Once there, he would finish with an emphatic dunk, a foolproof strategy that helped ONeal lead the NBA in field-goal percentage 10 times in his career. The Lakers got one championship, while Kareem got two on his own including one with Milwaukee. Just kidding. Moreover, he not only faced the incredible pressure of being anointed The Chosen One by Sports Illustrated as a teenager, but hes actually exceeded the lofty expectations set for him. Before 1976, NBA players were bound to their teams through a reserve clause similar to that which existed in Major League Baseball. He is one of only five players to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals, all in one season. After the 1976 ABA-NBA merger, team owners hoped salaries would normalize. J Erving. LeBron James just does things that shouldnt be humanly possible. Money was hard to come by for basketball players in the early days of the league as well. Julius Dr. Gervin was famous for his finger roll and seemed to score at will against any opponent the Spurs played against. The best basketball player of the 1970s was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Basketball Uniform History | Epic Sports We adapted Google's Privacy Guidelines to keep your data safe at all times. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 4:50AM. Most importantly, he led a very weak team in the New Orleans Jazz. Abdul-Jabbar was a six-time NBA MVP, a 19-time All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA pick, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. 9 Noteworthy Bog Bodies (And What They Tell Us), 12 Novels Considered the Greatest Book Ever Written, Inventors and Inventions of the Industrial Revolution, https://www.britannica.com/list/the-10-greatest-basketball-players-of-all-time. reserve clause similar to that which existed in Major League Baseball. Some say the three-time All-Stater and future baseball Hall of Famer was Illinois' first high-school basketball star. Last edited on 18 February 2023, at 16:44, National Association of Basketball Coaches, 196970 NCAA University Division men's basketball season, 2005 NCAA Basketball's Finest - All-Americans, "Awtrey leads All-American Academic unit", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1970_NCAA_Men%27s_Basketball_All-Americans&oldid=1140133496, No second, third or fourth teams (10-man first team), This page was last edited on 18 February 2023, at 16:44. Those two players, more than any others, defined the 1980s in the NBA. His ability to rebound as just a 64 guard was tremendous, averaging six boards per game for his 13-year run in the league. But let's face it: the old-school center has been going out of style for a long, long time, all thanks to the chaos and rebirth in the '70s. In addition to scoring, Gervin was also a proficient rebounder and excellent defender. For example, Oscar Robertson was one of the most athletic players of his erajust Google Oscar Robertson splits (Ill wait). Kareem was the best pro basketball player of the '70s -- that's more or less beyond debate -- but hoops came out the other side fully enthralled with shooters and high-flyers. Kareem won five of the 10 MVPs awarded in the '70s, made the All-Star team every year but '78 and only missed All-NBA first team three times in the decade. Marquette reaches its highest ranking since the 1970s in AP college And, of course, hes since won two titles (and counting?) Plus, he was hilarious in Airplane! Clockwise from upper left: Issel, Lanier, Mount and Maravich (not pictured: Murphy). Impressive, right? This site is using Cloudflare and adheres to the Google Safe Browsing Program. Investors founded the ABA in 1967 as a rival to the more established NBA (then just an eight-team league). There was actually a good deal of legal wrangling over the reserve clause, the ABA merger, draft eligibility and What Team Rick Barry Would Be Playing For. College basketball career scoring leaders. What survived was the hoops cognoscenti, made up notably of writers, musicians and actors who were active followers on both coasts. Then the American Basketball Association (ABA) came along and celebrated the showmanship of their top stars. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. And how might retired NBA legends fare in todays game? 50 Greatest NBA Players Of The 1970s - Page 8 - Hoops Habit My argument was that it was a time of testing new limits, of parity and of transition. Im going to pressure you with three-quarters, half-court defense. The 1970s were a golden age for basketball. Despite the creation of the National Basketball Players Association in 1954 (the first team sports players union), NBA owners held most of the power in the league until the merger. The uber-confident Bird had arguably the quickest release of anyone to ever play basketball and hed often let his defender know that the shot was going in soon after it left his hands. $11.45 shipping. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. This years playoffs confirmed that the NBA is in good hands. But Maravich was so unbelievably '70s. List of all the NBA and ABA Players Born in 1970 - Basketball-Reference.com Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. Basketball has not escaped the fashion roller-coaster of the past century. History of Basketball Uniforms - Allen Sportswear Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for VINTAGE HARD PLASTIC BASKETBALL PLAYER CAKE TOPPER / DECORATION 1970s at the best online prices at eBay! Billy Cunningham: The Kangaroo Kid didn't win a title in the '70s (he was a Wilt sidekick on that great '67 team) but he cranked out some great seasons with the Sixers and the Carolina Cougars of the ABA. J Julius Erving and Skywalker David Thompson headlined the leagues first slam dunk contest in 1976, but their in-game dunks might have been even more impressive. A high scorer and rebounder, the purveyor of the Sky Hook and a thoughtful off-court presence, it's really a shame KAJ isn't more beloved. Boston Celtics, American professional basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1971, the San Francisco Warriors changed cities and names, leaving the Cow Palace. NBA Basketball Players Body Size Data - Topend Sports Or write about sports? The most notable of his scoring feats came on March 2, 1962, when he put up an astounding 100 points in a game, an NBA record that will likely never be broken. Play Video. The Doctor averaged 26+ points, 10+ rebounds, and 4+ assists per game in the 1970s and was an 8x All-Star and 7x All-ABA/NBA selection. When the Boston Athletic Association, the pre-cursor to the NBA, awarded prize money to the winning team . In the 1970s Barry claimed six NBA All-Star bids, three ABA All-Star bids and three All-NBA first team nods. Steve Nash Eight-time NBA All-Star Steve Nash first gained the notice of the basketball world in 1993. Moreover, his rivalry with Magic Johnsonwho, spoiler alert, youll see a bit later in this listduring the 1980s launched basketball into an unprecedented level of national popularity that the sport has never fallen from. Either Bird's Celtics or Magic's Lakers played in every single NBA Finals in the decade and won eight of the 10 titles . Abdul-Jabbar was dominant in all aspects of the game, but he was particularly unstoppable on offense. Though Frazier was a model point guard, running the offense and dishing out a plethora of sweet dimes, he also possessed a skill that would foreshadow the direction of the position. Copyright 2017-2023 Rookie Road Inc. All rights reserved. Top 30 Greatest NBA Players Of The 1970s 1. eBay item number: 404182195911. He can be reached at acriblez@semo.edu and followed on Twitter at@AdamCriblez. Below is All-Decade 1970s All-Stars' 2K full team roster. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. Nicknamed Big Red for his ginger hair, Dave Cowens was the anchor for many great Boston Celtics teams during the seventies. A friend mentioned he'd heard there was a player on the verge of surpassing Pete Maravich's NCAA record 3,667 career points, a mark that's stood since 1970. . Abdul-Jabbar also made 19 All-Star teams during his career and was a two-time Finals MVP, recording one of the most legendary and impactful resumes in league history.. Calvin Murphy San Diego/Houston Rockets 1970-79 Calvin Murphy was a scoring machine at Niagara and San Diego rolled the dice on the 5-foot-9 guard in the second round of the 1970 NBA Draft.. The Greatest Brazilian Players of All Time - 70s & 80s - Sportslens Indeedy. What hasn't been said about Gervin? But, well, he played alongside another top-25 talent in Scottie Pippen and was coached by the strategic genius Phil Jackson during his most productive years. In addition to his unprecedented prowess at putting up points, Chamberlain was also the only person to grab more rebounds per game than Bill Russell (22.9), all while averaging more minutes played per game than any player in league history (45.8). Sooners' 1970s all-decade team By Joey Helmer Apr 18, 2020 12 NORMAN, Okla. Welcome to the glory years known as the Barry Switzer Era. Player/Athlete:. List of all the NBA and ABA Players Born in 1970 1969 1971 Select Year: 84 Players Active players are bold; * Indicates Hall of Famer LeBron James overtook Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBAs leading scorer in February 2023.]. Known as Clyde Frazier, Walt brought the razzle dazzle to Madison Square Garden in the seventies. (LogOut/ The dataset includes stats on over 3000 Players NBA Players from 1947-2018. 