The 1967–68 ABA season was the first season for the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

. The ABA was challenging the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

. The ABA introduced a red, white and blue basketball. They used a 30-second shot clock as opposed to the NBA's 24 second shot clock, and also used the

three-point shot A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or triple) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two ...

. There were 11 teams playing in the first season of the league, with each team playing a 78-game schedule.

History

The American Basketball Association (ABA) was founded in 1967 by Dennis Murphy, former mayor of Buena Park, California, and Gary Davidson, an attorney from Orange County, California. George Mikan, a former

star best known for his career with the

Minneapolis Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers franchise has a long and storied history, having played and won championships in both the National Basketball League (United States), National Basketball League (NBL) and the Basketball Association of America (BAA) prior to ...

, was named as the league's first commissioner, saying that the ABA would avoid raiding the players from the NBA as the upstart league as it wanted to avoid legal issues relating to the

reserve clause The reserve clause, in North American professional sports, was part of a player contract which stated that the rights to players were retained by the team upon the contract's expiration. Players under these contracts were not free to enter into ano ...

and hoped to avoid creating a bidding war for talent that would make player salaries unaffordable. Despite that, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' reported that tentative offers had been made to

Oscar Robertson Oscar Palmer Robertson (born November 24, 1938), nicknamed "the Big O", is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Robertson played ...

and

Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman Chamberlain ( ; August21, 1936 – October12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player. Standing tall, he played Center (basketball), center in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 seasons. He was enshrin ...

, who was offered a contract that would pay him $50,000 (half of what he was making with the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

) along with a 20% share of the team that started play as the

New Jersey Americans New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

. By April 1967, the league announced that they would begin play for the 1967–68 season with 11 teams in two divisions. The Eastern Division would include teams representing

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

(though that team later played primarily in the state of

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

instead at Teaneck this season due to a lack of suitable locations for the New York City team),

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

and

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

, while the Western division would be made up of

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orang ...

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

(previously

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

as the original, intended location for the team),

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

and

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

. Each team owner made a commitment that they would have the resources to run for at least three years on annual budgets of $500,000 and would be able to absorb any financial losses during that period. With the first pick in the league's inaugural draft in April 1967, Indianapolis chose Jimmy Walker, who had been a collegiate All-American at

Providence College Providence College is a Private university, private Roman Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, it offers 47 undergraduate Academic ...

, where his 30.4 points per game led all major college players. Walker was also the first pick in the 1967 NBA draft by the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

and ended up playing his entire career in the NBA. Among its picks, New Orleans selected

pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a #bar, bar. Pole jumping was already practiced by the ...

er Bob Seagren "because he is a great athlete and we think he can play pro basketball", despite the fact that he had never played basketball at the college level. The 11 teams selected a total of 130 players. In June 1967, NBA leading scorer

Rick Barry Richard Francis Dennis Barry III (born March 28, 1944) is an American former professional basketball player who starred at the NCAA, American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) levels. Barry ranks among the m ...

left the San Francisco Warriors to sign with Oakland, making him the seventh player and the first superstar to defect to the upstart league. The landmark three-year contract offer from singer and team owner

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

was estimated to be worth $500,000 and would make him one of basketball's highest-paid players. The agreement included 15 percent ownership in the franchise, which led Barry to remark, "The offer Oakland made me was one I simply couldn't turn down." In August, however, a superior court judge upheld the reserve clause in Barry's contract and ruled that he was obligated to play for the Warriors or sit out for the entire season. Barry ultimately chose to sit out for the year, rather than play for San Francisco. Mikan unveiled the league's distinctive red, white and blue official ball in August, calling it "a patriotic ball" and saying that it would be more appealing visually on television.

Teams

Map of teams

Regular season

The Oakland Oaks defeated the Anaheim Amigos by a score of 134–129 in the league's inaugural game in front of 4,828 fans at the Oakland Arena on October 13, 1967. Oakland's Andy Anderson was the high scorer with 33 points and Les Selvage hit four three-point field goals. The league's first all-star game was played in Indianapolis on January 9, 1968, at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Coach Jim Pollard of the Minnesota Muskies led the East to a 126–120 win over the West team coached by Babe McCarthy of the

New Orleans Buccaneers The New Orleans Buccaneers were a charter member of the American Basketball Association. After three seasons in New Orleans, Louisiana, the franchise moved to Memphis, Tennessee, where it became the Memphis Pros, Pros, Memphis Tams, Tams, and Me ...

