217-876: 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 of the Eastern Conference . The team was founded in 1967 as an original member of the American Basketball Association (ABA) and became a member of the NBA in 1976 as a result of the ABA–NBA merger . They play their home games at Gainbridge Fieldhouse . The team
434-584: A 1984 draft pick to the Portland Trail Blazers for center Tom Owens , who had played for the Pacers during their last ABA season. Owens played one year for the Pacers with little impact and was out of the league altogether a year later. In 1983–84 , the Pacers finished with the worst record in the Eastern Conference, which would have given the Pacers the second overall pick in the draft—the pick that
651-568: A U.S. Senate committee, but the bill was put together to please the owners, and ended up not pleasing the Senators or the players. The bill subsequently died without coming to a floor vote. When Congress reconvened in 1973, another merger bill was presented to the Senate, but did not advance. As a result of the legislation's failure the ABA installed a new commissioner, Mike Storen , with part of his focus being
868-604: A dispersal draft . From the very beginning, the ABA hoped to force a merger with the NBA, thus repeating the American Football League (AFL)'s successful effort to force a merger with the National Football League (NFL). According to The NBA Encyclopedia , ABA officials told prospective owners that they could get an ABA team for half of what it cost to get an NBA expansion team at the time. The upstart league's officials confidently predicted that if and when
1085-512: A $ 3.2 million entry fee for each former ABA team. Since the NBA would only agree to accept four ABA teams in the merger, the surviving ABA teams also had to compensate the two remaining ABA franchises which were not a part of the merger, the Spirits of St. Louis and Kentucky Colonels . As a result of the merger, the four teams dealt with financial troubles. Additionally, the Pacers had some financial troubles, which dated back to their waning days in
1302-657: A 33–17 record and swept the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers before falling to the Knicks in a six-game Eastern Conference Finals . Prior to the 1999–2000 NBA season , the Pacers traded forward Antonio Davis to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for first-round draft choice Jonathan Bender . In the 2000 NBA playoffs , after a 56–26 regular season, the Pacers survived the upset-minded Milwaukee Bucks in round one, handled
1519-554: A 52–30 campaign in 1994–95 , giving them their first Central Division title and first 50+ win season since the ABA days. The team swept the Hawks in the first round , before another meeting with the rival Knicks in the Conference semifinals. This time, with the Pacers down six points with 16.4 seconds remaining in Game ;1, Miller scored eight points in 8.9 seconds to help secure
1736-404: A backboard that measures 6 by 3.5 feet (1.8 by 1.1 meters) and one basket is at each end of the court. The white outlined box on the backboard is 18 inches (46 cm) high and 2 feet (61 cm) wide. At almost all levels of competition, the top of the rim is exactly 10 feet (3.05 meters) above the court and 4 feet (1.22 meters) inside the baseline. While variation is possible in the dimensions of
1953-495: A basket mounted on a wall. Naismith wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto an elevated track. Naismith initially set up the peach basket with its bottom intact, which meant that the ball had to be retrieved manually after each "basket" or point scored. This quickly proved tedious, so Naismith removed the bottom of the basket to allow the balls to be poked out with a long dowel after each scored basket. Shortly after, Senda Berenson , instructor of physical culture at
2170-487: A berth in the NBA. In the first NBA All Star Game after the merger, 10 of the 24 NBA All Stars were former ABA players. In the first post-merger season's NBA Finals between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Philadelphia 76ers , five of the ten starting players were former ABA players. Those five starters from the ABA were Julius Erving , Caldwell Jones , George McGinnis , Dave Twardzik and Maurice Lucas . Of
2387-766: A breakthrough 2003–04 season in which they finished 61–21, earning the best record in the NBA as well as a franchise record. O'Neal and Artest made the All-Star team , and Artest was named the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year ; the Pacers swept the Boston Celtics in the first round and squeezed by the Miami Heat in the conference semifinals. But the Detroit Pistons proved an impediment to Indiana's championship aspirations, as they defeated
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#17328374651662604-496: A children's game called duck on a rock , as many had failed before it. Frank Mahan, one of the players from the original first game, approached Naismith after the Christmas break, in early 1892, asking him what he intended to call his new game. Naismith replied that he had not thought of it because he had been focused on just getting the game started. Mahan suggested that it be called "Naismith ball", at which he laughed, saying that
2821-607: A consequence of the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, however among the notable concessions from the NFL were that no AFL teams were forced to fold and AFL records were fully integrated into the older league's history. On the other hand, the NBA did permit the surviving ABA teams to enter the league with their rosters intact (although some ABA players were promptly sold to help the ABA owners meet their financial obligations) whereas, in addition to financial and draft terms at least as harsh as those endured by
3038-405: A dribble, the player cannot carry the ball by placing their hand on the bottom of the ball; doing so is known as carrying the ball . A team, once having established ball control in the front half of their court, may not return the ball to the backcourt and be the first to touch it. A violation of these rules results in loss of possession. The ball may not be kicked, nor be struck with the fist. For
3255-418: A gimmick; now it's one of the most exciting parts of the pro game... About everything we did in the ABA they do now in the NBA except they didn't take our red, white and blue ball". Eventually, the NBA revived the ABA's red, white and blue ball as the "Money Ball" in the NBA's Three-Point Contest . The ABA had a far faster pace than the NBA, and this carried over into the NBA after the merger; today's NBA game
3472-459: A half-time break under FIBA, NBA, and NCAA rules and 10 minutes in United States high schools. Overtime periods are five minutes in length except for high school, which is four minutes in length. Teams exchange baskets for the second half. The time allowed is actual playing time; the clock is stopped while the play is not active. Therefore, games generally take much longer to complete than
3689-433: A knee injury during a charity pick-up game that would require surgery. His expected rehabilitation was to last between four and six months, to be back just in time for training camp. In the 2010 NBA draft , the Pacers selected forward/guard Paul George with the 10th overall pick. In the second round, they drafted guard Lance Stephenson , as well as forward Ryan Reid . The draft rights to Reid were traded on draft night to
3906-521: A lucrative local rivalry for the Bulls, the team decided it would be more profitable to bring Indiana into the NBA as opposed to trying to keep the Pacers out. Finally, the Bulls had a strong basketball-related reason to push for Kentucky's exclusion—they desperately wanted Colonels star Artis Gilmore , whose NBA rights the Bulls owned. Thus, the Bulls fought hard to keep the Colonels out of the merger. Brown saw
4123-405: A merger occurred, any surviving owners would see their investment more than double. In contrast to both the earlier AFL and the later World Hockey Association (which both endured significant hostility from their established competitors for many years) the ABA found the NBA owners to be reasonably amenable to a merger relatively early on. On June 18, 1970, only three years after the ABA began play,
4340-504: A name like that would kill any game. Mahan then said, "Why not call it basketball?" Naismith replied, "We have a basket and a ball, and it seems to me that would be a good name for it." The first official game was played in the YMCA gymnasium in Albany , New York, on January 20, 1892, with nine players. The game ended at 1–0; the shot was made from 25 feet (7.6 m), on a court just half the size of
4557-538: A number of strong incentives to support Indiana's entry into the NBA over Kentucky's. First, the Bulls were themselves a relatively young franchise, only pre-dating the ABA and the Pacers by one year, and thus had never been able to develop much of following in Indiana to begin with. The Bulls knew if they were to be seen as having a hand in the Pacers' demise, they could never expect to be forgiven let alone supported by Indiana basketball fans. Moreover, Indianapolis also had what
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#17328374651664774-441: A present-day Streetball or National Basketball Association (NBA) court. At the time, soccer was being played with 10 to a team (which was increased to 11). When winter weather got too icy to play soccer, teams were taken indoors, and it was convenient to have them split in half and play basketball with five on each side. By 1897–98, teams of five became standard. Basketball's early adherents were dispatched to YMCAs throughout
4991-417: A regular season schedule for the 1971–72 season. After the 1970–71 season Basketball Weekly wrote "The American basketball public is clamoring for a merger. So are the NBA and ABA owners, the two commissioners, and every college coach. The war is over. The Armistice will be signed soon". The two leagues continued merger discussions and plans through the early and mid-1970s. The early attempts at merging
5208-518: A season-ending ear injury, and without center Jeff Foster , the Pacers again fell into another season under .500 and missed the playoffs for four years in a row. Despite another disappointing season, the Pacers managed to sweep the waning Detroit Pistons for the first time in five years, and the abysmal New Jersey Nets . The team showed signs of life near the end of the season, winning nearly all of their last 14 games. In May 2010, after completing his rookie season, guard A. J. Price suffered
5425-501: A series of venues, including Catholic University , Georgetown and George Mason . The National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament for Black High Schools was held from 1929 to 1942 at Hampton Institute . The National Invitational Interscholastic Basketball Tournament was held from 1941 to 1967 starting out at Tuskegee Institute . Following a pause during World War II it resumed at Tennessee State College in Nashville. The basis for
5642-497: A single game. Although the financial and draft penalties caused the team to slip after coach Larry Brown 's departure, the Nuggets would remain an NBA power throughout the 1980s. After a period of mediocre play through most of the 1990s and early 2000s, the Nuggets recovered and made the playoffs in ten consecutive seasons (2004 to 2013). In 2023, the Nuggets won their franchise's first NBA Championship. The Spurs, who could never get past
5859-423: A standard uniform consists of a pair of shorts and a jersey with a clearly visible number, unique within the team, printed on both the front and back. Players wear high-top sneakers that provide extra ankle support. Typically, team names, players' names and, outside of North America, sponsors are printed on the uniforms. A limited number of time-outs, clock stoppages requested by a coach (or sometimes mandated in