17 Most Valuable 1970 Topps Basketball Cards But they somehow managed to turn the simple act of making the extra pass into an exercise of communal cool. And he never dunked in an NBA game. Women's Professional Basketball League (1978-1981) The struggles and hard-won glory of pioneers such as Alice Coachman, Althea Gibson, Wilma Rudolph and Lynette Woodard helped pave the way for later generations of sports greats like Jackie. He made the All-NBA Second Team in 1974 and was promoted to the First Team the following year.Although he began to struggle with injuries towards the end of the decade, theres still no doubt that McAdoo was one of the most impressive players of his time. 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He was an All-Star every year from 1970-76, and from 1970-75 he was named to both an All-NBA Team and an All-Defensive Team for each season. In the 10th and 11th round, the Atlanta Hawks drafted Mexican Manuel Raga and Italian Dino Meneghin; both were playing in the Italian league at the time. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. The 1970 Draft is also known as the first draft where international players who had never played U.S. high school and college basketball were selected. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. Quite possibly. And while his free throw routine may have looked silly to some, it worked like a charm; Barrys 91.3 percent free throw percentage was the best of anyone in the decade by over seven percentage points. 44,845 Sets. Its time for BritannicaOK, one editor at Britannicato jump into the perpetually unresolved greatest ever in [insert sport here] fray. McAdoo was the 1972-1973 NBA Rookie of the Year; he also won three straight scoring titles mid-decade and averaged 27+ points and 12+ rebounds per game in the 1970s en route to five All-Star Games, two All-NBA selections, and the 1974-1975 MVP. What is the Best Decade of Basketball in NBA History? The league officially adopted the three-point field goal in 1979 and the San Diego Clippers led the NBA that season with 543 three-point attempts (making 32.6%). Russell Westbrook is being left wide open on offense, and hes still hurting the Clippers. Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Basketball Reference Database. 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Through the publication of this list, James has averaged a Robertson-esque 27.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.9 steals per game andunlike the Big Ohe was doing so against teams stocked with elite athletes and not players who smoked cigarettes at halftime. 1972-73 Missing player: Bob McAdoo The 1971-72 squad fell to Florida State in the Final Four, before defeating Louisville in the now defunct consolation game. The three-pointer debuted in the NBA in late 1979, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson dominated the early years of the 1980s, Michael Jordan arrived a few years later and the rest is history. Our apologies, George Mikan, K.C. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, and wants help, call or visit: (a) the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey at 1-800-Gambler or www.800gambler.org; or (b) Gamblers Anonymous at 855-2-CALL-GA or www.gamblersanonymous.org. The other big on-court change during the decade was that NBA players began embracing the slam dunk as a form of artistic expression. Top 15 Greatest White Players In NBA History - TheSportster But ONeal wasnt just pure physicalityhe was surprisingly graceful for such a massive man and he had a deft touch with his close-range jump shots. For the most accurate and up-to-date information, consult individual encyclopedia entries about the topics. Teams: Atlanta Hawks (1970-74), New Orleans/Utah Jazz (1974-80), Boston Celtics (1980 . Call 1-800-GAMBLER. Sure, we still saw centers like Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaq, Tim Duncan and Yao Ming rise and dominate down the road. Free shipping on . 1970-71 Kansas Jayhawks Men's Roster and Stats - College Basketball at Earvin Magic Johnson, Jr. 1901. Bidding wars almost bankrupted both leagues and soon even marginally talented players made six-figure salaries. Trailblazing Black Women in Sports - HISTORY [This list was originally published in April 2014. The player who scored the most points in the 1970s was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. [1] To earn "consensus" status, a player must win honors from a majority of the following teams: the Associated Press, the USBWA, The United Press International and the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Overall, they have won 17 NBA titles. The league was a creation of sports promoter Bill Byrne, who had previous involvement in start-up ventures such as the World Football League (1974-1975) and the American Professional Slo-Pitch League (1977-1980). He was never the best player in either league -- Dr. J and Kareem ensured that --. The last remaining player from the 1970s in the NBA was Robert Parish. We forget how damn good Boston was in the '70s because their success then paled to that experienced in the '60s and '80s. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? Michael Jordan Super Set Checklist Rankings at PSA Set Registry Artis Gilmore: The best stiff ever. 3 min read. Ranking Explanations . Dr. J isn't just symbolically important as a harbinger of the style that would arrive in the '80s: he was a two-time ABA champion and won the last three MVPs of the ABA. Athlete Body Size Changes Over Time Sports Nutrition for Basketball UK welcomed its first African-American basketball player in Tom Payne, an All-American high-schooler from Louisville . (Photo on right by: Ronald Martinez/ Getty Images) These days, when basketball players hit the court, there is so much swish-swashing of damn clothing going on, it's hard to focus on anything else. He won two championships alongside Havlicek in 1974 and 1976, and was also extremely successful as an individual player. T&Cs apply. Learn more about this major update here. Most obsessively competitive to the detriment of ever having normal human relations with anybody? (All this said, it's pretty clear that Kobe eclipsed him as the second best Laker guard ever right around 2009 or 2010. Hondo led the C's to titles in '74 and '76, was an All-Star every year of the decade until retiring in 1978 and made four straight All-NBA first teams from '71 through '74. Hayes and Wes Unseld led the Bullets to three Finals berths and one title, and Hayes was an All-Star every year of the decade. ABC News Live. . His free-throw shooting, on the other hand. All rights reserved. Erving was one of the defining figures of the game during the decade, combining exceptional athleticism and finesse in a style that has remained popular all these years later. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Overall, the NBA in the 60's was good, but I find it hard to say it was the best decade of NBA basketball. Hondo was the original sixth man, but by the 1970s, he was a dominant fixture in the NBA. Here's another argument: the '70s represented a battle for the soul of basketball. More famously, when the New Orleans Jazz signed aging guard Gail Goodrich away from Los Angeles in 1976, the league awarded the Lakers three first-round draft picks (one of which became Earvin Magic Johnson). He is a member of the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, and an inductee in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Malone was the league's best player in 1981-82 by nearly every metric. Widespread Cocaine Use by Players Alarms NBA While Kareem put up a whopping 38,387 points during his playing days, I cant look past the fact that he spent a good chunk of his career receiving passes from Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson, the two greatest point guards of all time. He's one of the most interesting elite athletes ever, he was fully dominant for a long spell and he kept the Lakers afloat in bridging the West and Magic eras. He also happens to be one of the top five in-game dunkers ever. 15,159 Sets. He was an All-NBA selection every year from 1970-1976, and he also won two championships with the Boston Celtics in the seventies, one in 1974 and again in 1976.. If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. After the Converse "Chuck Taylor All Stars" and before Michael "Air" Jordan was the 1970's. Background. Oh, and the 12-time All-Star also helped initiate true free agency into the NBA through a landmark antitrust suit, an accomplishment just as impressive as his jaw-dropping on-court exploits. I know I risk getting run out of my beloved Chicago on a rail for daring to suggest His Airness isnt the best player ever but, well, I just dont think he is. One of two players, along with Stephon Marbury, who couldn't find a way to co-exist with a young Kevin Garnett in Minnesota. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Oh jeez, this guy. After helping . UCLAs Lew Alcindor. These debates boil down to a very simple premise: basketball was different in the past. He was also a double-double machine, averaging over 12 rebounds per game for the decade. Jordan played college basketball for three seasons under coach Dean Smith with the North Carolina Tar Heels. Hayes was an All-Star every year, 6x All-NBA, 2x All-Defensive, 2x rebounding champion, and NBA champion with the Washington Bullets in 1977-1978. Also, his career totals were inflated by the fact that he played roughly 10,000 years in the NBA. 50 Greatest NBA Players Of The 1980s - Hoops Habit Scored the fifth-most points of the decade, Two-time All-ABA selection and seven-time All-NBA selection, Four-time All-ABA selection and six-time All-NBA selection. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Battle for the soul of basketball: Meet the All-1970s NBA (and ABA McAdoo won an MVP and five All-Star berths in the '70s as a brilliant scorer and rebounder; in that 1975 MVP season he averaged 34 and 15. Who Wears Short Shorts? Not Enough Men These Days | KQED Oh my, yes. How Many Championships Does Steph Curry Have? (Or 20. The Top Ranked Basketball Players of the 1970's When people knocked him for not winning championships early in his career, they overlooked that he almost single-handedly took an overmatched Cleveland Cavaliers squad to the 2007 NBA finals at just 22 years old. The Knicks legend was All-NBA six times, All-Defence six times, a seven-time All-Star and helped New York win its only two NBA titles in 1970 and 1973. Lew Alcindor's historic run to the NBA Rookie of the Year award was the talk of the 1969-70 season, but it was his sophomore campaign in 1970-71 where the Milwaukee Bucks big man took a transcendent leap towards the Hall of Fame.. With the acquisition of All-Star point guard and future Hall-of-Famer Oscar Robertson, the Bucks . It was this transition, from earth-bound giants to brilliant athleticism, that paved the way for the glorious rebirth that was to come. The five players represented by LA Tech during the 1980s all played a huge part in the success of these Bulldog teams. The glory the NBA would enjoy in the '80s and '90s wouldn't be possible without players like Dr. J and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar laying the groundwork for the league in the '70s. He was like living, breathing quicksilver on the court, a physical specimen in ways different from his contemporaries. The history of basketball uniforms shows more coordination among players between 1920 and 1940 as they began wearing mid-length shorts and jerseys made of wool. Overall, he averaged 26.6 points per game for the seventies, the third-most of any player. The Celtics had played for 10 seasons before Russell joined the team, never once reaching a championship series in that time. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. Regardless of the cigar-chomping coachs recommendation, the league introduced the three-point shot in 1979 and never looked back. Yeah. Rick Barry Honorable Mentions FAQ Who are the best basketball players of the '70s of all time? Yes, the NBA consisted of just 8 to 14 teams during this period, so capturing championships was a statistically easier feat for a single franchise, but even that fact doesnt minimize Russells historic accomplishments. 2. Like Magic, Jordan and LeBron later on, he melded exciting play and quality in a way that reeled fans in and never let them go. PSA Set Registry. TGT Play! Odds Deals Podcasts US USA Arizona California Colorado Connecticut Florida Georgia Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Louisiana Maryland Michigan New Jersey New York North Carolina Ohio Pennsylvania Tennessee Texas Virginia Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 2. Unfortunately, Maravich was a consummate showman who was stuck on bad teams throughout the 1970s. As a sophomore, he led the "Flying Clouds" to . The Top 10 Best Basketball Players of the 1970's, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born April 16, 1947) is an American retired professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. Dave Cowens Career Highlights THE RAVE! Facebook Watch. He was an All-Star every year of his career, racking up 16 selections while dominating both leagues. Jabbar then went on to finish up the decade with the Lakers. Most important player ever? Female Basketball Players - The Famous People His only title as a player came in 1972; he darn near led the Lakers to one in 1970, as well. What? . In the 1970s Barry claimed six NBA All-Star bids, three ABA All-Star bids and three All-NBA first team nods. During the 196162 season, The Big O averaged a triple-double with 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 11.4 assists per game. Top 10 NBA Players of the 1970s - The Grueling Truth Ranking the top 10 players of the 1970s TGT Tips! In 1996, he was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. (The latest, and for my money the best, entry in the canon is "When the Garden was Eden" by New York Times columnist Harvey Araton who writes with the benefit of history and perspective on his side.). Parish was able to stick around for so long because of his great talent as a basketball player, making nine All-Star teams during his career as well as winning four NBA championships. When Bill Walton signed a huge contract with the San Diego (later Los Angeles) Clippers in 1979, his former team received two players and a first-round draft pick in return, essentially gutting Waltons new team. Olympic Games Anthropometry for other sports in 2012. 1970-71 Topps Basketball Complete Set - Premier 7.5 - eBay Do you have a sports website? 1970-71 Los Angeles Lakers Roster and Stats - Basketball-Reference.com The Women's Professional Basketball League was the first attempt to launch a nationwide professional basketball league for women.
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