1968–69 ABA season

1968–69 ABA season
LeagueAmerican Basketball Association
SportBasketball
DurationOctober 18, 1968 – May 7, 1969
Games78
Teams11
Regular season
Top seedOakland Oaks
Season MVPMel Daniels (Indiana)
Top scorerLarry Jones (Denver)
Playoffs
Eastern championsIndiana Pacers
  Eastern runners-upMiami Floridians
Western championsOakland Oaks
  Western runners-upNew Orleans Buccaneers
Finals
ChampionsOakland Oaks
  Runners-upIndiana Pacers

The 1968–69 ABA season was the second season for the American Basketball Association. Two teams relocated: Minnesota Muskies became the Miami Floridians, while the Pittsburgh Pipers moved to Minnesota and became the Minnesota Pipers. Two others relocated within their territory, with the Anaheim Amigos becoming the Los Angeles Stars and the New Jersey Americans became the New York Nets. These moves to perceived better locations, alongside the arrival of Rick Barry to play with the Oakland Oaks, led the league having optimism for its second season.[1] The season ended with the Oakland Oaks capturing the first ABA championship. Months later, the Oaks elected to relocate to Washington, D.C. with the purchase of the team by Earl Foreman.

Coaching changes
Offseason
Team 1967–68 coach 1968–69 coach
Los Angeles Stars Harry Dinnel Bill Sharman
Minnesota Pipers Vince Cazzetta Jim Harding
Oakland Oaks Bruce Hale Alex Hannum
In-season
Team Outgoing coach Incoming coach
Houston Mavericks Slater Martin Jim Weaver
Indiana Pacers Larry Staverman Bobby Leonard
Minnesota Pipers Jim Harding
Vern Mikkelsen		 Vern Mikkelsen
Verl Young

Teams

1968–69 American Basketball Association
DivisionTeamCityArenaCapacity
Eastern Indiana Pacers Indianapolis, Indiana Indiana State Fair Coliseum 10,000
Kentucky Colonels Louisville, Kentucky Louisville Convention Center 6,000
Miami Floridians Miami Beach, Florida Miami Beach Convention Center 15,000
Minnesota Pipers Bloomington, Minnesota Metropolitan Sports Center 15,000
New York Nets Commack, New York Long Island Arena 6,000
Western Dallas Chaparrals University Park, Texas
Dallas, Texas		 Moody Coliseum
Dallas Memorial Auditorium		 8,998
9,815
Denver Rockets Denver, Colorado Denver Auditorium Arena 6,841
Houston Mavericks Houston, Texas Sam Houston Coliseum 9,200
Los Angeles Stars Los Angeles, California Los Angeles Sports Arena 14,795
New Orleans Buccaneers New Orleans, Louisiana Loyola Field House 6,500
Oakland Oaks Oakland, California Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena 13,502

Map of teams

Eastern Division Western Division

Regular season

On April 5, 1969, prior to the ABA Playoffs, Mel Daniels was named ABA Most Valuable Player, with the margin being reported as being two votes over Connie Hawkins (others to receive votes were Larry Jones, James Jones, Rick Barry, Don Freeman, Warren Armstrong, Louie Dampier, Roger Brown, and Doug Moe).[2]

Final standings

Eastern Division

TeamWLPCT.GB
Indiana Pacers *4434.564—
Miami Floridians *4335.5511
Kentucky Colonels *4236.5382
Minnesota Pipers *3642.4628
New York Nets1761.21827

Western Division

TeamWLPCT.GB
Oakland Oaks *6018.769—
New Orleans Buccaneers *4632.59014
Denver Rockets *4434.56416
Dallas Chaparrals *4137.52619
Los Angeles Stars3345.42327
Houston Mavericks2355.29537

Asterisk (*) denotes playoff team

Bold – ABA champions

Playoffs

The Oakland Oaks beat the Indiana Pacers 4-1 to win the ABA Championship.

Awards and honors

Warren Jabali (Oakland) won the 1968–69 ABA Playoffs MVP
Rick Barry (Oakland) was named All-ABA First Team

See also

References

  1. ↑ "A.B.A. Is Optimistic Over Reappearance of Barry and Four Franchise Shifts". The New York Times. October 13, 1968. Retrieved April 9, 2025.
  2. ↑ "Daniels Named MVP In ABA By Writers". Las Vegas Sun. UPI. April 5, 1969. Retrieved April 9, 2025.

Season summary on Basketball Reference

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