6076-469: A standing ovation from the crowd. Despite Miller's effort, the Pacers lost, sending Miller into retirement without an NBA Championship in his 18-year career, all with the Pacers. Miller had his No. 31 jersey retired by the Pacers on March 30, 2006, when the Pacers played the Phoenix Suns . The team went on to draft Danny Granger 17th overall in the 2005 NBA draft . During the 2005–06 season ,
6293-450: A strong contribution from Lance Stephenson and won 99–92. The Pacers lost Game 5 in Miami on May 30 but won Game 6 at home on June 1, extending the series to Game 7. The Pacers were defeated by Miami 99–76. Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court , compete with
6510-461: A swap that took place approximately 30 minutes before the trade deadline. On June 26, 2012, general manager David Morway officially resigned. The following day, president of basketball operations, Larry Bird stepped down. Bird and Morway were officially replaced by Donnie Walsh and Kevin Pritchard , respectively. Walsh returned to the organization after spending the previous three seasons in
6727-524: A team that hovered around .500 in winning percentage. The Pistons eventually became the Central Division champions. Despite the difficulties with the suspensions and injuries, the Pacers earned a sixth seed in the playoffs with a record of 44–38. An important reason for their strong finish was the re-acquisition of Dale Davis , who had been released by the New ;Orleans Hornets after being traded there by
Indiana Pacers - Misplaced Pages Continue
6944-490: A teammate's field goal attempt. Goaltending is a defender's touching of a ball that is on a downward flight toward the basket, while the related violation of basket interference is the touching of a ball that is on the rim or above the basket, or by a player reaching through the basket from below. Goaltending and basket interference committed by a defender result in awarding the basket to the offense, while basket interference committed by an offensive player results in cancelling
7161-431: A teammate, both of which require considerable skill. On offense, players may use a variety of shots – the layup , the jump shot , or a dunk ; on defense, they may steal the ball from a dribbler, intercept passes, or block shots; either offense or defense may collect a rebound , that is, a missed shot that bounces from rim or backboard. It is a violation to lift or drag one's pivot foot without dribbling
7378-534: A then highly criticized trade as he sent Schrempf to the Seattle SuperSonics in exchange for Derrick McKey and little known Gerald Paddio . But the Pacers won their last eight games of the season to finish with an NBA-era franchise-high 47 wins. They stormed past Shaquille O'Neal and the Orlando Magic in a first-round sweep to earn their first NBA playoff series win , and pulled off an upset by defeating
7595-591: A total of three referees on the court. The table officials are responsible for keeping track of each team's scoring, timekeeping, individual and team fouls , player substitutions, team possession arrow , and the shot clock . The only essential equipment in a basketball game is the ball and the court: a flat, rectangular surface with baskets at opposite ends. Competitive levels require the use of more equipment such as clocks, score sheets, scoreboards, alternating possession arrows, and whistle-operated stop-clock systems. A regulation basketball court in international games
7812-557: A touring Canadian women's team based in Edmonton , Alberta, operated between 1915 and 1940. The Grads toured all over North America, and were exceptionally successful. They posted a record of 522 wins and only 20 losses over that span, as they met any team that wanted to challenge them, funding their tours from gate receipts. The Grads also shone on several exhibition trips to Europe, and won four consecutive exhibition Olympics tournaments, in 1924, 1928, 1932, and 1936; however, women's basketball
8029-598: A two-point victory. The Pacers beat the Knicks in seven games. They pushed the Magic to seven games before falling in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pacers duplicated their 52–30 record in 1995–96 , but were hurt severely by an injury to Reggie Miller's eye socket in April, from which he was not able to return until Game 5 of their first-round series against the Hawks . Miller scored 29 points in that game, but
8246-584: A very attractive choice. On paper, the Colonels were the logical choice for the fourth and final team, and likely would have joined the NBA if not for the intervention of the Chicago Bulls . After the Colonels, the Indiana Pacers were the next most viable choice. While the Bulls realized an NBA team in Indianapolis would significantly encroach on their own fanbase and television market, they nevertheless had
8463-409: A winning record, and O'Brien's inability to change his style to better suit his talent available has hurt the team. Despite missing the playoffs in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the 1980s, the 2007–08 season displayed many signs of growth in the team, especially towards the end of the season. Off-court legal distraction from Jamaal Tinsley , Marquis Daniels , and Shawne Williams in
8680-621: A winter season (April–September) and did so until the completion of the 20th season in 1998 . The 1998–99 season, which commenced only months later, was the first season after the shift to the current summer season format (October–April). This shift was an attempt to avoid competing directly against Australia's various football codes . It features 8 teams from around Australia and one in New Zealand. A few players including Luc Longley , Andrew Gaze , Shane Heal , Chris Anstey and Andrew Bogut made it big internationally, becoming poster figures for
8897-444: Is 28 meters (92 feet) long and 15 meters (49 feet) wide. In the NBA and NCAA the court is 94 by 50 feet (29 by 15 meters). Most courts have wood flooring , usually constructed from maple planks running in the same direction as the longer court dimension. The name and logo of the home team is usually painted on or around the center circle. The basket is a steel rim 18 inches (46 cm) diameter with an attached net affixed to
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9114-567: Is also popular), whereas the strongest European clubs participate in the EuroLeague Women . A game similar to basketball is mentioned in a 1591 book published in Frankfurt am Main that reports on the lifestyles and customs of coastal North American residents, Wahrhafftige Abconterfaytung der Wilden (German; translates as Truthful Depictions of the Savages : "Among other things, a game of skill
9331-404: Is called a shot. A successful shot is worth two points, or three points if it is taken from beyond the three-point arc 6.75 meters (22 ft 2 in) from the basket in international games and 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m) in NBA games. A one-point shot can be earned when shooting from the foul line after a foul is made. After a team has scored from a field goal or free throw, play
9548-561: Is currently no tournament to determine a national high school champion. The most serious effort was the National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament at the University of Chicago from 1917 to 1930. The event was organized by Amos Alonzo Stagg and sent invitations to state champion teams. The tournament started out as a mostly Midwest affair but grew. In 1929 it had 29 state champions. Faced with opposition from
9765-529: Is described in which balls must be thrown against a target woven from twigs, mounted high on a pole. There's a small reward for the player if the target is being hit." In December 1891, James Naismith , a Canadian-American professor of physical education and instructor at the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School (now Springfield College ) in Springfield, Massachusetts ,
9982-472: Is largely derived from the ABA. Longtime Denver Nuggets head coach and ABA alum Doug Moe , who also coached the Philadelphia 76ers, has commented, "The NBA now plays our (the ABA's) kind of basketball". Prior to the ABA, the NBA did not allow college underclassmen to enter the league. In 1969 the ABA's Denver Rockets signed Spencer Haywood , a sophomore star at the University of Detroit who had played on
10199-625: Is named after the state of Indiana 's history with the Indianapolis 500 's pace cars and with the harness racing industry. The Pacers have won three championships, in 1970 , 1972 , and 1973 , all in the ABA . They also reached the ABA Finals in 1969 and 1975 . The Pacers were NBA Eastern Conference Champions in 2000 . The team has also won nine division titles. Six Hall of Fame players– Reggie Miller , Chris Mullin , Alex English , Mel Daniels , Roger Brown , and George McGinnis —played with
10416-430: Is out of bounds if it touches a boundary line, or touches any player or object that is out of bounds. There are limits placed on the steps a player may take without dribbling, which commonly results in an infraction known as traveling . Nor may a player stop their dribble and then resume dribbling. A dribble that touches both hands is considered stopping the dribble, giving this infraction the name double dribble . Within
10633-453: Is resumed with a throw-in awarded to the non-scoring team taken from a point beyond the endline of the court where the points were scored. Games are played in four quarters of 10 ( FIBA ) or 12 minutes (NBA). College men's games use two 20-minute halves, college women's games use 10-minute quarters, and most United States high school varsity games use 8-minute quarters; however, this varies from state to state. 15 minutes are allowed for
10850-576: Is the most significant professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition (drawing most of its talent from U.S. college basketball ). Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as the EuroLeague and the Basketball Champions League Americas . The FIBA Basketball World Cup and Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament are
11067-427: Is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws . The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play ( overtime ) is mandated. Players advance the ball by bouncing it while walking or running (dribbling) or by passing it to
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#173283746516611284-538: The 1968 United States men's Olympic basketball team . The NCAA sued, but Haywood and the ABA prevailed. Julius Erving and George Gervin also joined the ABA's Virginia Squires as underclassmen, as did Jim Chones going from Marquette University to the New York Nets, George McGinnis from Indiana University to the Indiana Pacers and Ralph Simpson from Michigan State to the Denver Rockets. Moses Malone joined
11501-469: The 2004 Athens Olympics , the United States suffered its first Olympic loss while using professional players, falling to Puerto Rico (in a 19-point loss) and Lithuania in group games, and being eliminated in the semifinals by Argentina . It eventually won the bronze medal defeating Lithuania, finishing behind Argentina and Italy . The Redeem Team , won gold at the 2008 Olympics , and the B-Team, won gold at
11718-509: The 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey despite featuring no players from the 2008 squad. The United States continued its dominance as they won gold at the 2012 Olympics , 2014 FIBA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics . Worldwide, basketball tournaments are held for boys and girls of all age levels. The global popularity of the sport is reflected in the nationalities represented in the NBA. Players from all six inhabited continents currently play in
