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00:04I see an America, on the move again, the 1975, a diverse and vital and tolerant nation, what
00:19you have here is the acid drive, everyone here is going to a whole new plateau, I have
00:28Muhammad Ali, he got too big for the big money in New York, he went into places like the
00:33Philippines, I say I don't want to knock him out, but I'm going to let him go, insanity
00:41must be brought back to basketball, I think the climate has changed, there's criticism
00:45there's need for change, and no one can drag a player onto the court and make him perform,
00:50this isn't a slavery, $250,000 a year, if that's slavery, I'd like to know where to sign
00:54on, the American Basketball Association played with a bright colored ball that made you want
01:05to salute, look at that move behind the back, wow, that's the way the game should be played,
01:15I feel that I wasn't being paid when I should have, he appealed his case to the United States
01:20Supreme Court, if they don't merge, a lot of these players are going to be out of a job,
01:28there's no tomorrow,
01:46In the summer of 1975, the ABA reached its pinnacle, the 75 ABA championship was the most well-attended
01:56in league history, the talent in the league showed 16 active players and coaches who were
02:02going to be pro basketball, Hall of Famers, and the ABA was consistently beating the NBA
02:08in head-to-head exhibition games, while thriving on the court, the ABA's ongoing financial distress
02:17had the league on life support, anytime that you win a championship, the worst thing you can do is
02:23stand pat, so you don't worry about that when we get to camp on September 24th, but we do kind
02:29of feel
02:29that it will be quite competitive, when we won the championship in 75, that next fall, all of a sudden
02:37things are crumbling and falling apart. The league was under such pressure now, because there was only so much money.
02:46National television, NBA, ABA, local television, we needed the money, because certain teams are falling.
02:56Now you talk about tense. There's a tense time now. Last month, the New York Nets and the Denver Nuggets
03:04of the
03:04American Basketball Association applied for admission to the NBA without notifying the rest of their league.
03:10The other clubs sat down to discuss that disloyalty. The reason they gave is a good one. A lot of
03:15them are going broke.
03:17Carl Shear and my dad knew that the league was in trouble. You know, they always looked out for the
03:22other owners, but you know,
03:23did some of the other owners have the capacity to do it? They weren't quite sure. So did they make
03:27inquiries on their own? Probably.
03:29The Denver Nuggets and the New York Nets, two of the most successful franchises in the ABA, petitioned the NBA
03:35to be able to be
03:36brought into the NBA at that time, and basically would have abandoned their ABA brethren. And my understanding is that
03:43a lot of the players
03:44were not aware of this at all, that this was done at the behest of the ownership.
03:49I thought they should have notified us. I was kind of disappointed. You know, two players that the NBA really
03:58wanted was David Thompson and Jews Irving.
04:03Even though there were still some great players in the league, I don't think that was fair to a lot
04:07of players.
04:10You know, it comes across like mutiny on the bounty. Two franchises are going to go for themselves. That's not
04:16being team-like.
04:19New York and Denver are member franchises of the American Basketball Association. No franchise may withdraw from our league
04:27without first assigning all basketball-related property to the league and without obtaining the consent of the other trustees. This
04:34has not been done.
04:35What happens if the NBA does decide to act favorably upon these applications?
04:41I don't feel that they'll be approved.
04:44This overture was ultimately not successful.
04:47But nonetheless, that sort of morale that they all had, like, hey, we're the underdog.
04:51We're facing incredible odds, but we're doing it together.
04:54This must have been a body blow to them to sort of see two of their teams try to jump
04:58ship.
04:58It was total chaos, trying to keep the ship going.
05:03We lost some cohesiveness and some friendliness among the franchises.
05:08It sort of became like a shark-infested water, every man for himself.
05:13The whole league was like that, going into 76.
05:17It was clear that it was going to be a major struggle to have another season in the ABA.
05:26The process of the ABA was deteriorating.
05:35We would go to various cities, and the hotel would not allow us to stay there because the previous payments
05:45were not paid.
05:47My paychecks were bouncing, my daughter's school tuition at a private school was bouncing, car payments bouncing, house note bouncing.
05:56It just became very embarrassing.
05:58There were franchises that had just been hanging on, and owners that were ready to bail.
06:04And they bailed because they're just losing too much money.
06:07You could go to a city, and it could be your last time going to that city.
06:13You know, franchises start dropping like flies.
06:15I think we started with 10 teams, and then Utah folded.
06:20The ill-fated Baltimore Claws lasted a couple of months.
06:24They said, Baltimore Claws, and fold it up.
06:28I said, what? Folding up?
06:31San Diego's sales folded.
06:33So, ultimately, you were left with only seven viable ABA teams at the time.
06:38Down to seven teams, and you got to get in then 84 games.
06:42What do you do? You keep playing the same teams.
06:45And, believe me, you get to know them.
06:48There were more fights going on with them because you were seeing players, you know, every week.
06:55And things that you would let go, you weren't letting go.
06:59You know, it kind of just took your spirit, you know.
07:03It kind of just took your confidence, man.
07:06You're like, do I still want to put up with this?
07:10At that point, most people knew that the days of the ABA were numbered.
07:16So, we had an uphill battle to fight, but we weren't going to stop.
07:21We knew we had as much talent in the ABA as they had in the NBA.
07:26I remember the Nets were in town to play, and Julius Irving walked from the Hilton Hotel
07:32over to Angelo Drosa's office and sat down unannounced and said,
07:38Angelo, what can I do to save this league?
07:42That was the spirit.
07:44The rebellious nature of the ABA, when faced with his own termination, didn't shrink.
07:50It grew.
07:51The ABA, having in 1969 broken the NBA's long-established rule by drafting college underclassmen,
08:01now decided to take it a step further.
08:11Nineteen-year-old Moses Malone signed a five-year, $1.5 million contract to forego college,
08:17but he's a fast learner.
08:18When Moses finds he can't do things against the pros he got away with in high school,
08:23he's quick to adjust.
08:25Moses Malone was LeBron before LeBron.
08:29In fact, Moses and LeBron are the only 18-year-olds to come into the league and start from day
08:36one.
08:37He was a force to be reckoned with.
08:40Oh, Moses Malone? Shit, he could boil it, man.
08:43You talking about a dude who could go up?
