1 00:00:07,020 --> 00:00:11,920 And there, my friend, is the very dramatic brand of basketball which can 2 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:13,520 enjoyed only in the ABA. 3 00:00:13,880 --> 00:00:17,240 It's the 70s, a cultural time like none other. 4 00:00:18,840 --> 00:00:24,220 There is Julius Irving. Look at that move behind the back. Oh, that's 5 00:00:24,800 --> 00:00:30,100 Rick. Over here in the ABA, Iceman said to Beth, we're here to entertain. 6 00:00:31,820 --> 00:00:35,580 Back in the day, playing this league wasn't ready for us, man. 7 00:00:36,250 --> 00:00:38,010 Some bad boys in that league. 8 00:00:38,810 --> 00:00:41,750 We can make it show y 'all, man, what y 'all was missing. 9 00:00:42,570 --> 00:00:47,270 Could this new basketball league cause war with the established National 10 00:00:47,270 --> 00:00:48,510 Basketball Association? 11 00:00:49,090 --> 00:00:51,090 Well, Bill, the war is here. 12 00:00:52,270 --> 00:00:56,570 NBA was like old, big, skinny, white dude, boring game. 13 00:00:57,270 --> 00:00:59,370 There was something fresh in the ABA. 14 00:00:59,630 --> 00:01:02,850 The ABA, you go back and look at all the great players they have. 15 00:01:03,390 --> 00:01:08,790 Moses Malone, the Skywalker, Dr. Dunn, the A -Train, the Iceman. The ABA was 16 00:01:08,790 --> 00:01:12,990 about doing things the NBA wasn't going to do. The ABA brought the three -point 17 00:01:12,990 --> 00:01:14,430 shot to the game of basketball. 18 00:01:14,730 --> 00:01:17,670 They brought playing fast. 19 00:01:18,490 --> 00:01:23,050 And of course, the slam dunk contest started in the ABA. 20 00:01:23,930 --> 00:01:29,850 Every guy walking into the stadium for the game dressed differently, that 21 00:01:29,850 --> 00:01:31,510 absolutely came from the ABA. 22 00:01:32,010 --> 00:01:34,390 So you got to look good on the court and you got to look good off the court. 23 00:01:34,710 --> 00:01:39,910 The ABA comes into existence at a really intense period in American history. 24 00:01:42,610 --> 00:01:46,170 The ABA was the first integrated workplace in America. 25 00:01:48,050 --> 00:01:51,610 Being vice president of basketball operations, I always say I stand on the 26 00:01:51,610 --> 00:01:52,610 shoulder of a giant. 27 00:01:53,130 --> 00:01:55,370 Legend is thrown around a lot in sports. 28 00:01:55,650 --> 00:02:00,050 A legend is something that has an element of mystery in it. 29 00:02:00,890 --> 00:02:06,550 And the ABA may be the last significant legend in American sports. 30 00:02:08,410 --> 00:02:12,450 Responsibility for those who come to the other side of all this. 31 00:02:14,110 --> 00:02:15,170 Tell the story. 32 00:02:21,470 --> 00:02:26,190 The American Basketball Association played with a bright -colored ball that 33 00:02:26,190 --> 00:02:27,190 you want to salute. 34 00:02:32,860 --> 00:02:34,280 That's the way the game should be played. 35 00:02:37,380 --> 00:02:41,760 I felt that I wasn't being paid what I should have. He appealed his case to the 36 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:43,200 United States Supreme Court. 37 00:02:44,700 --> 00:02:48,260 If they don't merge, a lot of these players are going to be out of a job. 38 00:02:49,640 --> 00:02:50,640 There's no tomorrow. 39 00:03:20,570 --> 00:03:25,310 Professional basketball in the past 50 years has changed a lot. 40 00:03:26,230 --> 00:03:28,090 How did we go from here? 41 00:03:28,430 --> 00:03:32,630 To here. 42 00:03:37,580 --> 00:03:38,800 A little -known secret. 43 00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:41,780 It all started with these guys. 44 00:03:43,380 --> 00:03:47,340 My name is George Iceman Girvin, and I am an ABA guy. 45 00:03:48,320 --> 00:03:51,320 My name's Larry Brown, and I'm an ABA guy. 46 00:03:52,380 --> 00:03:53,380 I'm Willie Wise. 47 00:03:53,580 --> 00:03:54,620 I'm Tom Hoover. 48 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:56,360 I'm Bobby Jones. 49 00:03:56,560 --> 00:04:00,220 Hi, I'm Rick Barry. My name is Spencer Haywood. Hi, I'm George Carl. I'm Martin 50 00:04:00,220 --> 00:04:02,320 Skilmore. I'm Matt Calvin. I'm James Jones. 51 00:04:03,460 --> 00:04:05,540 I'm Dan Issel. Joe Hamilton. 52 00:04:07,820 --> 00:04:11,500 I'm Julius Irving, and I'm an ABA guy. 53 00:04:12,220 --> 00:04:18,079 When you look at it, the NBA was a dying, boring, stale professional sport. 54 00:04:18,560 --> 00:04:21,260 Bob Pettit all over the place running wild. 55 00:04:21,540 --> 00:04:27,800 The NBA at that time had the huge centers. The ball went into the center 56 00:04:27,800 --> 00:04:29,860 never really came out again. 57 00:04:30,280 --> 00:04:32,040 It was boring basketball. 58 00:04:34,520 --> 00:04:35,640 Mid -60s. 59 00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:40,300 The NBA was nowhere near as popular as the number one sport, which was 60 00:04:40,840 --> 00:04:43,040 And basketball was an afterthought. 