11935-506: The All American Red Heads Team , which competed against men's teams, using men's rules. By 1938, the women's national championship changed from a three-court game to two-court game with six players per team . The NBA-backed Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) began in 1997. Though it had shaky attendance figures, several marquee players ( Lisa Leslie , Diana Taurasi , and Candace Parker among others) have helped
12152-561: The Dallas Mavericks in 2008 (where he would win a championship in 2011). On May 31, 2007, Jim O'Brien was named Carlisle's successor. O'Brien made it clear that he intended to take the Pacers back to the playoffs in the 2007–08 season, but he did not in his tenure. He also made it known that he favored a more up-tempo, fast-paced style as opposed to Carlisle's slower, more meticulous style of coaching. Many people have taken note that this style, while exciting at times, failed to produce
12369-489: The Denver Nuggets before the season (though they did re-acquire Jackson at the trading deadline). The Pacers finished 39–43 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 1989, after which coach Larry Brown stepped down. In the 1997–98 NBA season , Indiana native and former Boston Celtics great Larry Bird was hired as head coach. He led the Pacers to a 19-game improvement over the previous season, finishing 58–24–at
12586-472: The Detroit Pistons , who would go on to win their second consecutive NBA Championship . Reggie Miller became the first Pacer to play in the All-Star Game since 1976 on the strength of his 24.6 points-per-game average. Despite four straight first-round exits, this period was highlighted by a first-round series with the Boston Celtics in 1991 that went to Game 5. The next season, the Pacers returned to
12803-557: The EuroLeague Hall of Fame , and Peja Stojaković in the HEBA Basketball Hall of Fame . In early 1967, a group of six investors (attorney Richard Tinkham , John DeVoe, Chuck DeVoe, entrepreneur Lyn Treece, sports agent Chuck Barnes , and Indianapolis Star sports writer Bob Collins) pooled their resources to purchase a franchise in the proposed American Basketball Association . For their first seven years, they played in
13020-497: The Golden State Warriors . He played the final 25 games of the regular season and every playoff game, contributing a strong presence at center. And Davis' signing coincided with an injury to Jermaine O'Neal that would knock him out for virtually the remainder of the regular season—indeed, O'Neal's first missed game due to his injury was Davis' first game back with the Pacers. Despite the adversity they had gone through,
13237-620: The Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum . In 1974, they moved to the new Market Square Arena in downtown Indianapolis , where they played for 25 years. Early in the Pacers' second season, former Indiana Hoosiers standout Bob "Slick" Leonard became the team's head coach, replacing Larry Staverman . Leonard quickly turned the Pacers into a juggernaut. His teams were buoyed by the great play of superstars such as Mel Daniels , George McGinnis , Bob Netolicky , Rick Mount , Freddie Lewis and Roger Brown . The Pacers were
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#173283746516613454-576: The Milwaukee Bucks defeating the Dallas Chaparrals , 106–103. The ABA was 15–10 against the NBA in 1973, 16–7 in 1974, and 31–17 in 1975. Overall, the ABA won more of these interleague games than the NBA did, and in every matchup of reigning champions from the two leagues, the ABA champion won, including in the final pre-merger season when the Kentucky Colonels defeated the Golden State Warriors . Boston Globe sportswriter Bob Ryan said of
13671-673: The National Federation of State High School Associations and North Central Association of Colleges and Schools that bore a threat of the schools losing their accreditation the last tournament was in 1930. The organizations said they were concerned that the tournament was being used to recruit professional players from the prep ranks. The tournament did not invite minority schools or private/parochial schools. The National Catholic Interscholastic Basketball Tournament ran from 1924 to 1941 at Loyola University . The National Catholic Invitational Basketball Tournament from 1954 to 1978 played at
13888-794: The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in New York, was organized in 1938; the NCAA national tournament began one year later. College basketball was rocked by gambling scandals from 1948 to 1951 , when dozens of players from top teams were implicated in game-fixing and point shaving . Partially spurred by an association with cheating, the NIT lost support to the NCAA tournament. Before widespread school district consolidation, most American high schools were far smaller than their present-day counterparts. During
14105-538: The New Orleans Hornets in a four-team, five-player deal. Troy Murphy was dealt to the New Jersey Nets in that trade. In the 2010–11 season , the team went 2–3 in the first five games. On November 9, in a home game against Denver, the team scored 54 points in the third quarter alone, shooting 20–21 in the process, on the way to a 144–113 rout of the Nuggets. Led by Mike Dunleavy's 24 points in
14322-517: The Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for the rights to forward/center Magnum Rolle . The Pacers signed George to his rookie contract on July 1, 2010. Stephenson signed a multi-year contract with the team on July 22. Just before training camp, Rolle was signed, along with big man Lance Allred . Both were cut before the regular season began. On August 11, 2010, the Pacers acquired guard Darren Collison and swingman James Posey from
14539-741: The Original Celtics and two all-African American teams, the New York Renaissance Five ("Rens") and the (still existing) Harlem Globetrotters played up to two hundred games a year on their national tours. In 1946, the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was formed. The first game was played in Toronto , Ontario, Canada between the Toronto Huskies and New York Knickerbockers on November 1, 1946. Three seasons later, in 1949,
14756-574: The Philadelphia 76ers in the second round and finally broke through to the NBA Finals by virtue of a six-game East Finals victory over the New York Knicks . Their first NBA Finals appearance was against the Los Angeles Lakers , who ended Indiana's championship hopes in six games. However, the Pacers dealt Los Angeles their worst playoff defeat up to that time by a margin of 33 points in game five. The off-season brought sweeping changes to
14973-460: The Philadelphia 76ers . Nate Archibald , the one bright spot left on the roster, broke his foot and the Nets finished their first NBA season at 22–60, the worst record in the league. After their first NBA season, the Nets moved to New Jersey and had a few more weak seasons there before finally improving in the early 1980s as they overcame the financial penalties imposed on them during the merger. By 1984,
15190-545: The San Diego Clippers before moving north to Los Angeles; Salt Lake City and Miami eventually gained NBA franchises, Salt Lake City through the move of New Orleans a few years later in 1979, and Miami via expansion in 1988). The Spirits were not included in the merger, but the Silna brothers nonetheless managed to turn the merger, for them, into one of the greatest deals in the history of professional sports: In June 1976,
15407-401: The Soviet Union , Brazil and Australia rivaling the American squads. In 1989, FIBA allowed professional NBA players to participate in the Olympics for the first time. Prior to the 1992 Summer Olympics , only European and South American teams were allowed to field professionals in the Olympics. The United States' dominance continued with the introduction of the original Dream Team . In
15624-400: The University of Chicago , Columbia University , Cornell University , Dartmouth College , the University of Minnesota , the U.S. Naval Academy , the University of Colorado and Yale University began sponsoring men's games. In 1905, frequent injuries on the football field prompted President Theodore Roosevelt to suggest that colleges form a governing body, resulting in the creation of
15841-474: The University of Chicago , while Adolph Rupp , a student of Naismith's at Kansas, enjoyed great success as coach at the University of Kentucky . On February 9, 1895, the first intercollegiate 5-on-5 game was played at Hamline University between Hamline and the School of Agriculture, which was affiliated with the University of Minnesota . The School of Agriculture won in a 9–3 game. In 1901, colleges, including
16058-654: The cable television system he owned. The Sails' players were put into a special dispersal draft. Shortly afterward, the Utah Stars , once one of the league's longstanding and successful teams, folded as well on December 2, 1975, as a result of not making payroll. Bill Daniels , the Stars' owner, was out of money due to his unsuccessful campaign to become Governor of Colorado and difficulties with other business ventures (Daniels eventually paid back all Stars season ticket holders in full plus 8% interest). There had been talks between
16275-469: The point guard , who implement the coach's game plan by managing the execution of offensive and defensive plays (player positioning). Informally, players may play three-on-three, two-on-two, and one-on-one. Invented in 1891 by Canadian-American gym teacher James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts , in the United States, basketball has evolved to become one of the world's most popular and widely viewed sports. The National Basketball Association (NBA)
16492-450: The 1974–75 season, the once-successful Squires posted a league's-worst record of 15–69. In the 1975–76 season the Squires tied their own record, posting the identical league's-worst win-loss record. Moreover, due to dwindling attendance, the Squires were fighting just to survive until the end of the season. On several occasions, the Squires barely made payroll. By the end of the 1975–76 season,
16709-425: The 1976 ABA All Star Game; the NBA subsequently held their first one in 1984. The slam dunk contest has ever since been a major part of the NBA's All Star Weekend (with the exception of 1998, 1999 and 2021). Pressing and trapping defenses, rarely used in the slower-tempo NBA, were common in the ABA, and after the merger began to play a larger role in the NBA. Billy Cunningham , Philadelphia 76ers star: "When
16926-616: The 2003–04 season. They finished the 2012–13 season with a 49–32 record, the third seed in the Eastern Conference, and beat the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. The Pacers then beat the New York Knicks in six games to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2004 to face the defending champs, the Miami Heat . The Pacers lost Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on May 22, 2013, in overtime 103–102. On May 24, 2013, in Game 2 of
17143-417: The 2007–08 season, Donnie Walsh , Pacers Sports & Entertainment CEO & President, left the Indiana Pacers to join the New York Knicks . All of Walsh's basketball-related duties were given to Pacers' President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird . Walsh's business-related roles were given to co-owner Herb Simon and Jim Morris, who was promoted to President of Pacers Sports & Entertainment. During
17360-434: The 2009 off–season, the Pacers traded declining Jermaine O'Neal along with Nathan Jawai to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for Roy Hibbert , T. J. Ford , Rasho Nesterović and Maceo Baston . Hibbert would go on to be a two-time all–star for the Pacers and was known as a defensive force with his shot-blocking abilities. During the 2009–10 season , Pacers forward Tyler Hansbrough ( drafted in 2009 ) suffered
