Another basketball post! yay! In this post I want to talk about just how underrated ABA players.
Edit: I made a video about the top 10 underrated players here:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Z9tVTAuHHA
For those of you who don’t know, the American Basketball Association or ABA, was founded as an alternative league to the NBA and at that time alot of players who felt that the NBA wasn’t paying them enough or too traditional took to the ABA which had a lot of modern rules like the 3 point range, a colored ball, etc
However, the ABA eventually merged with the NBA in 1976, but the NBA refuses to merge ABA player’s career records with the NBA, which is a disservice to former ABA players who later went to the NBA. As a result, several former great ABA players are underrated by the public both because ABA games were not readily televised back in the day, and because their career totals are not fully accounted for in the NBA.
Some of these great players include:
1. Mel Daniels
Has anyone ever heard of Mel Daniels? Well before I looked him up I haven’t. Probably the most underrated ABA player ever. He was a 6’9 Center that played for the Indiana Pacers, his awards include:
7 time ABA All Star
3 time ABA champion
2 time ABA MVP
1 time ABA all star game MVP
4 time All ABA first team
ABA Rookie of the Year
and his career averages: 18.4ppg/14.9rpg/1.8apg
Now tell me how someone like that could be forgotten? A 3 time champion and 2 time MVP and averaged 15 rebounds a game?? My awards based ranking places him as the 30th best player of all time (!!), right between Dirk Nowitzki and Paul Arizin.
2. Artis Gilmore
Along with Julius Erving, probably the greatest ABA player of all time. And yet he wasn’t elected to the Hall of Fame until 2011. How is this possible? His awards:
11 time ABA/NBA All Star
3 time ABA champion
1 time ABA Finals MVP
1 time ABA MVP
1 time ABA all star game MVP
5 time All ABA first team
ABA Rookie of the Year
and averaged.. 18.8ppg/12.3rpg/2.4bpg
My awards based ranking places him as the 36th best player of all time (!!), right between Isiah Thomas and Dwight Howard. This guy should be a top 10 center of all time, but its always left out of conversations.
3. George McGinnis
He was one of the most important players in the ABA along with Julius Erving, yet he isn’t even in the Hall of Fame yet! How is that possible? His awards:
6 time ABA/NBA All Star
2 time ABA champion
1 time ABA MVP
3 time All ABA first team
and averaged.. 20.2ppg/11.0rpg/3.7apg
How can a former MVP and 2 time champion who averaged 20/11 be forgotten?? My awards based ranking places him as the 39th best player of all time, right between John Stockton and Willis Reed.
4. Rick Barry
Rick Barry does get acknowledge as one of the great small forwards, but I think not enough as he deserves. Look at his awards and stats:
12 time ABA/NBA All Star
2 time ABA/NBA champion
1 time NBA Finals MVP
9 time All ABA/NBA First Team
NBA All Star game MVP
NBA Rookie of the Year
1 time NBA scoring champion
and averaged.. 24.8ppg/6.7rpg/4.9apg
Rick Barry doesn’t get the credit he deserves. His stats and awards using my ranking makes him the 19th best player of all time, right between Karl Malone and Elgin Baylor. He has better stats than Kobe Bryant. He averaged 27 points a game in the playoffs. He lead the ABA AND NBA in scoring. He lead the Golden State Warriors to their only championship in 1975 almost by himself. He is one of the greatest players of all time, period, yet gets left off the all time nba fantasy draft. He is hardly ever mentioned by modern players. Most players place Scottie Pippen over him. Why??
5. Connie Hawkins
Connie Hawkins was basically another Julius Erving, except not remembered as much. Why not? He started kind of late in the NBA, due to the NBA banning him for a scandal that he wasn’t a part of, but his awards include:
5 time ABA/NBA All Star
1 time ABA Finals MVP
1 time ABA MVP
3 time All ABA/NBA First Team
and averaged.. 18.7ppg/8.8rpg/4.1apg
My awards based ranking places him as the 41th best player of all time, right between Willis Reed and Chris Paul. Again, no one talks about him or mentions him but the dude averaged 25/12 in the playoffs.
Other forgotten former ABA players include
6. Spencer Haywood, a former ABA MVP, averaged 20/10 yet isn’t in the hall of fame.
7. Roger Brown, an all but forgotten ABA star that averaged 17/6/4 for his career.
8. Billy Cunningham isn’t mentioned that much either, even though he is a former ABA MVP, 21/10 player, and one of the top 50 greatest of all time.
9. David Thompson, a former ABA player who averaged 22/3/4, scored 73 points in a game before, and one of the greatest dunkers of all time, is often forgotten.
10. Dan Issel, a 22/9 ABA player who helped Gilmore win his championship but isn’t mentioned amongst the great power forwards.