Kansas City Public Library: The Chiefs … Basketball Team? KCQ Explores The Team's Once Popular Offseason Pastime

Press release from the Kansas City Public Library:

September 10, 2021

Last March, many Kansas City Chiefs fans delighted in a video of star wide receiver Tyreek Hill on the basketball court, celebrating his 27th birthday with a windmill dunk. In June, he was joined by teammates Chris Jones, Tyrann Mathieu, and others for a game of hoops to raise money for his Cheetah Scholarship Fund.

A reader asked “What’s Your KCQ?,” a partnership between The Star and the Kansas City Public Library, “How common is it for Chiefs players to play off-season basketball games?” Skittish fans might wonder further: What are the risks?

That unease is nothing new.

In 2019, quarterback Patrick Mahomes was recorded playing in a pickup basketball game at a local gym. The video went viral, prompting Chiefs General Manager Brett Veach to respond, “The Kingdom can rest assure that we have that under control: no more basketball for Pat.”

Earlier this year when New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara worried fans by declaring his love of snowboarding, longtime Chiefs fans may have recalled Hall of Fame kicker Jan Stenerud’s fondness for downhill skiing – acquired as he was growing up in Norway.

On a larger scale, fans have nervously watched their favorite players compete in Olympic-style events and on obstacle courses on the popular television programs Superstars and SuperTeams. The concept debuted in 1973.

Today, standard player contracts forbid players from engaging in activities that “involve significant risk of personal injury.” Basketball, snowboarding, and skiing certainly have their dangers, but so do all physical activities, and most tend to be safer than football. Ultimately, pro athletes need to stay in shape year-round, so teams have learned to live with a degree of injury risk.

Be it for exercise or to raise money for charity, many NFL stars commonly engage in other sports after their seasons conclude. What may surprise some is just how organized offseason basketball was for Chiefs players at one time.

In 1964, the Chiefs were new to Kansas City, having relocated from Dallas the previous year. Following a disappointing first season in their new home, a handful of players started a basketball team for the club. The idea was not new, the San Francisco 49ers formed a basketball team in 1953, and the notion spread to other teams across the country.

In Kansas City, the basketball exhibitions helped build the Chiefs’ fan base. There was also the matter of money. While the games served as charity fundraisers, players initially earned $25 per contest – “and we were happy to get it,” tight end Fred Arbanas said years later.

Pro football salaries at the time weren’t close to today’s seven-, eight-, and nine-figure deals. It wasn’t uncommon for players to hold down blue-collar jobs in the offseason to help pay the bills. In addition to suiting up for the Chiefs, Arbanas worked full time at a General Motors plant between seasons.

In addition to Arbanas, several players now enshrined in the Chiefs Hall of Fame played on the team in the 1960s – halfback Curtis McClintion, running back Abner Haynes, offensive lineman Ed Budde, and even quarterback Len Dawson were on the initial roster. For years, Chiefs equipment manager Bobby Yarborough ran the team.

With an average weight of 282 pounds and height of six feet seven inches, the team brought a distinct size advantage the court. They described their standard gameplan as the “real estate offense.” Several gigantic linemen would be positioned around the basket to fight for rebounds while the more agile players like quarterbacks and wide receivers took shots from the perimeter.

They commonly played teams pulled from trade associations and civic organizations, groups of teachers, high school and college teams, and basically anyone willing to meet on the court for a good cause. They even played other professional football squads.

This press release was produced by the Kansas City Public Library. The views expressed here are the author’s own.