61 00:04:44,480 --> 00:04:50,200 At that time, the NBA was the third option for the American sports viewing 62 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:55,260 public. And ABC was running like Wild World of Sports and like race against, I 63 00:04:55,260 --> 00:04:59,440 don't know, like a horse or something. And it was kicking the NBA's ass. 64 00:05:00,140 --> 00:05:02,360 So it was ripe for competition. 65 00:05:12,270 --> 00:05:13,790 an all -or -nothing gamble. 66 00:05:14,110 --> 00:05:21,110 In 1967 came pro basketball's most exciting new idea, the 67 00:05:21,110 --> 00:05:22,650 American Basketball Association. 68 00:05:23,590 --> 00:05:29,690 The commissioner of the ABN, George Mikan, the man who was acclaimed the 69 00:05:29,690 --> 00:05:33,290 greatest basketball player of this century's first 50 years. 70 00:05:33,870 --> 00:05:40,510 George Mikan was not only huge physically, at what, 6 '10", 6 '11", 71 00:05:40,510 --> 00:05:41,950 like that, but just a... 72 00:05:42,190 --> 00:05:45,330 A whale of a forceful man and a businessman. 73 00:05:45,870 --> 00:05:52,630 So it made terrific sense to all of us for the guy with his background and 74 00:05:52,630 --> 00:05:56,950 expertise in the game itself to be the spark plug to bring it all together. 75 00:05:56,990 --> 00:05:58,810 Everybody respected George Minton. 76 00:05:59,050 --> 00:06:02,950 I couldn't resist asking George one more question, and that is, what do his old 77 00:06:02,950 --> 00:06:05,470 NBA friends have to say about his new job? 78 00:06:06,330 --> 00:06:07,370 Good luck, baby. 79 00:06:11,800 --> 00:06:14,020 We think we'll have a very fine presentation. 80 00:06:14,520 --> 00:06:17,620 We're hiring coaches, general managers. We have the sites. 81 00:06:17,860 --> 00:06:21,140 We have a schedule ready, and come October, we'll be in business. 82 00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:26,680 It's new. It's revolutionary. 83 00:06:27,200 --> 00:06:28,860 And they call it the ABA. 84 00:06:29,780 --> 00:06:31,260 The New York Nets. 85 00:06:32,460 --> 00:06:34,040 The Los Angeles Stars. 86 00:06:34,820 --> 00:06:36,200 The Oakland Oaks. 87 00:06:37,720 --> 00:06:38,860 The Floridians. 88 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:41,240 Houston Mavericks. 89 00:06:42,250 --> 00:06:43,390 The Kentucky Colonel. 90 00:06:45,310 --> 00:06:46,830 The Chaparral. 91 00:06:47,730 --> 00:06:49,470 The Denver Rockets. 92 00:06:49,770 --> 00:06:51,850 New Orleans Buccaneers. 93 00:06:53,110 --> 00:06:54,110 Piper. 94 00:06:57,530 --> 00:06:59,350 The Indiana Pacers. 95 00:07:03,760 --> 00:07:09,460 Right from the get -go, the ABA was hoping to create just enough competition 96 00:07:09,460 --> 00:07:13,760 with the NBA so that the NBA would merge with them. 97 00:07:14,700 --> 00:07:18,480 The owners, to a great extent, wanted to create a league, and they wanted a 98 00:07:18,480 --> 00:07:21,400 model after the American Football League. American Football League 99 00:07:21,400 --> 00:07:22,640 game is on the air. 100 00:07:25,320 --> 00:07:28,340 The NFL had a monopoly. They were it. 101 00:07:28,600 --> 00:07:31,800 And then the upstart league showed up, the AFL. 102 00:07:32,030 --> 00:07:33,770 which led to the merger. 103 00:07:34,150 --> 00:07:39,370 Seeing the success of the AFL was part of what the people who came up with the 104 00:07:39,370 --> 00:07:41,690 ABA thought when they took the chance. 105 00:07:42,070 --> 00:07:43,410 It was a winning shot. 106 00:07:44,330 --> 00:07:48,850 ABA's owner said, I'll make buku bucks because we're going to merge the NBA and 107 00:07:48,850 --> 00:07:50,510 I'll reap the benefits of that. 108 00:07:50,730 --> 00:07:56,250 If you were an entrepreneur in 1967 with the desire to own your own pro sports 109 00:07:56,250 --> 00:07:59,710 franchise, why not take a risk on the ABA? 110 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:04,020 The cost of buying an NBA franchise in 1967, 111 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:05,880 $1 million. 112 00:08:06,860 --> 00:08:11,660 The cost of buying an ABA franchise, $5 ,000. 113 00:08:12,840 --> 00:08:18,720 And the fact the ABA buying was $5 ,000 would translate to $44 ,000 now. 114 00:08:19,760 --> 00:08:20,860 That's crazy. 115 00:08:21,320 --> 00:08:26,780 For the ABA to force the NBA into a merger, they'd have to create a demand 116 00:08:26,780 --> 00:08:27,780 dying sport. 117 00:08:27,800 --> 00:08:32,900 To do this, They'd have to find a way to totally innovate the game. 118 00:08:33,220 --> 00:08:38,159 This obstacle is why other pro basketball leagues that had come to 119 00:08:38,159 --> 00:08:40,500 NBA in the past have failed. 120 00:08:40,980 --> 00:08:47,120 Sure, the ABA buy -in was only $5 ,000, but you still had to lease the arena, 121 00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:50,240 market to the fans, and pay the players. 122 00:08:51,280 --> 00:08:55,600 What type of business person would go all -in on the ABA? 123 00:08:59,020 --> 00:09:02,620 And now, your host for tonight's hullabaloo, Pat Boone! 124 00:09:07,620 --> 00:09:14,320 Like today, I pass 125 00:09:14,320 --> 00:09:19,720 the time away, throwing five million down the drain. 