08:45When you go down, the other guy's just coming.
08:47He's back up again.
08:49My theory of rebounding, do you want the damn ball or don't you?
08:53You've got to want the ball.
08:54It's got to be an obsession to want the ball.
08:57Moses, he wanted that ball.
09:01That's all I can hear him say, man, I'm going to the rack, man.
09:03I'm going to the rack.
09:04He did.
09:06He went to the rack as hard and aggressively as anyone has ever done it.
09:13The ABA's aggressive pursuit of survival led them to seek out new basketball fans in cities the NBA had not
09:21yet considered.
09:22When the Dallas Chaparral struggled, the ABA moved them to San Antonio and renamed them the Spurs.
09:38People in San Antonio didn't know a lot about pro basketball, but they did understand a fiesta atmosphere, a party
09:45atmosphere, 10-cent beer a night.
09:48You could smoke in the arena.
09:55What we wanted to do is make it as San Antonio and as Texas as we could, and that's what
10:00the city liked.
10:01They had a rabid fan base, and they had their star in George Girvin, the Iceman, an all-time Hall
10:08of Fame legend.
10:15George Girvin, this real slim guy, real thin.
10:19You think, how's he going to play pro basketball?
10:20But he wafted in the air, and he had this touch, and he had these shots.
10:266'8", 170-something pounds.
10:29But he wasn't missing.
10:31He was dropping dimes, man.
10:34I think the fans here give up more for us than a lot of arenas in the league.
10:40With that kind of support, we can't do no but win down here.
10:44They was in love with they San Antonio Spurs, so we brought that excitement, man.
10:50And you had talent.
10:52We were gunning.
10:53We were getting 115, 120, running up and down.
10:57I mean, you know, we built up the fan base.
11:00You know, Baseline Bombs was our sixth man on the court.
11:03You know, people came in here and they thought about the Baseline Bombs, not just the San Antonio Spurs.
11:09I remember one time Larry Brown said he didn't like nothing about San Antonio but his guacamole soup.
11:15So Larry Brown went in the locker room and the Baseline Bombs was right on top of their locker room,
11:20and they pulled guacamole soup all on his sweater.
11:24It was wild, man.
11:27San Antonio is one of the great basketball cities of all time.
11:31And a lot of that started with the ABA Spurs.
11:38The Spurs were a very good team.
11:41And even while other teams may have been struggling toward the end of the ABA's existence, the Spurs and the
11:47Nuggets, they were an anomaly in the ABA.
11:49They sold out every night.
11:54The Denver Nuggets, this is a team that is absolutely loaded.
11:59And they had a crowd.
12:00They had a new arena.
12:01They packed it.
12:02They were crazy for it because it was the new game in town.
12:05So they loved their Nuggets.
12:07And Larry Brown was their coach.
12:09And his assistant was his longtime pal going back to college, Doug Moe.
12:16We were a deep team, a talented team.
12:19We had Bobby Jones.
12:22Bobby Jones!
12:23How many nights have we seen him do that?
12:26We had Dan Issel.
12:27Dan Issel lays it in.
12:28That was Issel's great move.
12:30He's got 17 points, leads all scorers in the game.
12:33We had Ralph Simpson.
12:34Young man with me right now is Ralph Simpson.
12:37His coach has said he has the potential to become one of the greatest basketball players at guard.
12:41And we had, you know, one of the greatest young players ever in David Thompson.
12:50David Thompson, the Skywalker.
12:53When he was in college at North Carolina State, they were in the final four against UCLA.
12:58And this is the UCLA team that never lost for like 12 years.
13:01And they played one of the greatest games of all time, triple overtime.
13:05And David was the guy.
13:08So, for him to go into the ABA, it was a big deal for the ABA to get him.
13:12As great as MJ is, as much respect as people have for MJ, David Thompson was Michael before Michael.
13:21The talent was unbelievable.
13:22We always talked about what we're going to see tonight.
13:28His explosiveness was unbelievable.
13:35I heard this whistle come past me.
13:38I turned around.
13:40The teams were doing like a 360 dunk.
13:45That's it.
13:46That's what I call him Skywalker.
13:51The thing that made him hard to stop was that you try to cut him off in the lane and
13:55he would just float it up over you.
13:57He had a great touch.
13:58He was a skilled player.
14:00He had the complete package.
14:02I mean, he was an excellent jump shooter.
14:04But if he got close to the rim, he was going to throw one down.
14:07There was nothing that he couldn't do when he first came to Denver.
14:13I mean, nothing.
14:14He was just a super superstar.
14:21Midway through the 1976 season, while the ABA found themselves mired in their greatest period of financial struggle, they never
14:30stopped pursuing new ways to entertain.
14:33At the 76 All-Star Game, when faced with having not enough funds to pay for a halftime musical performance,
14:41the ABA decided to create some entertainment of their own.
14:53About to bear witness to one of the most spectacular events in professional basketball.
15:10The idea of thrilling people with thrilling dunks and high wire acts, that wasn't happening over in the NBA.
15:19NBA, come on, man.
15:21I brought white paint dry.
15:24You know, so, you know, for me, it was like, we've been ready to show y'all, man, what y
15:28'all was missing.
15:30I was the very first individual to go in that contest.
15:33And I was like, what am I supposed to do now, you know?
15:38The first one, they had artists, they had Larry Keenan, Gervin, David, Julius.
15:48That was such a special night.
15:50You know, because we knew the ability of some of these guys and the freaky things they did in the
15:56game.
15:57But to see that, you know, for the first time, a first dunk contest blew us all away.
16:05William Garbink of the New York Tats.
16:07Oh, my goodness.
16:08Those guys are so good, man.
16:10Goddamn.
16:11Ice.
16:12Oh, man, he could fly.
16:22Oh, man.
16:24He comes back strongly with that one.
16:27You know, David comes out and does 360, you know, which at that time was not being done.
16:37God, what is that?
16:39I've never seen anything like that.
16:41David Thompson.
16:45David Thompson, he was actually the favorite.
16:55I was sitting on the sideline, waiting for David.
16:59But we knew the doc would show off.
17:03David Thompson finishing it.
17:05And now the doctor goes to work.
17:07You know, David Thompson was the high flyer, throwing it down.
17:13And I would applaud it because I was like, here we are.
17:17We've taken it back to the playground.