17577-491: The 2016–17 season, 980,673 boys and girls represented their schools in interscholastic basketball competition, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations . The states of Illinois , Indiana and Kentucky are particularly well known for their residents' devotion to high school basketball, commonly called Hoosier Hysteria in Indiana; the critically acclaimed film Hoosiers shows high school basketball's depth of meaning to these communities. There
17794-528: The 84 players in the ABA at the time of the merger, 63 played in the NBA during the 1976–77 season. In that first post-merger season, four of the NBA's top ten scorers had come over from the ABA ( Billy Knight , David Thompson , Dan Issel and George Gervin ). In 1976-1977 NBA MVP standings, 7 out of the 12 best players came from the ABA: Julius Erving, Moses Malone, David Thompson, Maurice Lucas, Artis Gilmore, George Gervin, and George McGinnis, and in
18011-412: The 8th seed from the Atlanta Hawks , and dramatic improvement in forwards Danny Granger and Mike Dunleavy . Both Granger and Dunleavy were involved in the voting for Most Improved Player , with Dunleavy finishing in the top 10. The two were also the first Pacers players to score 1500 points each in a single season since Reggie Miller and Detlef Schrempf did it in the early 1990s. In April of
18228-470: The ABA and NBA competed with each other to sign players. The Robertson suit was finally settled on February 3, 1976, but for the entirety of its pendency it presented an insurmountable obstacle to the desired merger of the two leagues. In 1972, Congress came close to enacting legislation to enable a merger despite the Oscar Robertson suit. In September 1972, a merger bill was reported favorably out of
18445-548: The ABA and NBA were delayed for years by litigation known as the Oscar Robertson suit, styled Robertson v. National Basketball Association , 556 F.2d 682 (2d Cir. 1977). After the NBA owners voted in 1970 to merge with the ABA, the NBA Players Association filed a lawsuit in April 1970 to prevent the merger on antitrust grounds. The existence of the ABA resulted in increased salaries for players in both leagues as
18662-463: The ABA to coach the NBA's Houston Rockets in the first post-merger season and won the Central Division; Nissalke was named NBA Coach of the Year. Former Kentucky Colonels coach Hubie Brown took over the NBA's Atlanta Hawks , and the four former ABA teams kept their coaches as they entered the NBA. In 1974, Denver changed its name from the Denver Rockets to the Denver Nuggets in anticipation of
18879-400: The ABA will employ sound a good deal more like those used by AFL Commissioner Al Davis in the last days of the football war than a plan for peaceful coexistence. The ABA has reinstituted its $ 300 million antitrust suit against the NBA. It also may move some franchises into better TV markets, an ill-advised maneuver that will mean going against established NBA teams on their home turf. And for
19096-559: The ABA's Spirits of St. Louis from 1974 through 1976. The 1974–75 Spirits had upset the reigning ABA champion New York Nets in the 1975 Eastern Division Finals before losing to the eventual champion Kentucky Colonels, but in the 1975–76 season the Spirits' play was uneven and their attendance waned. The 1975–76 season had not turned out so well in terms of either attendance or wins on the court. In May 1976, due to attendance problems in St. Louis,
19313-451: The ABA's Utah Stars straight out of high school. Eventually after the merger the NBA followed suit. Although the practice has never been without its share of critics, the drafting of college underclassmen has become common in the NBA and high school players were also selected in subsequent NBA drafts. Shootaround, an informal pre-game practice session, was introduced by Bill Sharman . It has previously been briefly used during 39 games in
19530-493: The ABA, WHA teams lost most of their existing players without compensation in a "reclamation draft" when they joined the National Hockey League . The Nets offered their superstar forward Julius Erving to the Knicks in return for waiving the $ 4.8 million indemnity, but the Knicks declined the offer. Instead, Erving was sent to the Philadelphia 76ers for $ 3 million. In effect, the Nets traded their franchise player for
19747-501: The ABA-NBA exhibition games: "When those exhibition games began, the view in the NBA was, 'Now we'll show those guys.' But then you know what happened—the ABA teams won nearly as often as the NBA did .... Those NBA–ABA games were intense". Longtime NBA coach Larry Brown said of the ABA vs. NBA games, "When some exhibition games were arranged in the 1970s to make some money and we (the ABA) beat them,
19964-468: The ABA; they had begun selling off some of their star players in the last ABA season. The new NBA teams also were barred from sharing in national TV revenues for four years. The Pacers finished their inaugural NBA season with a record of 36–46. Billy Knight and Don Buse represented Indiana in the NBA All-Star Game . However, this was one of the few bright spots of the Pacers' first 13 years in
20181-638: The ABA–NBA merger, because the NBA already had a team called the Houston Rockets . In their first NBA season, the Nuggets—a team that had never won an ABA championship—finished with the league's second-best record, 50–32, and won the Midwest Division. In their second NBA season, the Nuggets repeated as Midwest Division champions, and in their third season the Nuggets missed a third consecutive division title by
20398-513: The All-Star break thanks in no small part to Ron Artest's multiple suspensions and family tragedies befalling Jermaine O'Neal, Jamaal Tinsley and Austin Croshere . O'Neal and Brad Miller both made the All-Star team, and the Pacers made a substantial improvement as they finished 48–34, but they suffered a loss to the underdog Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs . In the 2003 off-season,
20615-578: The BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) to form the National Basketball Association (NBA). By the 1950s, basketball had become a major college sport, thus paving the way for a growth of interest in professional basketball. In 1959, a basketball hall of fame was founded in Springfield , Massachusetts, site of the first game. Its rosters include the names of great players, coaches, referees and people who have contributed significantly to
20832-555: The Blazers used to select Sam Bowie while Michael Jordan was still available. As a result of the Owens trade, they were left as bystanders in the midst of one of the deepest drafts in NBA history—including such future stars as Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon , Sam Perkins , Charles Barkley , and John Stockton . Clark Kellogg was drafted by the Pacers in the 1982 and finished second in the Rookie of
21049-545: The Colonels' fans. Though it was clear to everyone that the Colonels had the talent and the fan support to join the NBA for the 1976–77 season, in the face of various obstacles, Brown had other plans. During the merger negotiations in June 1976, the NBA made it clear that it would accept only four ABA teams, not five. The Nuggets and Nets, clearly the ABA's two strongest teams, were obvious choices. The Spurs had posted impressive attendance numbers since moving from Dallas, and were thus
21266-468: The Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. Thus, the sport quickly spread throughout America's schools, colleges and universities with uniform rules for both sexes. Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball . These round balls from " association football " were made, at the time, with a set of laces to close off the hole needed for inserting
21483-959: The Detroit Pistons for $ 500,000, Moses Malone went to the Portland Trail Blazers for $ 300,000, Ron Boone went to the Kansas City Kings for $ 250,000, Randy Denton went to the New York Knicks for $ 50,000 and Mike Barr went to the Kansas City Kings for $ 15,000. Twelve players from the final two Spirits of St. Louis rosters (1974–76) played in the NBA during the 1976–77 season and beyond: Maurice Lucas , Ron Boone , Marvin Barnes , Caldwell Jones , Lonnie Shelton , Steve Green , Gus Gerard , Moses Malone , Don Adams , Don Chaney , M. L. Carr and Freddie Lewis . The NBA imposed
21700-454: The Eastern Conference Finals, the Pacers were victorious by a score of 97–93. The game was clinched for Indiana after David West deflected a pass from LeBron James . The team headed home to Indianapolis, where they had been a perfect 6–0 in the playoffs. The Heat won Game 3 in Indianapolis on May 26, 2013, with contributions from role players Udonis Haslem and Chris Andersen , and won 114–96. The Pacers bounced back in Game 4 with
21917-479: The G League has 31 teams. FIBA (International Basketball Federation) was formed in 1932 by eight founding nations: Argentina , Czechoslovakia , Greece , Italy , Latvia , Portugal , Romania and Switzerland . At this time, the organization only oversaw amateur players. Its acronym, derived from the French Fédération Internationale de Basket-ball Amateur , was thus "FIBA". Men's basketball
22134-460: The Hawks came away with a two-point victory to put an early end to Indiana's season. This 1995–96 team did manage to go down in history as the only team to defeat the Chicago Bulls twice that year, a Bulls team which made history with a then all-time best 72–10 record. The Pacers could not withstand several key injuries in 1996–97 , nor could they handle the absence of Mark Jackson, who had been traded to
22351-630: The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (IAAUS). In 1910, that body changed its name to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The first Canadian interuniversity basketball game was played at YMCA in Kingston , Ontario on February 6, 1904, when McGill University – Naismith's alma mater – visited Queen's University . McGill won 9–7 in overtime;
22568-462: The Knicks were pressing and shooting 3-pointers and all of that under Rick Pitino , people acted as if that was something new. Hey, half the teams in the ABA played like that". Hubie Brown , former head coach of the Kentucky Colonels, Atlanta Hawks, New York Knicks and Memphis Grizzlies: "We (the ABA) were ahead of the NBA in so many different ways. We had the 3-point play. The NBA said it was
22785-520: The Knicks' front office. Pritchard was promoted by the Pacers after serving as the team's director of player personnel. In the 2012 NBA draft , the Pacers selected Miles Plumlee with the 26th pick and acquired Orlando Johnson , the 36th pick from the Sacramento Kings . The team also acquired key bench players Ian Mahinmi , Gerald Green , and D. J. Augustin . On April 7, 2013, the Pacers clinched their first Central Division championship since
23002-505: The Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at the Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. These rules, designed by Berenson, were published in 1899. In 1902 Berenson became the editor of A. G. Spalding 's first Women's Basketball Guide. The same year women of Mount Holyoke and Sophie Newcomb College (coached by Clara Gregory Baer ), began playing basketball. By 1895,
23219-612: The NBA Finals; until the end of the 2022–23 season they were the only former ABA team to win a title. They have since won four more NBA titles, in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014. In 2003, the NBA Finals matched two former ABA teams, the Spurs and the New Jersey Nets. After years of being the ABA's strongest team on the court and at the box office, the merger caught the Pacers at an awkward moment financially. As mentioned above, they were included in
23436-522: The NBA did not accept the merger agreement worked out with the ABA, he would move the SuperSonics from the NBA to the ABA. Schulman also threatened to move his soon-to-be ABA team to Los Angeles to compete directly with the Lakers. The owners of the Dallas Chaparrals (now the NBA's San Antonio Spurs ) were so confident of the impending merger that they suggested that the ABA hold off on scheduling and playing