126 00:09:30,090 --> 00:09:35,010 I'm the only entertainer who was ever involved that I know of with the ABA. 127 00:09:35,730 --> 00:09:37,770 I had a friend, Ken Davidson. 128 00:09:38,250 --> 00:09:42,050 Ken said, you know, I have the franchise, the right to the Oakland 129 00:09:42,330 --> 00:09:46,410 I'd like you to come aboard, and I'll give you 10%, and you won't have any 130 00:09:46,410 --> 00:09:50,530 financial responsibility, but you serve as president. 131 00:09:51,050 --> 00:09:53,870 So I said, okay, and I went to Oakland. 132 00:10:04,650 --> 00:10:10,510 The flower children and the drug -taking and just breaking all rules and taboos 133 00:10:10,510 --> 00:10:12,770 and the ABA, they did the same thing. 134 00:10:13,150 --> 00:10:16,070 I liked it. I knew it was a little garish. 135 00:10:16,290 --> 00:10:20,550 It didn't seem as traditional. That was part of the point. It was something new. 136 00:10:21,310 --> 00:10:26,990 The total destruction of professional basketball is very much within the 137 00:10:26,990 --> 00:10:31,010 framework of what's going on, and I think the NBA is concerned. 138 00:10:32,090 --> 00:10:35,610 There was the older people who weren't sure that that would fit the game. It's 139 00:10:35,610 --> 00:10:39,310 like older people always are. Why don't you just keep doing the way we always 140 00:10:39,310 --> 00:10:40,310 have? 141 00:10:42,250 --> 00:10:44,890 Red Auerbach didn't like the ABA. 142 00:10:46,450 --> 00:10:47,730 He didn't like the competition. 143 00:10:47,990 --> 00:10:49,330 He liked to control things. 144 00:10:49,570 --> 00:10:52,330 Red was all about control, and he really controlled the NBA. 145 00:10:53,790 --> 00:10:57,390 Red Auerbach was the face of the Boston Celtics. 146 00:10:59,850 --> 00:11:04,690 He was the legacy and the history and the identification of the NBA. 147 00:11:05,250 --> 00:11:08,870 NBA champions for the 11th time in 13 years. 148 00:11:09,070 --> 00:11:14,430 Red really didn't like the ABA. He did everything he could to shut it down, 149 00:11:14,430 --> 00:11:17,030 about that it was a minor league, bad mouth it. 150 00:11:18,450 --> 00:11:24,330 We didn't pay much attention to it. We thought it was a bunch of guys trying to 151 00:11:24,330 --> 00:11:25,810 become pests. 152 00:11:27,340 --> 00:11:31,060 This was all about the attitude of superiority in the establishment versus 153 00:11:31,060 --> 00:11:35,100 upstart. Their little world was very much disrupted by a presence of a 154 00:11:35,100 --> 00:11:37,180 competitor. Of course, they're angry. 155 00:11:38,180 --> 00:11:41,020 And obviously the number one thing is the siphoning of talent. 156 00:11:41,420 --> 00:11:47,400 George, this new basketball league could cause a money war between the two 157 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:50,900 leagues. Do you see a money war coming and an eventual merger along? 158 00:11:51,300 --> 00:11:53,360 Well, Bill, the war is here. 159 00:11:53,800 --> 00:11:54,940 We're going to... 160 00:11:55,470 --> 00:12:00,810 go aggressively at all the new talent, the coming stars and everything else. So 161 00:12:00,810 --> 00:12:02,790 they're in for a battle. Believe me. 162 00:12:03,510 --> 00:12:08,390 The ABA came along. They looked at every place that they could hurt the NBA. 163 00:12:14,450 --> 00:12:17,450 The ABA confronted the giant NBA. 164 00:12:17,910 --> 00:12:20,330 It truly was David and Goliath. 165 00:12:21,830 --> 00:12:24,210 And we put a wonderful stone. 166 00:12:24,970 --> 00:12:30,150 and our sling named Rick Barry. Rick Barry of the San Francisco Warriors, new 167 00:12:30,150 --> 00:12:31,150 scoring champion. 168 00:12:31,390 --> 00:12:35,050 Last year, he was rookie of the year. This year, he jumps to the very top. 169 00:12:35,630 --> 00:12:36,630 Rick Barry. 170 00:12:37,310 --> 00:12:41,530 Rick Barry is a cocky would be one word, confident would be another word, 171 00:12:41,630 --> 00:12:44,370 arrogant would be another word, complex human being. 172 00:12:50,250 --> 00:12:51,249 I'm ready. 173 00:12:51,250 --> 00:12:52,430 I was born ready. 174 00:12:53,640 --> 00:12:55,340 Oh, boy, look at this, ABA day. 175 00:12:56,420 --> 00:12:57,820 What was this here? Oh, my God. 176 00:12:58,440 --> 00:13:02,720 Wow, back with the old days of the Oakland Oaks. The ABA was great in a lot 177 00:13:02,720 --> 00:13:05,700 ways. It was horrible in a lot of ways. I mean, this can be perfectly honest. A 178 00:13:05,700 --> 00:13:08,060 lot of pictures that I've never seen before. It's just kind of cool. 179 00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:11,240 Yeah, a little floater, that's a good one. 180 00:13:11,740 --> 00:13:15,760 Come on, I mean, it's not often a player comes into the league and does what I 181 00:13:15,760 --> 00:13:20,140 did, you know, two -time first -team All -Pro, lead the league in scoring, MVP 182 00:13:20,140 --> 00:13:21,140 of the All -Star game. 183 00:13:21,450 --> 00:13:24,090 People say to me, Rick, you guys couldn't play with these guys today. I 184 00:13:24,130 --> 00:13:27,850 you must be on drugs or something, because do you understand how much 185 00:13:27,850 --> 00:13:28,930 would be if I was playing today? 