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League history

The original ABA was founded in 1967, competing with the well-established National Basketball Association, until the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. According to The NBA Encyclopedia, its long-term goal was to force a merger with the more established league. ABA officials told potential owners that they could get an ABA team for half of what it cost to get an NBA expansion team at the time. When the merger occurred, ABA officials said their investment would more than double.

Ultimately, four ABA teams were absorbed into the older league: the New York Nets, Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, and San Antonio Spurs. Two other clubs, the Kentucky Colonels, and the Spirits of St. Louis, were disbanded upon the merger. A third, the Virginia Squires, had folded less than a month earlier, missing out on the opportunities that a merger might have provided.

The ABA distinguished itself from its older counterpart with a more wide-open, flashy style of offensive play, as well as differences in rules - a 30-second shot clock (as opposed to the NBA's 24-second clock, though the ABA did switch to the 24 second shot clock for the 1975-76 season) and use of a three-point field goal arc. Also, the ABA used a colorful red, white and blue ball, instead of the NBA's traditional orange ball. The ABA also had several "regional" franchises, such as the Virginia Squires and Carolina Cougars, that played "home" games in several cities.

The ABA also cleverly went after four of the best referees in the NBA: Earl Strom, John Vanak, Norm Drucker and Joe Gushue, getting them to "jump" leagues by offering them far more in money and benefits. In Earl Strom's memoir Calling the Shots, Strom conveys both the heady sense of being courted by a rival league with money to burn—and also the depression that set in the next year when he began refereeing in the ABA, with lesser players performing in inadequate arenas, in front of very small crowds. But the emergence of the ABA boosted the salaries of referees just as it did the salaries of players.

The freewheeling style of the ABA eventually caught on with fans, but the lack of a national television contract and protracted financial losses would spell doom for the ABA as an independent circuit. In 1976, its last year of existence, the ABA pioneered the now-popular slam dunk contest at its all-star game in Denver.

One of the more significant long-term contributions of the ABA to professional basketball was to tap into markets in the southeast that had been collegiate basketball hotbeds (including North Carolina, Virginia, and Kentucky). The NBA was focused on the urban areas of the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast. At the time, it showed no interest in placing a team south of Washington, D.C.

Commissioners

• George Mikan 1967–1969
• James Carson Gardner 1969 (interim)
• Jack Dolph 1969–1972
• Bob Carlson 1972–1973
• Mike Storen 1973–74
• Tedd Munchak 1974–75
• Dave DeBusschere 1975–76

NBA great George Mikan was the first commissioner of the ABA, where he introduced both the 3-point line and the league's trademark red, white and blue basketball.^[2] Mikan resigned in 1969. Dave DeBusschere, one of the stars of the New York Knicks championship teams, moved from his job as Vice President and GM of the ABA's New York Nets in 1975 to become the last commissioner of the ABA and facilitate the ABA-NBA merger in 1976.^[3]

Teams

Of the original 11 teams, only the Kentucky Colonels and Indiana Pacers remained for all nine seasons without relocating, changing team names, or folding.

Franchise	Cities/Names	Years	Destiny
Anaheim Amigos Los Angeles Stars Utah Stars	Anaheim Amigos	1967–1968	Folded, 1975
	Los Angeles Stars	1968–1970
	Utah Stars	1970–1975
Dallas/Texas Chaparrals San Antonio Spurs	Dallas Chapparals	1967–1970	Joined NBA, 1976, as San Antonio Spurs
	Texas Chaparrals	1970–1971
	Dallas Chaparrals	1971–1973
	San Antonio Spurs	1973–1976
Houston Mavericks Carolina Cougars Spirits of St. Louis Utah Rockies	Houston Mavericks	1967–1969	Folded, 1976
	Carolina Cougars	1969–1974
	Spirits of St. Louis	1974–1976
	Utah Rockies	1976
Indiana Pacers	Indiana Pacers	1967–1976	Joined NBA, 1976, as Indiana Pacers
Kansas City/ Denver Larks/Rockets/Nuggets	Kansas City (unnamed)	1967	Joined NBA, 1976, as Denver Nuggets
	Denver Larks	1967
	Denver Rockets	1967–1974
	Denver Nuggets	1974–1976
Kentucky Colonels	Kentucky Colonels	1967–1976	Folded, 1976
Minnesota Muskies Miami Floridians Floridians	Minnesota Muskies	1967–1968	Folded, 1972
	Miami Floridians	1968–1970
	Floridians	1970–1972
New Orleans/Louisiana Buccaneers Memphis Pros/Tams/Sounds Baltimore Hustlers/Claws	New Orleans Buccaneers	1967–1970	Folded, 1975
	Louisiana Buccaneers	1970
	Memphis Pros	1970–1972
	Memphis Tams	1972–1974
	Memphis Sounds	1974–1975
	Baltimore Hustlers	1975
	Baltimore Claws	1975
New York/New Jersey Americans New York Nets	New York Americans	1967	Joined NBA, 1976, as New York Nets
	New Jersey Americans	1967–1968
	New York Nets	1968–1976
Oakland Americans/Oaks Washington Capitals Virginia Squires	Oakland Americans	1967	Folded, 1976
	Oakland Oaks	1967–1969
	Washington Capitals	1969–1970
	Virginia Squires	1970–1976
Pittsburgh Pipers/Pioneers/Condors Minnesota Pipers	Pittsburgh Pipers	1967–1968	Folded, 1972
	Minnesota Pipers	1968–1969
	Pittsburgh Pipers	1969–1970
	Pittsburgh Pioneers	1970
	Pittsburgh Condors	1970–1972
San Diego Conquistadors/Sails	San Diego Conquistadors	1972–1975	Folded, 1975
	San Diego Sails	1975

List of ABA championships

Year	Western Division champion	Games	Eastern Division champion	Playoffs MVP
1967–68	New Orleans Buccaneers	3–4	Pittsburgh Pipers	Connie Hawkins C, Pittsburgh
1968–69	Oakland Oaks	4–1	Indiana Pacers	Warren Jabali G, Oakland
1969–70	Los Angeles Stars	2–4	Indiana Pacers	Roger Brown F/G, Indiana
1970–71	Utah Stars	4–3	Kentucky Colonels	Zelmo Beaty C, Utah
1971–72	Indiana Pacers	4–2	New York Nets	Freddie Lewis G, Indiana
1972–73	Indiana Pacers	4–3	Kentucky Colonels	George McGinnis F/C, Indiana
1973–74	Utah Stars	1–4	New York Nets	Julius Erving F, New York
1974–75	Indiana Pacers	1–4	Kentucky Colonels	Artis Gilmore C, Kentucky

With the ABA cut down to seven teams by the middle of its final season, the league abandoned divisional play.

Year	Winner	Games	Runners-up	Playoffs MVP
1975–76	New York Nets	4–2	Denver Nuggets	Julius Erving F, New York