23653-509: The NBA moguls didn't want the 3-point shot. Red Auerbach hated it and said the Celtics would never go along with it. He had everybody up in arms against the play. Of course, a few years later Red drafted Larry Bird and suddenly he was all for it. And suddenly one of the bigger attractions at the All-Star Game is the 3-point shootout". The ABA originated the idea of the slam dunk contest at
23870-425: The NBA owners voted 13–4, and the ABA owners voted 11–0 to jointly seek approval from the U.S. Congress to pass an exception to existing antitrust law in order to merge the rival circuits into a single, 28-team league that would retain the NBA name. Seattle SuperSonics owner Sam Schulman , a member of the ABA–NBA merger committee in 1970, was so ardently eager to merge the leagues that he publicly announced that if
24087-584: The NBA said they weren't up for the games. Come on. When I coached Carolina, we played the Knicks after they won a championship. I looked at their guys shooting around and I looked at my guys and I didn't want my players to take off their warm-ups because they looked so scrawny next to the Knicks—and we went out and beat New York. We also played the Celtics a couple of times and beat them. (Celtics coach) Tommy Heinsohn would say that he wasn't playing to win, but I'd check
24304-481: The NBA) for a short meeting with the players, are allowed. They generally last no longer than one minute (100 seconds in the NBA) unless, for televised games, a commercial break is needed. The game is controlled by the officials consisting of the referee (referred to as crew chief in the NBA), one or two umpires (referred to as referees in the NBA) and the table officials. For college, the NBA, and many high schools, there are
24521-404: The NBA, and U Sports (Canadian universities) play for both sexes, and 30 seconds in NCAA play for both sexes), holding the ball while closely guarded (5 seconds), and remaining in the restricted area known as the free-throw lane, (or the " key ") (3 seconds). These rules are designed to promote more offense. There are also limits on how players may block an opponent's field goal attempt or help
24738-473: The NBA, but it forced me to destroy the team by selling Erving to pay the bill". The rosters of the Kentucky Colonels and Spirits of St. Louis were put into a special dispersal draft in 1976 . The three-point field goal was used in the ABA; the NBA originally disparaged it, but eventually adopted it in the 1979–80 season. Angelo Drossos , owner of the San Antonio Spurs: "When the leagues merged,
24955-503: The NBA. During this time, they had only two non-losing seasons and only two playoff appearances. A lack of continuity became the norm for most of the next decade, as they traded away Knight and Buse before the 1977–78 season even started. They acquired Adrian Dantley in exchange for Knight, but Dantley (who was averaging nearly 27 points per game at the time) was traded in December, while the Pacers' second-leading scorer, John Williamson ,
25172-673: The NBA. Top international players began coming into the NBA in the mid-1990s, including Croatians Dražen Petrović and Toni Kukoč , Serbian Vlade Divac , Lithuanians Arvydas Sabonis and Šarūnas Marčiulionis , Dutchman Rik Smits and German Detlef Schrempf . In the Philippines, the Philippine Basketball Association 's first game was played on April 9, 1975, at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao , Quezon City , Philippines. It
25389-422: The Nets and Nuggets had approached John Y. Brown, Jr. in an attempt to get his Kentucky Colonels to join their attempted leap to the NBA, but Brown refused, saying he was staying loyal to the ABA. Ultimately, the Nets and Nuggets were forced to play a lame-duck season in the ABA by court order. The Nuggets' and Nets' attempted move to the NBA created a great deal of ill will within the ABA, and brought attention to
25606-475: The Nets were making the NBA playoffs and by 2002 the Nets finally made the NBA Finals, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers . They made it to the NBA Finals again in 2003, this time losing to the San Antonio Spurs, another former ABA team. In 2012, the Nets moved to Brooklyn . Nets' owner Roy Boe said of the merger, "The merger agreement killed the Nets as an NBA franchise. ...The merger agreement got us into
25823-524: The Pacers for multiple seasons. Hall of Famers Adrian Dantley , Gus Johnson , and Tim Hardaway also played for the Pacers. The franchise has multiple Hall of Fame coaches in Bobby "Slick" Leonard , Jack Ramsay , and Larry Brown . Furthermore, former Pacers inducted into international Halls of Fame include Reggie Miller , Detlef Schrempf , and Peja Stojaković in the FIBA Hall of Fame , Šarūnas Jasikevičius in
26040-507: The Pacers in six games on their way to the NBA Championship . Al Harrington , a small forward who had established himself as one of the best sixth-men in the NBA, was dealt in the off-season to the Atlanta Hawks in return for Stephen Jackson after Harrington allegedly demanded that the Pacers start him or trade him. Nevertheless, the Pacers started off the 2004–05 season in extremely strong fashion–until November 19, 2004. Toward
26257-584: The Pacers made the playoffs for the 13th time in 14 years. In the first round, Indiana defeated the Atlantic Division champion Boston Celtics , winning Game 7 in Boston with a score of 97–70, just the third time the Celtics had dropped a Game 7 at home. The Pacers then advanced to the second round against the Detroit Pistons , in a rematch of the previous year's Eastern Conference Finals. The series featured games back at The Palace of Auburn Hills ,
26474-551: The Pacers managed to re-sign O'Neal for the NBA maximum and inked Reggie Miller to a modest two-year deal, but they could not afford to keep their talented center, Brad Miller. He was dealt to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Scot Pollard , who spent much of the following year watching from the bench and backing up Jeff Foster . The Pacers also signed Larry Bird as team president, and Bird wasted little time in dismissing coach Isiah Thomas and replacing him with Rick Carlisle . The Pacers responded to Carlisle extremely well and had
26691-400: The Pacers regained a 2–1 series lead. The Nets, however, won games four and five to take a 3–2 series lead. In Game 6, Anthony Johnson scored 40 points, but the Pacers' season came to an end as the Nets won 96–90. The Pacers finished the 2006–07 season as one of the worst seasons in team history. The turning point of the season would be an 11-game losing streak that started around
26908-518: The Pacers traded Ron Artest to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Peja Stojaković . Despite the loss of Reggie Miller, the Artest saga, and many key injuries, the Pacers made the playoffs in 2006 for the 14th time in 15 years. They also were the only road team to win Game 1 of a first-round playoff series. However, New Jersey won Game 2 to tie the series at 1–1, heading back to Indiana. In Game 3, Jermaine O'Neal scored 37 points, as
27125-491: The Pacers' average attendance jumped from 7,615 during the 1976–77 season, their first in the NBA, to 10,982 during the 1977–78 season. The Pacers finished their inaugural NBA season with a record of 36–46. Pacers Billy Knight and Don Buse represented Indiana in the NBA All-Star Game . However, this was one of the few bright spots of the Pacers' first 13 years in the NBA. During this time, they had only two non-losing seasons and only two playoff appearances. Finally overcoming
27342-407: The Pacers' lineup, as Rik Smits and coach Larry Bird retired, Chris Mullin returned to the Golden State Warriors , Mark Jackson signed a long-term contract with Toronto , and Dale Davis was traded to Portland for Jermaine O'Neal , who went on to average 12.9 points per game in his first year as a starter. It was a rebuilding year for the Pacers under the new head coach Isiah Thomas . However,
27559-483: The Pacers' role players such as Dale Davis , Derrick McKey , and a young Antonio Davis . Miller and Rik Smits both made the All-Star team that year, and in the playoffs , the Pacers breezed past the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks before falling to the Chicago Bulls in a seven-game Eastern Conference Finals . In the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season , the Pacers won the Central Division with
27776-407: The Pacers. The trade bolstered a team that had been floundering, and the Pacers managed to return to the playoffs , where they pushed the top-seeded New Jersey Nets to five games before losing Game 5 in double overtime. Jermaine O'Neal made his first of what would be several All-Star appearances in his Pacers career. The Pacers got off to a 13–2 start in 2002–03 but hit the wall after
27993-540: The Silnas purchased the ABA's Carolina Cougars franchise with the expectation of moving it into the NBA with the impending merger of the two leagues. The Silna brothers moved the Cougars to St. Louis , because it was then the largest city in the United States without a professional basketball team, and they thought this would make their team more likely to join the NBA. In 1974, the Cougars, roster and all, were overhauled and became
28210-582: The Spirits announced that they were going to move to Salt Lake City , Utah , to play as the Utah Rockies when a lease agreement for the Salt Palace was arranged. This followed an attempted merger of the Spirits and the Utah Stars franchise during the 1975–76 season, a merger that, had it occurred, contemplated the team leaving St. Louis for Utah. But the Stars folded before the merger could occur and instead,
28427-503: The Spirits bought the rights to some of the Stars' best players, including Moses Malone. In an effort to be included in the ABA–NBA merger, the Spirits' owners, proposed selling the Spirits to a Utah group, buying the Kentucky Colonels franchise, and moving the Colonels to Buffalo to replace the Buffalo Braves, who were then planning to move to the Miami region (The Buffalo franchise would eventually move to Southern California, first as
28644-408: The Spirits of St. Louis). The Chicago Bulls took Gilmore for $ 1.1 million. The Portland Trail Blazers took Maurice Lucas for $ 300,000, the Buffalo Braves took Bird Averitt for $ 125,000, the Indiana Pacers took Wil Jones for $ 50,000, the New York Nets took Jan van Breda Kolff for $ 60,000, and the San Antonio Spurs took Louie Dampier for $ 20,000. With the funds he received from the agreement with
28861-724: The Squires folded, the Kentucky Colonels , led by Artis Gilmore , defeated the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 1976 ABA Playoffs . The Colonels, in turn, lost a seven-game semifinal series to the Denver Nuggets , led by Dan Issel and David Thompson . The Nuggets, in turn, lost the ABA Finals to the New York Nets with Julius Erving , who had defeated George Gervin and the San Antonio Spurs to get there. The Spirits of St. Louis and their star Moses Malone had survived
29078-466: The Squires were at the end of their tether. They were folded by the league on May 11, 1976, after failing to pay a $ 75,000 league assessment. However, there was virtually no chance of them being included in the merger in any event. The Squires were a "regional" franchise that played home games in three Virginia cities. Regional franchises were not considered viable, and none of the Squires' "home" cities were nearly large enough to support an NBA team. After