17:28He has a few ducks, but then his last dunk, everybody started to wonder, well, what is he doing?
17:34Because he went from the free throw line and he went all the way back to the other free throw
17:39line.
17:42Turn around, David.
17:44I said, Doc going to take off from the free throw line, watch.
17:47He said, Ralph, stop being nervous.
17:50And the fans are all stirring and cheering, or what in the world is going on?
17:54When Julius started stepping off the paces to the other end of the floor, I think we all had a
18:00pretty good idea of what he was going to do.
18:09Those of us that had played against Julius had no doubt that he could pull that off.
18:15Sure enough, that big airflow flying back, far way up in the air.
18:33I said, oh my goodness, I was like, God dang, I've never seen anything like this.
18:40You know, whoa, that was a wow moment, whoa.
18:43We look at each other, you know, did he really do that?
18:51This is the very first time people had seen anything like that.
18:56It was pretty obvious Julius was going to win this slam dunk contest.
19:01The doctor thinks that this is just incredible.
19:05It was just natural for him.
19:06And I think God gave him something that he didn't give the rest of us.
19:14I think the story of the last year has to be Dr. J, just because of the amount of pressure
19:20on him, both on the court and off, being the face of the league, taking it as seriously as he
19:25did, and then having to face a superior team on paper in the finals, knowing this was the end, and
19:33rise to the occasion.
19:36Amid speculation that a merger was near, the two most appealing teams to the NBA owners advanced to the finals
19:42in the ABA playoffs.
19:44Would this be the last hurrah for the red, white, and blue basketball?
19:48If so, it would be farewell and a blaze of glory as the New York Nets and the Denver Nuggets
19:53stage a fantastic finale.
19:56That first game in Denver, I was ready.
20:00It was like, man, I had so much energy.
20:03And here's a steal by the doctor.
20:05Julius with one man back. Look out!
20:09Julius was being guarded by one of the best defensive guys ever to play the game, and that was Bobby
20:14Jones.
20:15I learned how to play defense in college, but playing against a guy like Julius was just a different level,
20:20so it was quite a school for me.
20:23I knew how good Bobby Jones was. I love Bobby Jones, but on the court, it could be your mother.
20:30It don't matter.
20:33You gotta go at him.
20:37I thought we had the better team, but he showed us his greatness.
20:43Oh, it's blocked by Dr. J.
20:46Any time you played against Julius, you knew you had to bring your A game, because single-handedly, he can
20:53figure out a way to beat you.
20:55The doctor.
20:57The doctor.
20:58He had 18 points in the fourth quarter.
21:02Julius just took over that game at the end.
21:05There's Julius again.
21:07The doctor.
21:07Flinging the ball.
21:08Almost went in.
21:09That is on rebound and scored.
21:11Boy, is that something.
21:12I just kept coming, kept coming.
21:16The doctor.
21:17The doctor.
21:18Oh, what a shot.
21:20Ten seconds on the shot clock.
21:23Repelled there by Simpson.
21:24Recapped it by Julius.
21:25Julius scores!
21:28And I remember at the end of the game, hitting a jump shot on the baseline to win the game.
21:34He gets it over to the doctor.
21:36Time all game.
21:37Here's the shot.
21:38Julius.
21:38He scores!
21:40He scores!
21:41At the buzzer.
21:42And the Nets win.
21:43120 to 118.
21:45Julius serving.
21:46Finishes up with 45 points.
21:48And this arena is simply stunt.
21:51Bobby Jones right in his face as you saw that time.
21:54And I was all over him.
21:56And he swished it.
21:57And I remember thinking to myself, hey, I did all I could.
22:01Bobby Jones, when he went to block the shot, told me he busted a blister.
22:06And it kept him from getting out there.
22:08I don't know if it would have mattered, but...
22:10He did have a blister.
22:12I believed him.
22:14But that was his blister, not my blister.
22:18The 1976 ABA Finals was a fitting finale for one of the most colorful and innovative entities the sports world
22:29has ever produced.
22:47The New York Nets held a 3-2 series lead.
22:55The teams headed to New York for game six.
23:00game six was in new york and uh what i remember about that game is this was the last chance
23:10great atmosphere at the nassau coliseum here this evening the nets lead three games to two
23:15in the quest for the championship of the american basketball association needless to say the nets
23:20do not want to go back to denver and play a seventh game we shall see along with everybody
23:24else what develops thompson lets it go oh is he quick webster oh my goodness leaping david thompson
23:34with 13 points forget about doc there wasn't anybody in the aba that could guard david when
23:39his game was was really on oh they are really on fire this team oh we got off to a
23:47big lead
23:48i was sitting on the bench and i was convinced we were beating simpson fires it up we had a
23:57lead
23:5824 point lead i believe and again they got the ball in jewish's hands every time down the court
24:11and that momentum changed in that fourth period
24:16this is game six in new york and i said okay we cannot go back to denver we cannot go
24:23back
24:30he has that talent and he imposes his will like he did i mean you do all you can but
24:36i'm just i'm just i'm survived
24:41dr jay bobby jones doing just about everything a human can do
24:48they just started beating us up
24:55john williamson
25:03john williamson he just wasn't going back to denver
25:0726 for williamson 22 in the second half
25:11williamson
25:12the nets lead
25:16just came back and beat us nothing you can do about it
25:30you know in jewish being in new york you know the popularity
25:36it was probably meant to be
25:47that's why i was i was just a great band
26:07and i had three seconds left
26:07they were like
26:07you know the truth is
26:08I think, you know, basketball has always been an escape from the real world.
26:19So I think sitting in the shower, sitting in the shower and the floor,
26:22and it was like the preparation for going back to reality.
26:28You know, and knowing this is the swan song of the ABA,
26:35you know, it was like, it was like just looming over you.
26:42You know, with all the joy and the excitement of playing basketball and winning trophies and all that,
26:50there's this flip side.
26:53The sadness associated with the ABA being done.
27:12Do you see a need for the leagues to merger?
27:15I see a need for basketball and all sports in this country to progress.
27:19And I see a need to ensure that progression.
27:24Before he became an ABA commissioner, he was an absolute big-time political player in the 60s into the early
27:3270s.
27:33Actually, his office was burgled as part of Watergate, which I think is a fascinating little factoid.