186 00:13:29,390 --> 00:13:33,910 We had no strength coach. We had no agility coach. We had no dietician. We 187 00:13:33,910 --> 00:13:35,210 nothing. Zero. 188 00:13:35,590 --> 00:13:39,510 It'd be crazy how much better a basketball player I would be if I was 189 00:13:39,510 --> 00:13:42,690 today. That's the kind of bullshit that I can't even stand hearing. 190 00:13:43,310 --> 00:13:44,630 What do we have over here? 191 00:13:44,970 --> 00:13:45,970 Interesting. 192 00:13:46,230 --> 00:13:47,270 Dual ABA ball. 193 00:13:47,850 --> 00:13:50,490 Barry returns to the lineup and thinks of free throws. 194 00:13:51,080 --> 00:13:54,300 I had the record for a while of consecutive free throws made in the game 195 00:13:54,560 --> 00:13:56,620 This is from somebody who knows how to shoot free throws. 196 00:13:57,040 --> 00:13:59,240 80 % should be the benchmark. 197 00:13:59,780 --> 00:14:03,160 You have the luxury of missing one out of every five shots that you take, and 198 00:14:03,160 --> 00:14:06,540 you could be an 80 % free throw shooter. How in the world do you live with 199 00:14:06,540 --> 00:14:09,200 yourself if you can't do that? You should be ashamed of yourself. 200 00:14:09,520 --> 00:14:10,940 A lot of people call me arrogant. 201 00:14:11,440 --> 00:14:12,440 Trust me, arrogant. 202 00:14:13,130 --> 00:14:15,390 It's not what it's about. It's about confidence. 203 00:14:15,750 --> 00:14:19,850 And I was an extremely confident person. I'm still confident to this day. That's 204 00:14:19,850 --> 00:14:21,190 the key, I think, to great success. 205 00:14:27,570 --> 00:14:30,670 Rick, if you would, tell me, why did you leave the NBA for the NBA? 206 00:14:32,730 --> 00:14:35,030 Well, basketball has always been fun for me. 207 00:14:35,350 --> 00:14:36,670 I loved the game. 208 00:14:37,450 --> 00:14:39,350 Started playing when I was five years old. 209 00:14:40,090 --> 00:14:42,350 And I get done having... 210 00:14:42,730 --> 00:14:44,910 Pretty darn good second year in the pros. 211 00:14:45,150 --> 00:14:49,610 NBA commissioner Walter Kennedy gives Barry the silverware of the MVP. 212 00:14:50,230 --> 00:14:54,370 But I didn't have a lot of fun playing in the NBA. 213 00:14:55,510 --> 00:14:59,710 Bill Sharman was a terrific guy. I really liked him as a person. As a 214 00:14:59,710 --> 00:15:00,710 wasn't fun to play for. 215 00:15:01,080 --> 00:15:03,160 The only way we're going to get it back is to play it smart. 216 00:15:03,560 --> 00:15:06,160 He's the one that started the morning shoot -arounds, which I think is the 217 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:08,120 biggest waste of energy in the world. 218 00:15:08,500 --> 00:15:12,500 I think it's a total joke to use any energy at 10 o 'clock in the morning 219 00:15:12,500 --> 00:15:13,700 you've got to play a game that night. 220 00:15:14,340 --> 00:15:16,080 He took the fun out of it for me. 221 00:15:17,740 --> 00:15:21,840 So now, all of a sudden, my then -father -in -law, who was my college coach, 222 00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:26,120 Bruce Hale, was going to be the new coach with the Oakland Oaks of the new 223 00:15:26,120 --> 00:15:27,540 league, the ABA. 224 00:15:28,140 --> 00:15:32,640 I said, wow, that could be very interesting. I can get to play for my 225 00:15:32,640 --> 00:15:35,920 -law, who I love as a coach, who helped me become the player that I was in the 226 00:15:35,920 --> 00:15:39,620 pros. When he joined that team, they approached me and said, would you be 227 00:15:39,620 --> 00:15:42,940 interested? And I said, yeah. I said, I'll tell you what to do. Give me your 228 00:15:42,940 --> 00:15:43,940 best offer. 229 00:15:44,020 --> 00:15:47,560 And I got their offer. I went to the Warriors, and I told them, I said, you 230 00:15:47,560 --> 00:15:48,560 to give me your best offer. 231 00:15:49,500 --> 00:15:50,500 And they low -balled me. 232 00:15:51,600 --> 00:15:56,220 Rick Barry announced he was coming over to the Oakland Oaks from the Warriors. 233 00:15:59,140 --> 00:16:02,440 Well, that's when all hell broke loose. 234 00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:05,220 How is this contract illegal? 235 00:16:05,600 --> 00:16:09,860 In what way? I don't know. Enough for the lawyers and the judge. 236 00:16:10,360 --> 00:16:13,620 What about the legal aspects? What did Franklin Muley say to you when you met 237 00:16:13,620 --> 00:16:14,179 with him? 238 00:16:14,180 --> 00:16:17,300 Well, I'm sure that Franklin Muley is going to have to take all the legal 239 00:16:17,300 --> 00:16:21,460 actions that he possibly can to try to reverse this. The difference in the 240 00:16:21,460 --> 00:16:22,960 ability from Rick. 241 00:16:23,680 --> 00:16:26,860 to the next best player in the league. None of these fellows that I've gone 242 00:16:26,860 --> 00:16:29,180 are even, none of them, even a starter. 