29295-624: The Stars and the Spirits of St. Louis about the two teams merging, but the Stars folded before it could happen. Most of the Stars players, including Moses Malone , were sold to the Spirits of St. Louis. With the ABA cut down to seven teams, the league abandoned divisional play. Another ABA team, the Virginia Squires , struggled considerably in its final two years. The Squires had sold fan favorites such as Julius Erving , Rick Barry , George Gervin , Warren Armstrong , Billy Paultz and Swen Nater because of constant financial problems. In
29512-428: The United States, and it quickly spread through the United States and Canada. By 1895, it was well established at several women's high schools. While YMCA was responsible for initially developing and spreading the game, within a decade it discouraged the new sport, as rough play and rowdy crowds began to detract from YMCA's primary mission. However, other amateur sports clubs, colleges, and professional clubs quickly filled
29729-450: The WNBA to break even this year." Measurements and time limits discussed in this section often vary among tournaments and organizations; international and NBA rules are used in this section. The object of the game is to outscore one's opponents by throwing the ball through the opponents' basket from above while preventing the opponents from doing so on their own. An attempt to score in this way
29946-445: The Year voting, but the Pacers finished the 1982–83 season with their all-time worst record of 20–62 and won only 26 games the following season . After winning 22 games in 1984–85 and 26 games in 1985–86 , Jack Ramsay replaced George Irvine as coach and led the Pacers to a 41–41 record in 1986–87 and their second playoff appearance as an NBA team. Chuck Person , nicknamed "The Rifleman" for his renowned long-range shooting, led
30163-529: The act of shooting, depending on whether the shot was successful. One point is awarded for making a free throw, which is attempted from a line 15 feet (4.6 m) from the basket. ABA%E2%80%93NBA merger The ABA–NBA merger was a major pro sports business maneuver in 1976 when the American Basketball Association (ABA) combined with the National Basketball Association (NBA), after multiple attempts over several years. The NBA and ABA had entered merger talks as early as 1970, but an antitrust suit filed by
30380-400: The all-star break. Injuries to Jermaine O'Neal and Marquis Daniels, a lack of a solid backup point guard, the blockbuster trade midway through the season that interrupted the team chemistry, poor defensive efforts, and being the NBA's worst offensive team were the main reasons leading to the team's struggles. The April 15 loss to New Jersey Nets knocked the Pacers out of the playoffs for
30597-407: The allotted game time, typically about two hours. Five players from each team may be on the court at one time. Substitutions are unlimited but can only be done when play is stopped. Teams also have a coach, who oversees the development and strategies of the team, and other team personnel such as assistant coaches, managers, statisticians, doctors and trainers. For both men's and women's teams,
30814-400: The ball , to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands then resume dribbling . The five players on each side fall into five playing positions . The tallest player is usually the center , the second-tallest and strongest is the power forward , a slightly shorter but more agile player is the small forward , and the shortest players or the best ball handlers are the shooting guard and
31031-490: The basket if one is scored. The defense gains possession in all cases of goaltending or basket interference. An attempt to unfairly disadvantage an opponent through certain types of physical contact is illegal and is called a personal foul. These are most commonly committed by defensive players; however, they can be committed by offensive players as well. Players who are fouled either receive the ball to pass inbounds again, or receive one or more free throws if they are fouled in
31248-414: The basketball is also regulated. For men, the official ball is 29.5 inches (75 cm) in circumference (size 7, or a "295 ball") and weighs 22 oz (620 g). If women are playing, the official basketball size is 28.5 inches (72 cm) in circumference (size 6, or a "285 ball") with a weight of 20 oz (570 g). In 3x3 , a formalized version of the halfcourt 3-on-3 game, a dedicated ball with
31465-415: The box score and see that Tommy played his regulars 35 to 40 minutes, so what does that tell you?" Interest in ABA vs. NBA play extended beyond the two leagues' management. In 1976, CBS sought to establish a postseason playoff between the ABA and NBA, and to win the rights to broadcast those games. Before the 1975–76 season, the Denver Nuggets and New York Nets applied to join the NBA. The owners of
31682-516: The champion dwindled after 1954 when Brown v. Board of Education began an integration of schools. The last tournaments were held at Alabama State College from 1964 to 1967. Teams abounded throughout the 1920s. There were hundreds of men's professional basketball teams in towns and cities all over the United States, and little organization of the professional game. Players jumped from team to team and teams played in armories and smoky dance halls. Leagues came and went. Barnstorming squads such as
31899-419: The circumference of a size 6 ball but the weight of a size 7 ball is used in all competitions (men's, women's, and mixed teams). The ball may be advanced toward the basket by being shot, passed between players, thrown, tapped, rolled or dribbled (bouncing the ball while running). The ball must stay within the court; the last team to touch the ball before it travels out of bounds forfeits possession. The ball
32116-554: The come from behind victory. The Knicks ultimately came back to win the next two games and the series. Miller was a tri-captain and leading scorer of the USA Basketball team that won the gold medal at the 1994 FIBA World Championship . Mark Jackson joined the team in an off-season trade with the Los ;Angeles Clippers , giving the team a steady hand at the point guard position that had been lacking in recent years. The Pacers enjoyed
32333-439: The court and backboard, it is considered important for the basket to be of the correct height – a rim that is off by just a few inches can have an adverse effect on shooting. The net must "check the ball momentarily as it passes through the basket" to aid the visual confirmation that the ball went through. The act of checking the ball has the further advantage of slowing down the ball so the rebound does not go as far. The size of
32550-535: The development of the game. The hall of fame has people who have accomplished many goals in their career in basketball. An upstart organization, the American Basketball Association , emerged in 1967 and briefly threatened the NBA's dominance until the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. Today the NBA is the top professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition. The NBA has featured many famous players, including George Mikan ,
32767-400: The draft and financial penalties imposed in the merger, the Pacers won NBA Central Division championships in 1995, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2013 and 2014. They reached the NBA Finals in 2000, and reached the Eastern Conference finals in the previous two years and again in 2004, 2013, 2014, and 2024. The Nets, severely handicapped by the financial penalties placed upon the team, sold Julius Erving to
32984-462: The emerging financial weakness of some of the league's lesser teams. Meanwhile, the ABA saw three of its teams (Memphis, San Diego, and Utah) disappear before the end of 1975, with a fourth team (Virginia) limping through the season before folding in early 1976. The Memphis Sounds moved to Baltimore as the Claws , but folded after only three preseason games after failing to post a performance bond with
33201-425: The end of a Pacers victory over the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills , the Pacers' Ron Artest committed a hard foul against Ben Wallace . Wallace retaliated with a hard push, threw a towel at Artest, and the situation escalated to a full-scale brawl , with fans and several Pacers taking part. While Artest laid atop the scorer's table trying to calm down and do an interview, Pistons fan John Green (who
33418-847: The ending of the game was replayed three times until the Soviet Union finally came out on top. In 1950 the first FIBA World Championship for men, now known as the FIBA Basketball World Cup , was held in Argentina. Three years later, the first FIBA World Championship for women, now known as the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup , was held in Chile. Women's basketball was added to the Olympics in 1976, which were held in Montreal , Quebec, Canada with teams such as
33635-422: The eventual merger of the two leagues as equals. Alex Hannum , who coached in both the NBA and ABA, said at the time of Storen, "The most important problem he has is still the merger with the NBA. And I believe his approach is just right for us. Storen wants to build our league to be the strongest. Then he can negotiate with the NBA as an equal". Sports Illustrated noted at the time that "the tactics Storen says
33852-472: The first decades of the 20th century, basketball quickly became the ideal interscholastic sport due to its modest equipment and personnel requirements. In the days before widespread television coverage of professional and college sports, the popularity of high school basketball was unrivaled in many parts of America. Perhaps the most legendary of high school teams was Indiana's Franklin Wonder Five , which took
34069-798: The first dominating "big man"; ball-handling wizard Bob Cousy and defensive genius Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics ; charismatic center Wilt Chamberlain , who originally played for the barnstorming Harlem Globetrotters ; all-around stars Oscar Robertson and Jerry West ; more recent big men Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , Shaquille O'Neal , Hakeem Olajuwon and Karl Malone ; playmakers John Stockton , Isiah Thomas and Steve Nash ; crowd-pleasing forwards Julius Erving and Charles Barkley ; European stars Dirk Nowitzki , Pau Gasol and Tony Parker ; Latin American stars Manu Ginobili , more recent superstars, Allen Iverson , Kobe Bryant , Tim Duncan , LeBron James , Stephen Curry , Giannis Antetokounmpo , etc.; and
34286-417: The first round of the ABA playoffs before the merger, won NBA division titles in five of their first six NBA seasons, largely on the strength of superstar guard George Gervin . This was in spite of the financial and draft penalties imposed on the team. The Spurs then went through a period of decline in the late 1980s, but rebounded in the 1990s, and in 1999 became the first former ABA team to both reach and win
34503-454: The first round, they were defeated by the No. 1 seed Chicago Bulls in five games. Despite a lopsided comparison in terms of the two teams' win–loss records, three of the four Pacers' losses were close, losing games 1–3 by an average of five points. The Pacers named Vogel their permanent head coach on July 7, 2011. They acquired George Hill from the San Antonio Spurs on draft night . After
34720-406: The first time since 1970 the ABA will go after established NBA players. 'We will have exploratory contract talks with lots of their men,' Storen says. 'Whether we'll sign none, six or 10 of them will depend on how things work out. But you can be sure of one thing: we'll do this in a serious, orderly way'". As a result of the merger legislation not being enacted and the Oscar Robertson suit continuing,
34937-442: The first time since the 1996–97 season. On April 10, 2007, the Pacers announced that coach Rick Carlisle had been fired, with the Pacers' first losing record in ten seasons being the main reason for the coach's dismissal. Pacers President Larry Bird noted that Carlisle had the opportunity to return to the Pacers franchise in another role. Later, Carlisle opted to leave and took a broadcasting job with ESPN before returning to coach