27:39So that was a big friggin' deal to get Larry O'Brien to head this league that really was rinky
27:47-dink.
27:47I mean, it was the third option for the American sports-viewing public.
27:53Larry O'Brien was used to hardball.
27:55He was essentially being brought in to sort of wrap up its costly battle with the ABA.
28:01Knock some heads a little bit and push for a merger.
28:05Discussions that were going on in terms of the merger of leagues,
28:09being involved with the Players Association,
28:13I don't think decisions had already been made,
28:15but I think, you know, the ABA was certainly not going to be the beneficiary
28:22because a lot of guys were going to lose their jobs.
28:38The National Basketball Association announced today
28:41that it is taking in four teams from the American Basketball Association.
28:45Each ABA team will pay more than $3 million to join the NBA,
28:49and the ABA, the rival league whose competition for players
28:52made pro-basketball players on the average
28:54the highest-paid athletes in sports will cease to exist.
28:59It was the off-season.
29:02I was president of the ABA Players Association.
29:07I got a call from the Players Association attorney.
29:12He says,
29:13I'm up in Massachusetts here at the owners' meeting,
29:18and they're talking about merging.
29:21And I said,
29:23OK, I'll be on a plane tomorrow.
29:27And he said,
29:29no, don't.
29:30It'll be done by the time you get there.
29:35The last and final meeting of the ABA in Hanna Sport,
29:39I was there.
29:41I represented a lot of athletes at that time,
29:44ABA and NBA.
29:47Everybody put all their cards on the table,
29:50and all the ABA owners had financial difficulty.
29:55So it was not good.
29:57And the NBA,
29:58they weren't going to take any more than four teams in the league.
30:03And it aggravated a lot of people
30:06because it was a merger
30:08that should have taken place properly,
30:10and it wasn't being orchestrated properly,
30:14primarily because the NBA told these four teams
30:19that were getting in,
30:20either you get in,
30:22or we're cutting all the ABA out.
30:25So, I mean, the owners,
30:27they almost had no choice.
30:38Where were you when you found out the merger was happening?
30:41I think I was in Chicago.
30:45I was out in Oakland visiting my sister.
30:48I was in Mexico City playing on ABA All-Star Team.
30:51We were back at the hotel,
30:53and the merger came through.
30:54I thought the players should have had a vote.
30:59The last thing we heard was
31:01there was a merger now,
31:03you know,
31:04and we had to go where they wanted us to go.
31:07I didn't want to see the merger come down like that,
31:09you know,
31:09but because that's the end of it for me.
31:13I didn't, you know,
31:13really try to do anything else.
31:15I was really sad
31:16that we would lose the camaraderie
31:18that we had in the ABA.
31:19We just liked it one another.
31:23I just want to stay with my guys.
31:24I was not pleased with the fact that
31:28maybe 70, 80, 90 players
31:31were not,
31:32did not have jobs,
31:33were not included,
31:35and didn't have an opportunity,
31:36not even to try out with NBA teams after the merger.
31:41In the summer of 1976,
31:44when the NBA-ABA merger took place,
31:47the merger agreement stated in writing
31:50that the ABA players
31:52would receive a pension from the ABA
31:54after retirement.
31:57But as time went on,
31:59those pension payments
32:00never materialized.
32:09The NBA was very clear
32:11that this was not a merger.
32:12They viewed that they were going to bring on
32:14quote-unquote expansion teams.
32:16Seven teams ultimately finished the season,
32:19but immediately afterwards,
32:20the Virginia Squires folded.
32:22Only four of the ABA teams
32:24actually came into the league.
32:26Denver, San Antonio, Indiana, New York.
32:29Two of the ABA teams,
32:30St. Louis and Kentucky,
32:31were forced to go away.
32:34Kentucky Colonels' attendance
32:35was outdoing anybody in the NBA,
32:38and then Kentucky was one of the teams
32:41that was excluded from the NBA.
32:45To me, that's B.S.
32:47The Chicago Bulls probably had more to do with us
32:49not getting in than anybody.
32:51Chicago Bulls didn't want us in
32:53because they had the first draft choice
32:54of ABA players,
32:56and that happened to be Artis Gilmore.
32:59Artis was the key person
33:02because the other key players
33:03were already with teams.
33:05Dr. J is already with the Nets.
33:07That's why they wanted the Nets.
33:08They had George Gervin at San Antonio.
33:11They had Issel and David Thompson in Denver.
33:15And the Pacers, of course,
33:17were always strong in the league.
33:21So, in my opinion, Chicago,
33:23because they had their number one choice,
33:25they're the ones that really forced the NBA
33:27to leave us out so they could get Artis.
33:31And it's very, very sad.
33:33We didn't want to get rid of anybody.
33:35It's just like, you know,
33:37what's happening here?
33:39And it was very disappointing.
33:43We loved the players,
33:47and I was sad.
33:48We just didn't go any further.
33:53The ABA teams that were brought into the league
33:56as expansion teams
33:57came in under very, very difficult conditions.
34:00They had to pay John Y. Brown
34:02approximately $3 million
34:03to buy him out for his Kentucky franchise.
34:06Well, you have to remember now,
34:08John Y. Brown and Ellie Brown,
34:10they've had incredible success
34:12by turning Kentucky Fried Chicken
34:14into a worldwide company.
34:17Supposedly, John Y. Brown
34:19didn't want to pay
34:20the amount of money
34:22that was being asked
34:24for these four slots
34:26to come into the league
34:27versus getting $3 million
34:30for stepping out.
34:32I don't even know if that's true.
34:34That's something
34:35you just read in the paper.
34:37But nobody has
34:38the real reasons.
34:40John, I'm sure,
34:41would do things differently today.
34:44But in the time,
34:45John made the right decision.
34:46He decided to take the money.
34:48He bought the Buffalo Braves
34:50and then traded,
34:52if you can believe this,
34:53the Buffalo Braves
34:54for the Boston Celtics.
34:56I'm guessing Mr. Auerbach
34:57was probably a little upset.
35:01Red Auerbach was indeed
35:03the ultimate symbol
35:04of old-line establishmentarianism
35:07in the NBA
35:08and the idea
35:09that the magnet
35:10of Kentucky Fried Chicken
35:11would become his boss.
35:13Totally infuriated Red.
