Long before Magic and Michael, before Kobe and LeBron, there was Ossie, the first scoring leader in the N.B.A. — at least for a few seconds.

Ossie Schectman, a Knicks guard and a onetime all-American at Long Island University in Brooklyn, played when the two-handed set shot ruled and a 6-foot-8 center was a giant.

When Schectman died on Tuesday at 94, he was remembered as a central figure in the National Basketball Association’s creation tale. He scored the first 2 points in the league’s history and became something of a celebrity when the distinction was uncovered, 42 years and 5 million points later.

On the night of Nov. 1, 1946, the Knicks faced the Toronto Huskies at Maple Leaf Gardens, the home of the National Hockey League’s Maple Leafs, before 7,090 fans more familiar with face-offs than jump balls. The court covered the ice surface.