243 00:16:29,520 --> 00:16:32,200 Any legal litigation, I just want to concentrate on playing basketball. 244 00:16:32,480 --> 00:16:39,340 He doesn't go there strictly on the basis of evaluating this league as 245 00:16:39,340 --> 00:16:43,920 to that league. He calls other things, which include his family ties and Pat 246 00:16:43,920 --> 00:16:46,100 Boone, and it's for show business. 247 00:16:46,340 --> 00:16:49,460 It has nothing to do with movie contracts whatsoever. I mean, this is 248 00:16:49,460 --> 00:16:51,640 that would really be foolish for me to base my decision on. 249 00:16:58,869 --> 00:16:59,869 Yes. 250 00:17:00,590 --> 00:17:04,069 Would you be willing to play for the Warriors if they get this injunction? I 251 00:17:04,069 --> 00:17:05,069 have nothing to say about that. 252 00:17:05,569 --> 00:17:09,050 You would play for them, though. I did not say that. At the present time, I 253 00:17:09,050 --> 00:17:10,050 would not. 254 00:17:10,089 --> 00:17:14,770 Frank Muley, the pugnacious little owner of the San Francisco Warriors. 255 00:17:15,089 --> 00:17:16,990 I say little because he was smaller than me. 256 00:17:17,230 --> 00:17:21,910 There was a recess while the court proceedings were going on, and I'm in 257 00:17:21,910 --> 00:17:26,359 hallway with Frank Muley, and he's looking up, and he said, you know, I own 258 00:17:26,359 --> 00:17:30,960 these Warriors, and you took my best player, and I'm determined to get a 259 00:17:30,960 --> 00:17:32,520 -dollar judgment against you. 260 00:17:32,800 --> 00:17:38,520 The California state judge did rule in favor of the NBA's Warriors, granting 261 00:17:38,520 --> 00:17:44,400 only $1 million, but also binding Barry contractually to the Warriors for an 262 00:17:44,400 --> 00:17:45,400 additional season. 263 00:17:45,580 --> 00:17:50,460 This decision in favor of the NBA has been called into question by some. 264 00:17:51,210 --> 00:17:55,610 I not only have heard that the judge was a Warrior fan, but I know he was. 265 00:17:56,010 --> 00:17:59,790 And of course, he wouldn't have let it influence his decision. Who would think 266 00:17:59,790 --> 00:18:06,250 that? Barry would now have to decide whether to return to the NBA or refuse 267 00:18:06,250 --> 00:18:09,490 play and sit out a year in his basketball prime. 268 00:18:10,010 --> 00:18:13,150 George, you've signed some big -name players from the established National 269 00:18:13,150 --> 00:18:17,070 Basketball Association, namely Rick Barry. What's the status with Barry 270 00:18:17,070 --> 00:18:22,870 now? Well, Rick has to make his own decision whether or not he wants to play 271 00:18:22,870 --> 00:18:28,550 us. He signed a contract whereby he can play if he chooses to sit out this year. 272 00:18:32,270 --> 00:18:33,650 Are you still a warrior? 273 00:18:33,890 --> 00:18:34,890 No. 274 00:18:35,330 --> 00:18:36,910 I decided to play for Oakland. 275 00:18:38,500 --> 00:18:44,080 And I said, okay, great. I choose not to play. And why? 276 00:18:44,840 --> 00:18:47,780 Because I would control the destiny of my basketball career. 277 00:18:53,020 --> 00:18:58,640 In the summer of 1967, months away from the tip -off of the ABA's inaugural 278 00:18:58,640 --> 00:19:03,580 season, the league would open its door to its first crop of players. 279 00:19:04,080 --> 00:19:05,200 The ABA... 280 00:19:05,440 --> 00:19:11,740 It was an underdog league that gave underdog individuals like myself an 281 00:19:11,740 --> 00:19:17,360 opportunity. The Los Angeles Lakers offered me a tryout and a free signed 282 00:19:17,360 --> 00:19:22,740 autographed jersey by Jerry West and the ABA. They offered me a $12 ,000 283 00:19:22,740 --> 00:19:25,200 contract and a $3 ,000 bonus. 284 00:19:25,820 --> 00:19:30,400 I never should have been given the opportunity to play professional 285 00:19:30,520 --> 00:19:31,720 but the ABA gave me that. 286 00:19:32,650 --> 00:19:38,730 My first contact with the NBA was the San Francisco Warriors GM at that time. 287 00:19:38,730 --> 00:19:44,110 sat down, he talked to me, and he offered me a contract, which was at the 288 00:19:44,110 --> 00:19:46,030 minimum, $12 ,000. 289 00:19:46,370 --> 00:19:51,010 And I said, well, I'd kind of like to listen to what they offer the other 290 00:19:51,010 --> 00:19:52,010 league. 291 00:19:52,130 --> 00:19:54,130 Oh, no, that's just a Bush league. 292 00:19:54,790 --> 00:19:57,110 Those guys, they can't play ball. 293 00:20:02,260 --> 00:20:05,340 There were a lot of guys who were trying to make it, and they were trying to 294 00:20:05,340 --> 00:20:09,720 prove themselves. All of us who were just invitees to camp, we had to really 295 00:20:09,720 --> 00:20:10,760 and play hard. 296 00:20:10,960 --> 00:20:16,480 Every single practice, every single drill, so we could gain whatever edge 297 00:20:16,480 --> 00:20:20,900 we possibly could. Otherwise, that opportunity was so fleeting, and it 298 00:20:20,900 --> 00:20:21,900 away. 299 00:20:25,200 --> 00:20:28,960 Do you want a job where you have to carry a brown bag to work, or do you 300 00:20:28,960 --> 00:20:32,200 job where you can do what you like to do and make a living? 