George Senesky; Played on First NBA Championship Team

George Senesky, 78, who played on the NBA’s first championship team, the Philadelphia Warriors, in 1947 and coached the team to the 1956 NBA title, died Monday after surgery at a New Jersey hospital.

Senesky, a resident of Sea Isle City, N.J., led the nation in scoring at St. Joseph’s College during his senior year, averaging 23 points. He was an All-American in 1943 and won the Helms Foundation award that year as the top collegiate player.

As a rookie with the Warriors, Senesky averaged 6.3 points on the championship team of 1946-47, the first official season of the NBA. He played for the Warriors until 1954 and coached the team during the 1955-56 season, when it won another championship.