the expenses or potential losses incurred from the game. The first NBA All-Star Game was held on March 2, 1951 at the Boston Garden. The game became a success, drawing a crowd of 10,094, much higher than that season's average attendance of 3,500. Since then, the All-Star Game became an annual mid-season tradition in the NBA.
Before joining the NBA, Cohen was a writer for the Pittsburgh Courier and also a scout for the Duquesne Dukes. While scouting for Duquesne, he discovered Fletcher Jones. Jones became a professional basketball player before becoming a medical doctor. He later teamed up with Cohen, NBA player Jack Twyman and hotel owner Milton Kutsher in 1958 to create the Maurice Stokes charity game. The game was intended to raise money for Stokes, who had just suffered encephalopathy, a brain injury that damaged his motor control center. That game became an annual tradition to raise money for other former players in financial need. The Maurice Stokes games were held at Kutsher's Hotel in Monticello, New York or at their camp, the Kutsher's Sports Academy.
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