301 00:20:34,700 --> 00:20:37,920 No video record exists of the ABA's first game. 302 00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:43,600 This November contest from the first month of the ABA's inaugural season is 303 00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:44,780 first known recording. 304 00:20:45,460 --> 00:20:48,240 Here we go, the start of the ABA game. 305 00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:54,240 In season one, the ABA is searched for. 306 00:20:54,650 --> 00:20:56,770 and found considerable talent. 307 00:21:05,810 --> 00:21:12,050 The AVA style of play was at the time a revelation, fast, free, 308 00:21:12,350 --> 00:21:13,670 and all out. 309 00:21:15,650 --> 00:21:20,770 Guys were trying to prove themselves and prove that they belonged and that they 310 00:21:20,770 --> 00:21:21,790 could play basketball. 311 00:21:22,690 --> 00:21:28,230 And a lot of guys didn't take kindly to it. So, yeah, it could become violent. 312 00:21:32,850 --> 00:21:37,890 The ABA was a pretty physical league. There was a fight almost every night. 313 00:21:39,430 --> 00:21:43,790 In the ABA, there was a lot of fighting because it was okay then. You didn't get 314 00:21:43,790 --> 00:21:44,629 thrown out. 315 00:21:44,630 --> 00:21:47,410 And things got very physical. There were a lot of fights. 316 00:21:49,230 --> 00:21:52,470 I mean, it was like a hockey game. People don't go to hockey to watch 317 00:21:52,510 --> 00:21:53,870 They go to watch a fight break out. 318 00:21:54,790 --> 00:21:56,350 I remember one of the All -Star games. 319 00:21:56,690 --> 00:21:59,970 The coach and the owner of one of the teams got into a fight. I mean, they're 320 00:21:59,970 --> 00:22:01,230 talking about a serious fight. 321 00:22:01,450 --> 00:22:05,110 You know, swinging at each other, grabbing stuff, rolling on the ground, 322 00:22:05,110 --> 00:22:09,190 the jacket off him, ripped the sleeve off his sport coat. I mean, it was 323 00:22:10,950 --> 00:22:13,310 Who said basketball wasn't a contact sport? 324 00:22:15,170 --> 00:22:16,170 Hey, 325 00:22:16,550 --> 00:22:18,010 hey, hey, hey. Come on, Bobby. Let's go. 326 00:22:18,560 --> 00:22:19,519 That's all right. 327 00:22:19,520 --> 00:22:21,420 I didn't see it. I didn't see what happened. 328 00:22:21,660 --> 00:22:26,560 You know, today, if you get off the bench, you get fined. But back in the 329 00:22:26,660 --> 00:22:32,020 if a fight broke out and you didn't get off the bench to help in the fight, you 330 00:22:32,020 --> 00:22:32,819 got a fine. 331 00:22:32,820 --> 00:22:33,820 It was crazy. 332 00:22:36,200 --> 00:22:39,300 You have to understand, this was the last chance. 333 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:44,620 I mean, if you didn't make it in the ABA, then you were going home to work 9 334 00:22:44,620 --> 00:22:51,220 5 in some kind of job. And so a lot of these guys literally fought to save 335 00:22:51,220 --> 00:22:52,220 jobs. 336 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:57,960 The ABA knew that while a good rumble may stir the crowd for a moment, in 337 00:22:57,960 --> 00:23:02,840 to make fans love their league long term, they would have to innovate both 338 00:23:02,840 --> 00:23:04,460 game and the showmanship. 339 00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:06,060 of pro basketball. 340 00:23:06,420 --> 00:23:12,740 The ABA didn't just allow, they encouraged a wide open style of play 341 00:23:12,740 --> 00:23:17,300 that was exciting and that emphasized innovation. 342 00:23:17,900 --> 00:23:24,740 And the ABA had to try almost anything just to stay afloat, just to try and 343 00:23:24,740 --> 00:23:26,780 attract some fans. 344 00:23:27,000 --> 00:23:32,300 A lot of things that would have been unthinkable in the relatively staid NBA. 345 00:23:32,600 --> 00:23:33,600 What the hell? 346 00:23:33,660 --> 00:23:37,020 Give it a try in the ABA, which starts with the ball itself. 347 00:23:39,540 --> 00:23:42,880 Another thing that really struck out was the ball. That red, white, and blue 348 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:44,920 ball started showing up in the schoolyard. 349 00:23:47,700 --> 00:23:50,540 The red, white, and blue ball was unique. 350 00:23:51,320 --> 00:23:57,660 They were in the entertainment business before the NBA really understood what 351 00:23:57,660 --> 00:23:58,660 that was all about. 352 00:24:00,780 --> 00:24:05,240 The most important contribution to the game itself is the three -pointer. 353 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:11,860 A unique feature is to award three points for field goals made from outside 354 00:24:11,860 --> 00:24:13,960 arc drawn 25 feet around the basket. 355 00:24:14,260 --> 00:24:15,800 Fred Lewis, home run. 356 00:24:16,040 --> 00:24:20,320 We have added the home run in basketball where now any of the players that shoot 357 00:24:20,320 --> 00:24:24,220 from behind 25 feet gets the three points instead of the two. 358 00:24:29,040 --> 00:24:30,560 It was a new thing. It was innovation. 