35:15While one of the franchises
35:17not allowed into the NBA
35:19via the merger
35:20was able to maneuver
35:22their way in
35:23through a side door,
35:25the other was locked out
35:27and left,
35:28initially,
35:29only with the feeling
35:31of bitterness.
35:33A basketball league
35:35is a league
35:36of everybody
35:36doing the same thing,
35:37trying to get
35:38to the same goal.
35:39Everybody expected
35:41that the merger
35:42would take place
35:43or hoped
35:44that the merger
35:45would take place.
35:47But the way it occurred,
35:49I use the word betrayal,
35:50I was betrayed
35:51by my partners
35:52because the ABA
35:53was a partnership.
35:55You could not
35:56have the league
35:58dissolved
35:58without the agreement
36:00of all the partners.
36:02And when
36:03only four teams
36:04got in,
36:05my brother came up
36:06with the thought
36:07that the teams
36:09that got admitted
36:09should give
36:10one-seventh
36:11of their TV revenue
36:14that they would get
36:15by being in the NBA
36:16as compensation
36:17for not being admitted
36:19to the league.
36:19So we stuck
36:21to our guns.
36:22If we were going
36:23to be excluded,
36:25we wanted that
36:26compensation for us.
36:29The Seilners would get
36:30what they were asking for,
36:32one-seventh
36:33of the television revenue
36:35of each of the four
36:36ABA teams
36:37merging with the NBA.
36:39At the time,
36:40with the NBA's
36:41small TV contract,
36:43the amount
36:43seemed inconsequential.
36:45But the term
36:46of the deal
36:46was in perpetuity,
36:48meaning as the league
36:50grew,
36:50NBA owners
36:51would have to pay
36:52the Seilners
36:53forever.
36:56Oh my God.
36:59Easily one of the best
37:01deals in the history
37:02of deals.
37:03To go from
37:04where they were
37:05with the spirit
37:06of St. Louis
37:09to negotiate
37:10that TV deal,
37:11those meetings
37:12were not fun.
37:14Everybody was like,
37:14what the,
37:15you know,
37:16we can't get out
37:16of this?
37:17There's not,
37:17nope.
37:18Couldn't get out of it.
37:19Just one of the best
37:20deals ever.
37:21Unfortunately,
37:22it cost me a lot
37:22of money
37:23and my peers
37:24a lot of money,
37:26but...
37:29In 1974,
37:31the Seilners
37:32had purchased
37:32their ABA franchise
37:34for an estimated
37:35$3 million.
37:37By the time
37:38the NBA
37:39finally bought them
37:40out of their deal
37:41in 2014,
37:43they had made
37:44$800 million.
37:45in balance.
37:47We made a very
37:48good deal,
37:50but it still
37:51did not satisfy
37:52the reason
37:53we got into
37:54basketball in the
37:55first place.
37:56We got into
37:57basketball for the
37:58love of the game
37:58and the ultimate
38:00success in that game
38:01is to win a
38:02championship.
38:04And we did not
38:05get that opportunity.
38:09The irony was
38:10that the ABA
38:10was starved
38:11for television money
38:13and they were
38:14looking forward
38:14to coming in,
38:15these teams to the
38:15league,
38:16and enjoying
38:16the television money,
38:17but under the terms
38:19of the expansion
38:19agreements,
38:20they were not
38:20to receive
38:21any television money
38:22for the first
38:23four years
38:23that they were
38:24in the NBA.
38:25Denver,
38:26San Antonio,
38:27Indiana,
38:27and the New York
38:28Nets,
38:29they each had to
38:30pay approximately
38:30$3.2 million
38:31to the NBA.
38:34The New York
38:34Nets came in
38:35for a particular
38:36difficult time
38:37and they had to
38:37pay approximately
38:38$4.8 million
38:39toward the New York
38:40Knicks for having
38:41intruded on their
38:42turf,
38:43so it was sort
38:43of an indemnity
38:44payment to the
38:45New York Knicks.
38:48Yeah, it's exciting.
38:49The Nets are going
38:49to be in the NBA,
38:50but it's an expensive
38:51ticket to get in.
38:53Roy Bowe,
38:54you know,
38:55he got raked
38:55over the coals
38:56once he went
38:58into the New York
38:58market.
38:59He's a guy
39:00who meant well
39:02and he just
39:03kind of ran
39:04out of money.
39:06Julius wanted
39:08to renegotiate.
39:09You know,
39:10with those staggering
39:12fees to join
39:13the NBA,
39:14my father,
39:15you know,
39:16he had a choice
39:17to make.
39:19And my father
39:20said,
39:20no,
39:22I'm not going
39:23to renegotiate.
39:25The deal
39:26was done.
39:27In a $6 million
39:29business transaction,
39:30the New York
39:31Nets have sold
39:32their star
39:33basketball performer,
39:34Julius Irving,
39:35Dr. J,
39:36to the Philadelphia
39:3776ers.
39:41Well,
39:42I've mixed emotions
39:42about leaving.
39:44You know,
39:45I feel very,
39:45very sorry
39:46for the position
39:47that my teammates,
39:49my ex-teammates
39:51are in.
39:51And I don't think
39:52that,
39:53you know,
39:54they'll be there
39:56when the team
39:56finishes rebuilding.
40:09The 1976-77 season
40:12were marked
40:12the first
40:13after the merger.
40:15While some
40:16in the NBA
40:17held a grudge
40:18against their
40:18former adversaries,
40:20the ABA players
40:21entered the NBA
40:23with something
40:24to prove.
40:25The reality
40:26was,
40:27you know,
40:27I think there was
40:28a strong prejudice
40:30against the ABA.
40:31I remember,
40:31you know,
40:32there was jealousy,
40:34there was animosity.
40:35I was probably,
40:37you know,
40:37the best player
40:38on the team,
40:38head and shoulders.
40:40And,
40:41you know,
40:41you're being asked
40:42to tone it down.
40:43What does
40:44tone it down mean?
40:46And it's one of
40:47the things
40:47Gerber and I laugh
40:48about right now.
40:48I mean,
40:48we wanted to go out
40:49there and entertain
40:50the fans.
40:50You know,
40:50this is what
40:51our priority was.
40:53They weren't ready
40:54for us, man.