. Larry Brown of the Buccaneers was chosen as the game's Most Valuable Player. The nationally televised game was played in front of 10,872 fans, the largest attendance for any ABA game in Indianapolis as of that date. At the end of the regular season, the

and the

Kentucky Colonels The Kentucky Colonels were an American professional basketball team based in Louisville, Kentucky. They competed in the American Basketball Association (ABA) from 1967 to 1976. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky Colonels. The Colo ...

finished the season tied for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Division, with identical 36–42 records. The teams were supposed to play a one-game playoff to determine who would advance to the postseason, which was supposed to be played at the Teaneck Armory in

Teaneck, New Jersey Teaneck () is a Township (New Jersey), township in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a bedroom community in the New York metropolitan area. The town is know for their pancake throwing contest held ...

, home court of the Americans, but could not be played there as the circus was in town and had the space booked. The team tried to relocate the game to the Long Island Arena in

Commack, New York Commack ( ) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the towns of Huntington and Smithtown in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York. The CDP's population was 36,124 at the 2010 census. History The name "Commack" comes from t ...

, but when the teams arrived, the playing surface was in such poor condition that the Colonels refused to play. Mikan ruled that the Americans had failed to provide acceptable playing facilities and forfeited the game to the Colonels, with Kentucky advancing to the divisional semifinals.via

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

"N.J. Owner Wants New ABA Chief"
'' Spartanburg Herald-Journal'', March 27, 1968. Accessed September 1, 2010. On March 24, 1968, the ABA awarded their first Most Valuable Player Award to

Connie Hawkins Cornelius Lance "Connie" Hawkins (July 17, 1942 – October 6, 2017) was an American professional basketball player. A New York City playground legend, "the Hawk" was to play basketball for the Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball, Iowa Hawkeyes but wa ...

of the

Pittsburgh Pipers Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the 67th-most populous city in the U.S., with a population of 302,9 ...

; Hawkins led the league in scoring with 26.9 points per game (1,877 total), field goals made (634).

Playoffs

The top seeds in each division during the regular season were the Eastern Division

and the

of the Western Division, and each won their respective division titles and won both divisional playoff rounds to advance to the league championship. In the seventh and deciding game, the Pipers defeated the Buccaneers by a score of 122–113 to take the first league championship, with Charlie Williams scoring a game high 35 points to lead the hometown Pipers in front of 11,475 fans.Staff
"PIPERS VANQUISH BUCS, WIN TITLE; Fight Off Rally in 122–113 A.B.A. Playoff Victory"
''

'', May 5, 1968. Accessed September 1, 2010.

Final standings

Eastern Division

Western Division

x- denotes playoff team Bold – ABA champions

Awards and honors

* ABA Most Valuable Player Award:

* Rookie of the Year:

Mel Daniels Melvin Joe Daniels (July 20, 1944 – October 30, 2015) was an American professional basketball player. He played in the American Basketball Association (ABA) for the Minnesota Muskies, Indiana Pacers, and Memphis Sounds, and in the National Bas ...

, Minnesota Muskies * Coach of the Year: Vince Cazzetta,

* Playoffs MVP:

* All-Star Game MVP: Larry Brown,

*All-ABA First Team **

, Pittsburgh Pipers ** Doug Moe, New Orleans Buccaneers **

, Minnesota Muskies ** Larry Jones, Denver Rockets ** Charlie Williams, Pittsburgh Pipers *All-ABA Second Team ** Roger Brown, Indiana Pacers ** Cincy Powell,

Dallas Chaparrals The Dallas Chaparrals were a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA). The team moved to San Antonio, Texas, for the 1973–74 season and were renamed the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs joined the National Basketball Association ...

** John Beasley, Dallas Chaparrals ** Larry Brown, New Orleans Buccaneers **

Louie Dampier Louis Dampier (born November 20, 1944) is an American former professional basketball player. He played professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and American Basketball Association (ABA), primarily playing with the Kentucky Colo ...

*All-ABA Rookie Team **

, Kentucky Colonels **

, Minnesota Muskies ** Jimmy Jones, New Orleans Buccaneers ** Bob Netolicky, Indiana Pacers ** Trooper Washington, Pittsburgh Pipers

References

Season summary on Basketball Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:1967-68 ABA season ABA