35154-406: The first-ever rights fees to be paid to a women's professional sports league. Over the eight years of the contract, "millions and millions of dollars" were "dispersed to the league's teams." In a March 12, 2009, article, NBA commissioner David Stern said that in the bad economy, "the NBA is far less profitable than the WNBA. We're losing a lot of money among a large number of teams. We're budgeting
35371-484: The following terms on the four ABA refugees—the Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, New York Nets and San Antonio Spurs: Compared to the other mergers of the 1970s, the terms of the merger in basketball are generally seen as falling between the earlier merger in football and the later merger in hockey . The indemnities and other penalties were at least as draconian as the penalties that the AFL teams in existing NFL markets faced as
35588-425: The game had spread to colleges across the country, including Wellesley , Vassar , and Bryn Mawr . The first intercollegiate women's game was on April 4, 1896. Stanford women played Berkeley , 9-on-9, ending in a 2–1 Stanford victory. Women's basketball development was more structured than that for men in the early years. In 1905, the executive committee on Basket Ball Rules (National Women's Basketball Committee)
35805-409: The head of the NBA players union, Robertson v. National Basketball Ass'n , blocked the merger until 1976. As part of the merger agreement, the NBA agreed to accept four of the remaining six ABA teams: the Denver Nuggets , Indiana Pacers , New York Nets , and San Antonio Spurs . The remaining two ABA teams, the Kentucky Colonels and the Spirits of St. Louis , folded, with their players entering
36022-523: The history of the ABA. In addition, the Kentucky Colonels–Indiana Pacers rivalry was the league's fiercest, and in all of professional basketball (NBA included), the Colonels ranked sixth in attendance. In spite of that history, the Colonels' final games came in the 1976 ABA Playoffs as the defending champions bested the Pacers to advance to the semifinals before bowing out to the Nuggets in a tight seven-game series. John Y. Brown, Jr. ,
36239-442: The hundreds of millions of dollars. The Silnas continued to receive millions of dollars in television revenue from the NBA until reaching a revised agreement in April 2014, which included a $ 500 million payment to the Silnas from the four former ABA teams. The terms of the ABA–NBA merger included the Spirits of St. Louis players being put into a special dispersal draft along with the Kentucky Colonels players. Marvin Barnes went to
36456-539: The inflatable bladder after the other sewn-together segments of the ball's cover had been flipped outside-in. These laces could cause bounce passes and dribbling to be unpredictable. Eventually a lace-free ball construction method was invented, and this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith (whereas in American football , the lace construction proved to be advantageous for gripping and remains to this day). The first balls made specifically for basketball were brown, and it
36673-409: The involved players were suspended by NBA Commissioner David Stern . Artest was suspended for the rest of the regular season and playoffs, a total of 73 games—the longest suspension for an on-court incident in NBA history. Other suspensions included Jackson (suspended for 30 games), O'Neal (25 games), Wallace (6 games), and the Pacers' Anthony Johnson (5 games) (O'Neal's suspension
36890-545: The league's popularity and level of competition. Other professional women's basketball leagues in the United States, such as the American Basketball League (1996–98) , have folded in part because of the popularity of the WNBA. The WNBA has been looked at by many as a niche league. However, the league has recently taken steps forward. In June 2007, the WNBA signed a contract extension with ESPN . The new television deal ran from 2009 to 2016. Along with this deal, came
37107-518: The league. On November 12, 1975—three weeks into the season—the San Diego Sails folded. The Sails had been plagued by wretched attendance, and their owner had learned the team would most likely be excluded from any upcoming ABA–NBA merger because Los Angeles Lakers owner Jack Kent Cooke did not want competition in Southern California for either his team or their television coverage on
37324-448: The lockout, and losing Mike Dunleavy Jr. to free–agency , the Pacers signed former two-time All-Star power forward David West to a two-year deal. These new players contributed to the Pacers' record of 21–12 at the All-Star break. The Pacers acquired another key piece in Leandro Barbosa from the Toronto Raptors at the trade deadline, mid-season. At the end of the 2011–12 season , the team, led in scoring by Danny Granger , clinched
37541-439: The major international events of the sport and attract top national teams from around the world. Each continent hosts regional competitions for national teams, like EuroBasket and FIBA AmeriCup . The FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup and Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament feature top national teams from continental championships. The main North American league is the WNBA ( NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship
37758-475: The merger more or less as an afterthought after the Bulls effectively vetoed the inclusion of the Colonels, who were on far stronger footing financially. The team had started unloading their stars during the last ABA season. After their first NBA season, the Pacers resorted to broadcasting a successful telethon in order to survive financially into their second NBA season. In part thanks to the telethon, led by Nancy Leonard (wife of Hall of Fame coach Bobby Leonard ),
37975-423: The mezzanine balcony of the playing court, but this proved impractical when spectators in the balcony began to interfere with shots. The backboard was introduced to prevent this interference; it had the additional effect of allowing rebound shots. Naismith's handwritten diaries, discovered by his granddaughter in early 2006, indicate that he was nervous about the new game he had invented, which incorporated rules from
38192-399: The middle of the season did not help the Pacers struggles, and injuries to Tinsley and Jermaine O'Neal damaged the Pacers' already weak defense and left almost all point guard duties to recently acquired Travis Diener, who saw minimal minutes on his previous NBA teams. Despite this, and a 36–46 record, the Pacers had a very strong finish to the season, which included a desperate attempt to steal
38409-403: The most successful team in ABA history, winning three ABA Championships in four years. In all, they appeared in the ABA Finals five times in the league's nine-year history, which was an ABA record. The Pacers were one of four ABA teams that joined the NBA in the ABA–NBA merger in the 1976–77 season , along with the Denver Nuggets , New York Nets , and San Antonio Spurs . The league charged
38626-489: The nation by storm during the 1920s, dominating Indiana basketball and earning national recognition. Today virtually every high school in the United States fields a basketball team in varsity competition. Basketball's popularity remains high, both in rural areas where they carry the identification of the entire community, as well as at some larger schools known for their basketball teams where many players go on to participate at higher levels of competition after graduation. In
38843-402: The nearby Smith College , went to Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by the new sport and the values it could teach, she started to organize games with her pupils, following adjusted rules. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played barely 11 months later, between the University of California and the Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at
39060-400: The new sport and the values it could teach, she instantly introduced the game as a class exercise and soon after teams were organized. The first women's collegiate basketball game was played on March 21, 1893, when her Smith freshmen and sophomores played against one another. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played later that year between the University of California and
39277-414: The next season 5 out of 10. Don Buse , who joined the NBA with the Pacers, led the NBA in both steals and assists during that first post-merger season. The Spirits of St. Louis' Moses Malone finished third in rebounding; the Kentucky Colonels' Artis Gilmore was fourth. Gilmore and his former Colonels teammate Caldwell Jones were both among the top five in the NBA in blocked shots. Tom Nissalke left
39494-407: The offense, a violation of these rules results in loss of possession; for the defense, most leagues reset the shot clock and the offensive team is given possession of the ball out of bounds. There are limits imposed on the time taken before progressing the ball past halfway (8 seconds in FIBA and the NBA; 10 seconds in NCAA and high school for both sexes), before attempting a shot (24 seconds in FIBA,
39711-417: The other ABA teams and Colonels players sold in the dispersal draft, Brown promptly turned around and bought the NBA's Buffalo Braves for $ 1.5 million, and parlayed the Braves into ownership of the Boston Celtics. Brothers Ozzie and Daniel Silna had made a fortune as pioneers in the manufacture of polyester, and they wanted to own an NBA team. After an attempt to purchase the Detroit Pistons fell short,
39928-399: The owner of the Colonels, preceded the 1975–76 season by selling star center Dan Issel for $ 500,000 to the Baltimore Claws. However, when the money never arrived, Brown sent Issel to the Nuggets. Shortly afterward, he sent defensive standout Teddy McClain to the New York Nets for $ 150,000. Those transactions, especially the sale of former University of Kentucky star Issel, turned off many of
40145-450: The period, the team set a franchise record for most points in a quarter and was only four points short of the all-time NBA record for points in a quarter (58) set in the 1970s. On January 30, 2011, the Pacers relieved Jim O'Brien of his coaching duties and named assistant coach Frank Vogel interim head coach. With a victory over the Washington Wizards on April 6, 2011, the Pacers clinched their first playoff berth since 2006. In
40362-465: The playoffs as the third seed in the Eastern Conference. They finished with a 42–24 record, their best record since their 2003–04 season. On May 8, 2012, the Pacers defeated the Orlando Magic 105–87 to win their first playoff series since 2005 and would go on to play the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Semifinals . On May 15, 2012, they defeated Miami to tie the second-round series at 1–1. On May 17, they again beat Miami 94–75 to take
40579-409: The playoffs in 1992 and met the Celtics for the second year in a row. This time, the Celtics swept the Pacers in three games. Chuck Person and point guard Micheal Williams were traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the off-season, and the Pacers got Pooh Richardson and Sam Mitchell in return. For the 1992–93 season , Detlef Schrempf moved from sixth man to the starter at small forward and
40796-422: The primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately 9.4 inches (24 cm) in diameter) through the defender's hoop (a basket 18 inches (46 cm) in diameter mounted 10 feet (3.048 m) high to a backboard at each end of the court), while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line , when it
41013-402: The regular season but missed the playoffs. All six teams were still standing as the ABA and NBA, with the Oscar Robertson suit settled, commenced their final merger negotiations. The merger was finally consummated on June 17, 1976, at the NBA league meetings in the Cape Cod Room at Dunfey's Hyannis Resort in Hyannis, Massachusetts . The Colonels were one of the strongest franchises throughout