40:56Some of them
40:56NBA guys be saying,
40:57who's down there
40:58in San Antonio
40:58that can play
40:59and then say,
41:00ah,
41:00nobody.
41:01And then they come down
41:01there and Gerber
41:02got 30 at half.
41:04You know,
41:04I mean,
41:05if you,
41:05boy,
41:05I tell you,
41:06man,
41:07they were stagnated
41:08in 76.
41:10And when we merged,
41:12everything went up.
41:14Look at 77.
41:16Ten guys
41:17was in the All-Star team
41:18in front of the ABA.
41:27They get Hall of Famers
41:30because the ABA
41:31merges with the NBA.
41:34Basketball players
41:35that for the nine years
41:37in the ABA
41:37was criticized
41:38as a bullshit league.
41:42That's not true.
41:44And then we proved that.
41:46Take it away
41:46by David Thompson.
41:48It's three on one.
41:49And Thompson
41:50flies to the back.
41:53George Girvin
41:54to San Antonio
41:55can call.
41:55Here's Dr. Jay
41:56of Philadelphia.
41:57Oh!
41:58Oh,
41:58things are going good
41:59on the NBA.
42:00Danny Issa watching.
42:02In Denver,
42:03after we went to the NBA,
42:04the first two years,
42:06we won the Midwest Division.
42:08So that's how good
42:09the teams
42:09and the players were.
42:11Larry Brown
42:12of the Denver Nuggets
42:13goes into that huddle
42:14to talk to his team.
42:16We were all trying
42:17to make everybody understand
42:20we're just not
42:20this funny league
42:22that plays
42:22with a crazy-looking ball
42:24and a three-point shot.
42:26We're quality players
42:27and quality coaches.
42:28We can compete
42:30at the highest level.
42:31Most valuable player
42:33of this All-Star game,
42:34Julian Serving.
42:35Come on over here.
42:37Come on here
42:38by winning this award.
42:40At this 27th All-Star game,
42:43the merger
42:44has brought the stability
42:45that this league
42:46has been elusively seeking
42:47for over 30 years.
42:49The NBA,
42:50it would appear,
42:51has decided not to be
42:52the Peter Pan
42:53of professional sports.
43:00It is Philadelphia
43:01against Portland.
43:03Portland leads this series
43:04three games to two.
43:07First year after the merger,
43:09Dr. J and the Sixers
43:10go to the final.
43:11Here comes the doctor.
43:13House call.
43:14Oh, my goodness.
43:17The doctor,
43:18magnificent as usual,
43:20has scored 40 points
43:22in this game.
43:24Now, Philadelphia,
43:26they got beaten
43:26in the finals.
43:27But as time went on
43:29in the NBA,
43:30you know,
43:30the great revelation,
43:31if anyone needed
43:32a revelation,
43:33was the 77 season.
43:34that would tell you
43:36all you need to know
43:37about the level
43:38of high talent
43:38that the ABA
43:39came into the league with.
43:41It was only after
43:42the best ABA players
43:44began to really make
43:46an impact
43:46that a lot of people
43:48woke up and said,
43:49hey,
43:50this was a hidden treasure.
43:51There are so many names
43:53in the ABA
43:54that people have forgotten
43:56or never knew
43:57to begin with.
43:58Some unbelievable players.
44:00It would be nice
44:01if more people knew
44:02who Matt Calvin was
44:03or Ron Boone
44:04or James Jones.
44:07There's such a rich history
44:08and there's such
44:08a great legion of players.
44:10Now, you can talk
44:11about some of these guys,
44:12man, like McGinnis.
44:14George dominated the ABA.
44:16Come on, man.
44:17Louie,
44:18Dampier, man.
44:20Larry Tina.
44:22James Sala.
44:24Ralph Simpson.
44:26And you can just keep
44:28naming them, man.
44:30It's how good we was.
44:31Now, ain't me talking.
44:33You do your own research.
44:38Oh, yeah.
44:39Look at the pictures.
44:40Here we got the pictures.
44:41There's a mark, really.
44:42Wow.
44:43Slicks picture.
44:44Who's that, Neto?
44:45Is that me?
44:46Yeah, that's Neto.
44:47There's Roger.
44:49Number 35.
44:50Number 35.
44:55The ABA greats of the past
44:58serve as some of the last
44:59living legends
45:00in American sports.
45:03Wow.
45:04The roots of what they
45:05accomplished
45:06still reach out
45:07to connect us today.
45:09I know
45:11because my dad
45:12played in the ABA.
45:14This picture right here
45:16of my father
45:16in the Denver Rockets,
45:17he had that one
45:18in his house.
45:19Man, I was proud of it.
45:21It's funny because I look
45:23and I'm like,
45:23man, I guess I do look
45:24somewhat like my dad.
45:26My name is Hudson Mays
45:27and I'm the grandson
45:28of Roger Brown.
45:29Roger Brown,
45:31the first pacer ever signed.
45:39Here's your grandpa.
45:41See it?
45:41Were we ever that young?
45:43That's Mel.
45:44Hearing stories
45:44and what went on
45:45back in those days,
45:46it's something that brings me
45:48a lot of joy
45:48and happiness.
45:50Who's 24?
45:51That's Rick Barry.
45:52I'm sorry.
45:53Yeah.
45:53Yeah, that's Rick Barry.
45:55God, he ate him up.
45:56Oh, God, he ate him up.
46:00I never got to see
46:01an ABA game, per se,
46:03like, while it was
46:03being played.
46:06Oh, okay.
46:07Yo, I ain't no cast
46:08that's doing that.
46:10Like, because, you know,
46:11sometimes when you see
46:12a lot of old footage,
46:12you don't see
46:13the athleticism
46:14that I'm seeing right now.
46:15I'm like, are they hooping?
46:24Goose, you've had
46:25a lot of time
46:25back in Louisville now.
46:26You've been out
46:27for a couple of weeks
46:28with the torn Achilles
46:29and you're sitting around
46:31thinking about
46:31a lot of things.
46:32What are some of those things
46:33that are going
46:34through your mind?
46:34Well, for one thing,
46:35I'm hoping that my injury
46:37would feel like
46:39it'll be all right
46:40when I come back
46:40next season.
46:42And another thing,
46:42I'm thinking about
46:43the future.
