The 1969–70 ABA season was the third season of 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 ...

. Prior to the start of the season, the

Minnesota Pipers Minnesota ( ) is a state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the south, and Nor ...

moved back to Pittsburgh, the Oakland Oaks moved to Washington, D.C., and became the Washington Caps and the

Houston Mavericks The Houston Mavericks were a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA). They played in the upstart league's first two seasons, from 1967–68 ABA season, 1967 to 1968–69 ABA season, 1969. Their home arena was the Sam Houston Co ...

moved to

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

and became the

Carolina Cougars The Carolina Cougars were a basketball franchise in the American Basketball Association that existed from 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Ca ...

. For the regular-season, the schedule was increased from 78 to 84 games per team. The season ended with the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

capturing their first ABA Championship. By April of 1970, rumblings of a merger were reported in the press, with one reported offer having the league pay $11 million in indemnities while agreeing to move the Washington franchise out of its location. The NBA Players Association was felt to be a stumbling block for any plans of a merger, as they had voted to strike in the event of such a merger. As it turned out, the merger would not occur until many years later. Spencer Haywood, a rookie from the

University of Detroit The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is sponsored by both the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy. The university was founded in 1877 and is the largest Catho ...

, led the ABA in scoring (30.0 ppg) and rebounding (19.5 rpg) for the

Denver Rockets Denver ( ) is a consolidated city and county, the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. It is located in the Western United States, in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains east of ...

. Haywood was professional basketball's first "hardship case", leaving college after his sophomore season. The NBA prohibited him from declaring for its draft, and he signed with the Rockets instead, leading them to the Western Division championship.

Teams

Map of teams

Final standings

Eastern Division

Western Division

Asterisk (*) denotes playoff team Bold – ABA champions

Regular season

On April 28, 1970, Spencer Haywood was named ABA MVP.

Playoffs

Awards and honors

* ABA Most Valuable Player Award: Spencer Haywood,

* Rookie of the Year: Spencer Haywood, Denver Rockets * Coach of the Year:

Bill Sharman William Walton Sharman (May 25, 1926 – October 25, 2013) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is mostly known for his time with the Boston Celtics in the 1950s, partnering with Bob Cousy in what was then consider ...

Los Angeles Stars LOS, or Los, or LoS may refer to: Science and technology * Length of stay, the duration of a single episode of hospitalisation * Level of service, a measure used by traffic engineers * Level of significance, a measure of statistical significanc ...

and Joe Belmont, Denver Rockets * Playoffs MVP: Roger Brown,

* All-Star Game MVP: Spencer Haywood, Denver Rockets *All-ABA First Team **

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 ...

, Washington Caps (2nd selection) ** Spencer Haywood, Denver Rockets **

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 ...

, Indiana Pacers (3rd selection) ** Bob Verga,

** Larry Jones, Denver Rockets (3rd selection) *All-ABA Second Team ** Roger Brown, Indiana Pacers (2nd selection) ** Bob Netolicky, Indiana Pacers ** Red Robbins,

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 ...

(2nd selection) **

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 ...

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 ...

(3rd selection) ** Donnie Freeman, Miami Floridians (2nd selection) *All-ABA Rookie Team ** Mike Barrett, Washington Caps ** John Brisker,

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 ...

** Mack Calvin,

** Spencer Haywood, Denver Rockets ** Willie Wise, Los Angeles Stars

Finals

References

Season summary on Basketball Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:1969-70 ABA season ABA