41230-446: The remaining ABA owners agreed, in return for the Spirits folding, to pay the St. Louis owners $ 2.2 million in cash up front in addition to a 1/7 share of the four remaining teams' television revenues in perpetuity. As the NBA's popularity exploded in the 1980s and 1990s, the league's television rights were sold to CBS and then NBC, and additional deals were struck with the TNT and TBS cable networks; league television revenue soared into
41447-431: The scene of the brawl that many assumed at the time had effectively ended the Pacers' season. After losing Game 1, the Pacers won the next two games to take a 2–1 lead. However, the Pacers could not repeat their victories against the Pistons and lost the next three games, losing the series 4–2. The final game (Game 6) was on May 19, 2005; Reggie Miller , in his final NBA game, scored 27 points and received
41664-439: The score was 7–7 at the end of regulation play, and a ten-minute overtime period settled the outcome. A good turnout of spectators watched the game. The first men's national championship tournament, the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball tournament, which still exists as the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) tournament , was organized in 1937. The first national championship for NCAA teams,
41881-446: The series lead 2–1. However, despite a hard-fought series between the two, the Heat won Game 6 to close the series at 4–2. The following season, Granger was sidelined by a knee injury and managed only to play five games. Granger made his return during the 2013–14 season ; however, he failed to regain his form of the previous seasons. Granger was then traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for wing Evan Turner and forward Lavoy Allen in
42098-411: The sport in Australia. The Women's National Basketball League began in 1981. Women began to play basketball in the fall of 1892 at Smith College through Senda Berenson , substitute director of the newly opened gymnasium and physical education teacher, after having modified the rules for women. Shortly after Berenson was hired at Smith, she visited Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by
42315-433: The team in scoring as a rookie and won NBA Rookie of the Year honors. Their first playoff win in NBA franchise history was earned in Game 3 of their first-round, best-of-five series against the Atlanta Hawks , but it was their only victory in that series, as the Hawks defeated them in four games. Reggie Miller from UCLA was drafted by the Pacers in 1987 , beginning his career as a backup to John Long . Many fans at
42532-417: The team still managed to return to the playoffs , where they lost to the top-seeded Philadelphia 76ers in four games. In the midseason of 2001–02 , the Pacers made a blockbuster trade with the Chicago Bulls that sent Jalen Rose and Travis Best to Chicago in exchange for Brad Miller , Ron Artest , Kevin Ollie and Ron Mercer . In the next few years, Miller and Artest would go on to be All-Stars for
42749-416: The three players who many credit with ushering the professional game to its highest level of popularity during the 1980s and 1990s: Larry Bird , Earvin "Magic" Johnson , and Michael Jordan . In 2001, the NBA formed a developmental league, the National Basketball Development League (later known as the NBA D-League and then the NBA G League after a branding deal with Gatorade ). As of the 2023–24 season,
42966-412: The time disagreed with Miller's selection over Indiana Hoosiers ' standout Steve Alford . The Pacers missed the playoffs in 1987–88 , drafted Rik Smits in the 1988 NBA draft , and suffered through a disastrous 1988–89 season in which coach Jack Ramsay stepped down following an 0–7 start. Mel Daniels and George Irvine filled in on an interim basis before Dick Versace took over the 6–23 team on
43183-400: The time, the most the franchise had ever won as an NBA team, and tying the 1970–71 ABA Pacers for the franchise record. Chris Mullin joined the team in the off-season and immediately became a valuable part of the Pacers lineup—and starting small forward. Assistant coaches Rick Carlisle , in charge of the offense, and Dick Harter , who coached the defense, were key in getting the most out of
43400-412: The top-seeded Atlanta Hawks in the Conference semifinals. With the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals tied going into Game 5 in New York, and the Pacers trailing the Knicks by 15 points early in the fourth quarter, Reggie Miller scored 25 points—including five 3-point field goals. Miller also flashed the choke sign to the Knicks' celebrity fan, Spike Lee , while leading the Pacers to
43617-434: The two leagues did not merge until 1976, after the Oscar Robertson suit had finally been settled. In the summer before the 1971–72 season, the players from the two leagues met in the NBA–ABA All-Star Game . The NBA won a close game, 125–120. In that same preseason, ABA and NBA teams began playing exhibition games against each other. The first such exhibition was played on September 21, 1971, with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and
43834-411: The void. In the years before World War I , the Amateur Athletic Union and the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (forerunner of the NCAA ) vied for control over the rules for the game. The first pro league, the National Basketball League, was formed in 1898 to protect players from exploitation and to promote a less rough game. This league only lasted five years. James Naismith
44051-403: The way to a 28–54 finish. In February 1989, the team traded veteran center Herb Williams to the Dallas Mavericks for future NBA Sixth Man-of-the Year Detlef Schrempf . From 1989 to 1993, the Pacers would play at or near .500 and qualify for the playoffs; in 1989–90 , the Pacers parlayed a fast start into the team's third playoff appearance under coach Bob Hill . But the Pacers were swept by
44268-404: The writing on the wall and decided that it was better to fold the Colonels for cash, instead of continuing to fight. On June 17, 1976, the Colonels reached a financial agreement with the remaining teams in the ABA and agreed to fold in exchange for $ 3 million. According to the terms of the ABA–NBA merger the Kentucky Colonels players were placed into a dispersal draft (along with the players from
44485-422: Was (at the time) a relatively strong World Hockey Association team, the Indianapolis Racers . Whereas Kentucky was never a part of the WHA, the Racers were still then seen to be likely to be included in any NHL–WHA merger that might happen, especially if they no longer had a major professional basketball team to compete with. Furthermore, since the entry of the Milwaukee Bucks into the league had blossomed into
44702-403: Was common by 1896, with a rule against the double dribble by 1898. The peach baskets were used until 1906 when they were finally replaced by metal hoops with backboards. A further change was soon made, so the ball merely passed through. Whenever a person got the ball in the basket, his team would gain a point. Whichever team got the most points won the game. The baskets were originally nailed to
44919-461: Was created by the American Physical Education Association . These rules called for six to nine players per team and 11 officials. The International Women's Sports Federation (1924) included a women's basketball competition. 37 women's high school varsity basketball or state tournaments were held by 1925. And in 1926, the Amateur Athletic Union backed the first national women's basketball championship , complete with men's rules. The Edmonton Grads ,
45136-417: Was dealt in January. The early Pacers came out on the short end of two of the most one-sided trades in NBA history. In 1980, they traded Alex English to the Nuggets to reacquire former ABA star George McGinnis . McGinnis was long past his prime and contributed very little during his two-year return. English, in contrast, went on to become one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. The next year, they traded
45353-409: Was elected to his first All-Star game. Meanwhile, Miller became the Pacers' all-time NBA era leading scorer during this season (fourth overall). The Pacers returned to the playoffs with a 41–41 record, but lost to the New York Knicks in the first round, three games to one. Larry Brown was brought aboard as Pacers' coach for the 1993–94 season, and Pacers' general manager Donnie Walsh completed
45570-401: Was first included at the Berlin 1936 Summer Olympics , although a demonstration tournament was held in 1904. The United States defeated Canada in the first final, played outdoors. This competition has usually been dominated by the United States, whose team has won all but three titles. The first of these came in a controversial final game in Munich in 1972 against the Soviet Union, in which
45787-474: Was founded as a "rebellion" of several teams from the now-defunct Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association, which was tightly controlled by the Basketball Association of the Philippines (now defunct), the then-FIBA recognized national association. Nine teams from the MICAA participated in the league's first season that opened on April 9, 1975. The NBL is Australia's pre-eminent men's professional basketball league. The league commenced in 1979 , playing
46004-418: Was instrumental in establishing college basketball . His colleague C. O. Beamis fielded the first college basketball team just a year after the Springfield YMCA game at the suburban Pittsburgh Geneva College . Naismith himself later coached at the University of Kansas for six years, before handing the reins to renowned coach Forrest "Phog" Allen . Naismith's disciple Amos Alonzo Stagg brought basketball to
46221-427: Was later reduced to 15 games by arbitrator Roger Kaplan, a decision that was upheld by U. S. District Judge George B. Daniels). O'Neal was charged with two counts of assault and battery, while Artest, Jackson, Johnson, and David Harrison were charged with one count each. After the brawl and suspensions that followed, the Pacers fell downward into the Central Division. They went from a legitimate title contender to
46438-412: Was not an official Olympic sport until 1976. The Grads' players were unpaid, and had to remain single. The Grads' style focused on team play, without overly emphasizing skills of individual players. The first women's AAU All-America team was chosen in 1929. Women's industrial leagues sprang up throughout the United States, producing famous athletes, including Babe Didrikson of the Golden Cyclones , and
46655-424: Was only in the late 1950s that Tony Hinkle , searching for a ball that would be more visible to players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball that is now in common use. Dribbling was not part of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the asymmetric shape of early balls. Dribbling
46872-409: Was sitting next to Wallace's brother) threw a cup of Diet Coke at Artest, causing him to charge into the stands. Stephen Jackson followed him into the stands while Jermaine O'Neal struck a fan who came onto the court. The game was called off with 45.9 seconds left on the clock, and the Pacers left the floor amid a shower of beer and other beverages that rained down from the stands. Several of
47089-402: Was trying to keep his gym class active on a rainy day. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the long New England winters. After rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums , he invented a new game in which players would pass a ball to teammates and try to score points by tossing the ball into
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