46:44What's going to happen
46:45to me if it
46:45if it don't
46:47heal back right?
46:48You know,
46:48and like I say,
46:49since I didn't go to college,
46:50I didn't really have
46:51anything, nothing
46:51to fall back on.
46:53That's all things
46:55that should have been
46:56taken care of
46:57at the merger.
46:58We were told
46:59that we were going
47:01to get credit
47:01for our ABA years,
47:03for our NBA pensions.
47:05And I understand
47:06it wasn't the NBA's
47:08responsibility to now
47:10to make good
47:11on those things.
47:12That's why I so love
47:14the Dropping Dimes Foundation
47:16that the people
47:17in Indianapolis
47:19have put together
47:20to help some
47:21of these former
47:22ABA players.
47:24I grew up
47:25in Indianapolis
47:26and all these amazing
47:28Pacers who were my
47:29heroes when I was a kid.
47:31So next thing you know,
47:32I'm sitting there
47:33talking to George McGinnis
47:35and Darnell Helm
47:36and Mel Daniels.
47:38And Mel's getting pissed,
47:40by the way.
47:40As he's talking to me,
47:42I can see that fire
47:43as he's talking
47:44about the lack
47:45of respect
47:45the NBA had
47:46for the ABA.
47:47And then he got
47:48most passionate
47:50about ABA players
47:52were not part
47:53of the pension plan
47:54for the NBA.
47:56They weren't part
47:57of any kind
47:58of health care benefits.
47:59And he was really,
48:00really serious about it.
48:03You know,
48:03as an attorney,
48:04I did some research.
48:05And then I saw
48:06that this language
48:07was put into
48:08the settlement agreement
48:09that said
48:10that the ABA defendants
48:13would provide
48:14pension benefits
48:15to the players.
48:17But the ABA
48:18as a league
48:19dissolved
48:20about a year
48:21after the
48:22so-called merger.
48:23And what little bit
48:24of money was
48:25in the actual
48:26real ABA
48:27pension fund
48:28ended up,
48:29it was mismanaged,
48:31sort of disappeared.
48:32The ABA
48:33went out of existence.
48:35And so that's
48:36when we took
48:36the formal step
48:37of forming
48:38the Dropping Dimes
48:39Foundation
48:40to help these guys.
48:41Batted out,
48:42back in track down
48:42by Kentucky.
48:44Averitt with a penetration,
48:45dump off,
48:46and two ball for a run.
48:48Bert Averitt
48:49was as quick
48:49with the basketball
48:50as anybody
48:51I've ever seen.
48:53And then I saw him,
48:54you know,
48:55in his later years,
48:56really having
48:56a tough time
48:57getting around.
48:58Couldn't afford
48:59to pay the electricity bill
49:00and, you know,
49:01didn't have anything.
49:04One of the saddest ones
49:05was George Carter.
49:07He basically,
49:08you know,
49:08was a limo driver
49:09with throat cancer
49:10and had no family,
49:13no friends,
49:14nothing.
49:14Still no pension
49:15from the NBA.
49:17And so,
49:18when he died,
49:19they were going
49:20to give him
49:20a pauper's funeral
49:21where basically
49:22you're buried
49:23with no recognition
49:24because they couldn't
49:26find any next of kin.
49:27And it was just
49:29amazing to me
49:30that that could
49:31be possible.
49:33Those players
49:34who did not make it
49:35over into the NBA
49:36should have been
49:37taken care of.
49:38You know,
49:38they're just out there.
49:39They didn't have
49:40any money
49:41and Sam Smith
49:42was one of them.
49:44He was my father's
49:45supervisor
49:46at the Ford Motor Plant
49:47after he finished
49:48playing in the ABA.
49:49And again,
49:50like so many
49:50of these guys are,
49:52he was so humble
49:52that my father
49:53didn't even know
49:54after working with him
49:56for 20 years
49:56that he played
49:57professional basketball.
49:58You know,
49:58he had some health issues
50:00and he had spent
50:01some time
50:02in a Medicaid
50:02nursing home
50:04and I was visiting Sam.
50:06I said,
50:07you know,
50:07Sam,
50:08I'm so angry.
50:09If I could
50:10take a picture
50:10of you right now
50:12and send it
50:13to New York
50:14and get somebody's
50:15attention,
50:16I would do it.
50:18And he said,
50:19you think that
50:20would really help?
50:21And I said,
50:22yeah,
50:22I think it would.
50:23And he said,
50:23well,
50:23take the picture
50:24because he was a friend
50:26and I said,
50:26you don't look
50:26that great right now.
50:27I said,
50:27you know,
50:28this is not going
50:28to be a super
50:29flattering picture.
50:29So I was just
50:30kind of saying
50:30that facetiously
50:33because I'm
50:33kind of pissed off.
50:35And he grabbed
50:36my gown
50:37and pulled me
50:37closer to him
50:38and said,
50:40take the picture
50:42in a very serious
50:43tone of voice.
50:45And I just kept
50:46staring at him
50:46for a second
50:47and he said,
50:47I would do anything
50:49to help these guys.
50:53And I took the picture.
51:05The photo of Sam Smith
51:07laying there
51:08with an ABA basketball,
51:10red and white basketball,
51:11about to die,
51:12that caught the attention,
51:14I think,
51:14of the world.
51:19There's like a million people
51:21reading that story
51:22all at once
51:22and I'm like,
51:23what in the world?
51:24It was the photo.
51:28That is the image
51:29that sent the NBA
51:31over the edge
51:31because shortly after that,
51:33the NBA said,
51:35we're going to figure out
51:36something to do
51:36for these guys.
51:42I think it's really
51:43important to note
51:44that here we are
51:45nearly 50 years
51:46post-merger
51:48and a lot can be said
51:50about the battles
51:51between the NBA
51:51and the ABA,
51:52but in the end,
51:53the NBA
51:54and the NBA
51:54Players Association
51:55did step up
51:56and do something
51:57they had absolutely
51:58no legal obligation
51:59to do.
52:03How are you, Rick?
52:06Last week,
52:07the NBA
52:08and the National
52:08Basketball Players
52:09Association
52:10announced they would
52:12create a fund
52:12to support ABA veterans.
52:14These are guys
52:15that I rooted for
52:16when I was a kid,
52:17so it's been
52:18a very humbling experience.