359 00:24:33,820 --> 00:24:37,480 The ABA, for instance, you know, we shoot the three -point play, which I 360 00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:40,260 is very exciting going down into the last three minutes of the game. 361 00:24:40,560 --> 00:24:43,640 And if you're six down and you shoot a couple of those things, you know, you're 362 00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:44,640 right back in the ballgame. 363 00:24:45,240 --> 00:24:47,640 It turned out that fans loved it. 364 00:24:48,520 --> 00:24:50,220 Three -point shot. He scores. 365 00:24:51,220 --> 00:24:53,780 This was a big, big plus for the ABA. 366 00:24:54,120 --> 00:24:55,580 Nobody is seated in the building. 367 00:24:55,880 --> 00:24:58,320 Without the three -point shot, there's no Steph Curry. 368 00:24:59,040 --> 00:25:03,660 Curry gets a look, fires away, ties the game for three. No Reggie Miller. 369 00:25:05,080 --> 00:25:07,840 There's no open style of play. 370 00:25:08,380 --> 00:25:09,440 Here's LeBron. 371 00:25:09,980 --> 00:25:11,380 LeBron for the tie. 372 00:25:12,540 --> 00:25:18,000 Without the ABA, you don't have that. 373 00:25:20,480 --> 00:25:24,360 The ABA had developed a staff, but they needed a thought. 374 00:25:24,900 --> 00:25:29,770 Faced with Rick Barry's court -ordered absence, The ABA decided to make a move 375 00:25:29,770 --> 00:25:32,470 that the NBA had refused to make. 376 00:25:37,770 --> 00:25:40,770 The ABA went after the Hawk. 377 00:25:43,030 --> 00:25:45,330 Watch the six -foot -eight Hawkins stuff. 378 00:25:46,070 --> 00:25:52,070 Connie Hawkins came up playing on the playground courts of New York City, 379 00:25:52,150 --> 00:25:54,330 basically a high school phenom. 380 00:25:55,070 --> 00:25:56,890 Met Hawkins in high school. 381 00:25:57,550 --> 00:26:00,990 He was tall, suave, and debonair. 382 00:26:03,690 --> 00:26:07,170 He was just a heck of a basketball player at a very young age. 383 00:26:07,510 --> 00:26:11,110 In all -star games, he was almost a certain MVP because he just had the 384 00:26:11,170 --> 00:26:13,850 the flash, and he could put the ball in the hole. 385 00:26:14,290 --> 00:26:18,950 A lot of folks said that he was good enough to be a pro when he was just in 386 00:26:18,950 --> 00:26:19,950 school. 387 00:26:20,990 --> 00:26:25,110 But his name came up in the investigation of this game -fixing 388 00:26:26,480 --> 00:26:31,360 When he was a young man, there were always men who hung around the 389 00:26:31,360 --> 00:26:37,740 courts offering to buy them lunch and giving them things in order to entice 390 00:26:37,740 --> 00:26:41,760 to play in their tournaments or to play on their team. 391 00:26:42,020 --> 00:26:46,160 And so he came across a guy, Molina. 392 00:26:47,690 --> 00:26:53,230 who was the real mastermind behind this 1961 game -fixing scandal. 393 00:26:53,570 --> 00:26:57,850 You know, they had tried to almost groom him to be somebody who could 394 00:26:57,850 --> 00:27:03,850 potentially reach out to his network of college players, but he never actually 395 00:27:03,850 --> 00:27:05,370 contributed in that way. 396 00:27:05,750 --> 00:27:10,750 But because of these encounters, his name came up in the investigation. 397 00:27:12,370 --> 00:27:15,830 And they threw him in a room, no lawyer. 398 00:27:16,300 --> 00:27:20,700 no family, nothing, and said, you're guilty and you need to admit it. 399 00:27:21,140 --> 00:27:26,680 And they kept him there for a couple days and finally admitted that, yeah, he 400 00:27:26,680 --> 00:27:27,740 knew this guy. 401 00:27:28,260 --> 00:27:33,120 He just realized the only way out of this was to tell them what they wanted 402 00:27:33,120 --> 00:27:34,960 hear, giving a false confession. 403 00:27:35,780 --> 00:27:41,880 And when word got out, that was it. So his career never happened. 404 00:27:44,910 --> 00:27:51,150 The NBA, they had all the power in the world, and the NBA did not bother to do 405 00:27:51,150 --> 00:27:55,550 any kind of investigation of their own to figure out whether or not those 406 00:27:55,550 --> 00:27:56,950 accusations were true. 407 00:27:58,230 --> 00:28:02,870 It screwed them up, man. The league bought them from coming in. It was all 408 00:28:03,650 --> 00:28:08,610 Connie Hawkins disappeared. An itinerant basketball player just looking to play 409 00:28:08,610 --> 00:28:13,170 wherever he could, ending up with the Globetrotters because he could and he 410 00:28:13,170 --> 00:28:16,770 paid. Here's the guy that's thinking, I'm never going to have my shot. 411 00:28:17,190 --> 00:28:18,570 He can't play in the NBA. 412 00:28:19,050 --> 00:28:24,110 He's banned from earning a living at what he's good at for, like, years. 413 00:28:25,530 --> 00:28:28,070 The ABA comes along, and it's his salvation. 414 00:28:29,050 --> 00:28:32,170 Because Connie Hawkins was like a legend that you really couldn't see. 415 00:28:37,570 --> 00:28:39,290 Hawk, of course, was the first. 