52:20Let's hear it
52:20for Scott and Tarter.
52:22Scott and Tarter.
52:24Now I did what we did.
52:25It's a good story.
52:28I'm celebratory.
52:29I just felt good
52:31that maybe this
52:32can give them
52:33a few more years
52:34of good life
52:35and celebration
52:37of basketball.
52:38I'm 81 years old.
52:40A lot of the guys
52:41are gone,
52:43but hey,
52:44it's great,
52:44and I appreciate
52:45that they think enough
52:47that they want
52:48to give us something.
52:50I think it's good
52:51for all of us,
52:52but it's especially
52:54phenomenal
52:54for the guys
52:55that are hurting.
52:57That will allow
52:59some dignity,
53:01it will allow
53:02when they pass on
53:04to say the NBA
53:05did the right thing
53:06for a league
53:07that did so much
53:08to make the game
53:10better today.
53:12I hope and I think
53:13it should be a beginning
53:15of respect
53:16for the ABA.
53:20The legacy
53:21that the ABA
53:23players have left
53:25is that
53:26when you look
53:27at today's game,
53:28it looks a whole lot
53:29like the way
53:30we used to play
53:31in the ABA.
53:32The dunk contest,
53:34the three-point shot,
53:36we brought that in.
53:38The three-point shot
53:39coming from the ABA
53:40dramatically changed
53:42what's happened
53:42in the NBA
53:43because you're not
53:43winning an NBA
53:44championship nowadays
53:45if you can't shoot
53:46the three-point shot.
53:48Rick Barry,
53:49let's fly with
53:50a three-point bomb.
53:51Bang!
53:52Curry gets a look,
53:54fires away.
53:54Bang!
53:55As a shooter,
53:57I've loved the ABA.
53:59I think it's had
54:00a huge impact
54:01on the game
54:02of basketball.
54:03To me,
54:04what the NBA
54:05has turned into
54:06at this point in time
54:07is the great balance
54:09of the ABA
54:11mixed with the NBA.
54:12Now you have
54:13the modern NBA
54:14which is
54:14the fastest-growing
54:16sport in the world.
54:17It's a global phenomenon.
54:19Look at Whitby,
54:20step back three.
54:21Oh, yeah!
54:22I do think
54:23the evolution
54:25came directly
54:26from the ABA.
54:28ABA was so freelance
54:31and you could do
54:32and play
54:33like you did
54:34in the parks.
54:36Dribbling,
54:37passing,
54:38shooting,
54:39scoring,
54:40the fun of the game.
54:42That's what I see today.
54:44the NBA
54:45playing exactly
54:46the way the ABA
54:47was playing
54:48back in the day.
54:51The thing that's really,
54:52I think,
54:52that's ironic
54:53about the ABA
54:54is
54:55the first thing
54:56most people
54:57remember about the ABA
54:59is the slam dunk contest.
55:00That ABA slam dunk contest
55:02is one of the most
55:03iconic basketball
55:04treasures we've ever had.
55:10I honestly think
55:12that's why the NBA
55:13started their
55:14slam dunk contest.
55:17Oh, my God!
55:19If you go back
55:20and look at the ABA story,
55:22we owe a great deal
55:24of gratitude
55:25to the ABA
55:27because
55:27when those guys
55:29came to the NBA
55:30and they were all
55:30great players,
55:32it really
55:33was the turning point
55:34in the history
55:35of basketball
55:35and I'll always
55:37be thankful
55:37for that.
55:41History will show
55:43that in a nine-year fight
55:45between the ABA
55:46and the NBA
55:48in this David
55:49versus Goliath battle,
55:52Goliath won.
55:54But in this story,
55:56in order for Goliath
55:57to defeat David,
55:58he had to become him.
56:02a small band
56:03of brothers
56:05known as
56:06the American
56:06Basketball Association
56:09would change
56:10the game
56:11forever.
56:14We had a real
56:15camaraderie
56:16in the ABA.
56:17I don't know
56:18if it was because
56:19we knew
56:20we were the underdogs
56:21or because
56:22we played
56:24each other
56:24so more often
56:25than the NBA
56:26teams played
56:27each other.
56:28but I was surprised
56:30that never happened
56:31once we got
56:32to the NBA.
56:35I kind of room
56:36with so many guys,
56:37especially the one
56:38I really loved room
56:39with was
56:39Louis Dampier
56:40because to him,
56:42the man of him
56:42has been a friend
56:43since he's been
56:44with the organization,
56:45the current organization.
56:46And to me,
56:47he's like a brother.
56:49It was just a bond
56:51there that
56:52maybe because of
56:54where we are
56:55up against the Giants
56:56so to speak,
56:57we all felt like
56:58we were all
56:59in it together.
57:00And it's just
57:01a lot of good
57:02friendships
57:02that developed
57:03over the years
57:04even though we were
57:06opponents
57:06for all that time.
57:08We got brotherhood.
57:10I mean,
57:11come on,
57:11man,
57:11you know what a
57:12brotherhood is,
57:13man?
57:13You know,
57:14we was in a league,
57:15man,
57:15that wasn't really
57:16well respected
57:17by marketing
57:19or corporate America.
57:22There really was
57:23a brotherhood.
57:24It wasn't just talk.
57:25It wasn't just hot air.
57:27We really liked
57:29one another.
57:32I get kind of
57:33emotional about that
57:34because
57:37these were my brothers.
57:43I love those guys
57:44and they love me.
57:48The essence of it
57:49is really
57:50what it's all about
57:51because the essence
57:52is about
57:52how you feel
57:53about something.
57:55During that time,
57:56you know,
57:57people really feel
57:58passionate about,
57:59you know,
58:00what that experience
58:01was about
58:02and
58:03it was
58:04a one for all
58:06and all for one
58:08mentality.
58:11That has continued
58:12throughout my lifetime.
58:16Time has marched on
58:17but the memories
58:18are forever.
58:23That was
58:25the soul
58:26of the ABA.
58:53It was over
58:55before it even began
59:01Since the day
59:03I saw her
59:04walking around
59:09I know you're never
59:11meant
59:12to hurt me
59:17You're the only one
59:19who knows
59:20why I'm gone
59:22You're the only one
59:22You're the only one
59:28You're the only one
59:40You
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