416 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:40,880 True superstar. 417 00:28:41,220 --> 00:28:43,400 You know, the first ABA superstar. 418 00:28:44,160 --> 00:28:47,700 Connie Hawkins, most valuable player, leading scorer. 419 00:28:48,160 --> 00:28:53,080 6 '8 center of the Piper. This is Hawkins in the all -star game. 420 00:28:53,340 --> 00:28:56,040 And this is how you guarantee two points. 421 00:28:57,720 --> 00:29:01,340 This is Pittsburgh on the evening of May 4th, 1968. 422 00:29:02,100 --> 00:29:05,240 But it wasn't an ordinary spring evening in Steel Town. 423 00:29:05,850 --> 00:29:10,690 where nearly 12 ,000 basketball fans had paved their way into Pittsburgh's Civic 424 00:29:10,690 --> 00:29:15,230 Arena to watch the seventh and deciding game of a basketball championship. 425 00:29:17,390 --> 00:29:22,790 Connie Hawkins, oh man, he was just, he just took over. 426 00:29:31,070 --> 00:29:32,070 Hawkins again. 427 00:29:38,320 --> 00:29:43,100 The Pipers finally proved what they had known all along, that they were indeed 428 00:29:43,100 --> 00:29:45,380 the best in the ABA. 429 00:29:45,600 --> 00:29:50,360 For Connie, I think, I don't know if it could have been much sweeter than having 430 00:29:50,360 --> 00:29:56,320 that opportunity, seizing it, overcoming adversity, and winning the title. 431 00:29:59,540 --> 00:30:05,220 The ABA offered him the chance to show the NBA. 432 00:30:06,030 --> 00:30:08,910 that he was actually of professional quality. 433 00:30:11,190 --> 00:30:17,690 His saving grace was the fact that two lawyers, the Littmans, launched a $6 434 00:30:17,690 --> 00:30:24,490 million lawsuit against the NBA, accusing them of participating in what 435 00:30:24,490 --> 00:30:30,310 called a group boycott, which essentially means that they effectively 436 00:30:30,310 --> 00:30:32,590 to refuse to draft him. 437 00:30:34,510 --> 00:30:40,030 Connie Hawkins actually ends up coming out on top in that lawsuit. The NBA 438 00:30:40,030 --> 00:30:41,790 up deciding to settle. 439 00:30:44,650 --> 00:30:50,790 Connie was 29 when he came to us. His first year in the NBA after he was 440 00:30:50,790 --> 00:30:56,190 cleared, he made first team All -NBA that first year. The leading scorer of 441 00:30:56,190 --> 00:31:01,150 Phoenix Sun playing in his first All -Star game at 6 '8 from Iowa, Connie 442 00:31:01,150 --> 00:31:02,830 Hawkins. The ABA. 443 00:31:03,260 --> 00:31:05,020 had given Connie Hawkins a platform. 444 00:31:05,380 --> 00:31:12,200 His 1968 ABA championship birthed a Life magazine article that shone a spotlight 445 00:31:12,200 --> 00:31:16,300 on the injustice of his being illegally banned by the NBA. 446 00:31:16,720 --> 00:31:23,080 The NBA's absolute power was being challenged by this new breed of player. 447 00:31:24,420 --> 00:31:25,840 I was in the NBA. 448 00:31:26,420 --> 00:31:30,580 You negotiated your own contract. You didn't demand. 449 00:31:31,889 --> 00:31:32,889 You accepted. 450 00:31:33,710 --> 00:31:37,510 That was the climate at that time. 451 00:31:38,070 --> 00:31:44,770 And if you didn't have enough husper and balls to go in and figure out 452 00:31:44,770 --> 00:31:49,270 that this was your value and this is what you were worth, they would come to 453 00:31:49,270 --> 00:31:52,150 just like they came to me and said, this is what we're going to give you. And I 454 00:31:52,150 --> 00:31:53,150 said, no. 455 00:31:53,730 --> 00:31:54,730 What do you mean no? 456 00:31:55,490 --> 00:31:59,430 Who do you think you are? You don't come in here demanding things from us. 457 00:32:00,230 --> 00:32:01,250 That kind of. 458 00:32:02,480 --> 00:32:03,480 Now, 459 00:32:03,800 --> 00:32:08,920 you could go for it, and you would be under that thumb wherever. 460 00:32:09,900 --> 00:32:14,800 Or you could say, hey, I want to play in the league, but you're going to pay me, 461 00:32:14,900 --> 00:32:18,540 and I'm not going to be your boy. 462 00:32:19,020 --> 00:32:21,180 How much of it was racially motivated? 463 00:32:21,560 --> 00:32:22,560 All of it. 464 00:32:25,180 --> 00:32:27,920 Before the ABA was actually established, 465 00:32:28,880 --> 00:32:35,620 Black players faced a racial quota in the NBA, and it was kind of unspoken, 466 00:32:35,620 --> 00:32:42,380 informal, but very much a fact. So we'll let a few ballplayers in, but we'll 467 00:32:42,380 --> 00:32:45,660 make sure that they're the right type of black ballplayer. 468 00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:51,900 With the coming of the ABA, it offered a number of new teams, a new league, 469 00:32:51,960 --> 00:32:56,260 whereby black players who weren't really given a fair chance quite often in the 470 00:32:56,260 --> 00:32:58,300 NBA were allowed in the ABA. 471 00:32:59,360 --> 00:33:04,600 When you look at it, the ABA was the first integrated workplace in America. 472 00:33:05,860 --> 00:33:09,740 You know, you had the civil rights, the bill in 64, and another one in 65. 473 00:33:10,940 --> 00:33:13,740 But you can't legislate people's hearts. 474 00:33:15,020 --> 00:33:20,050 Integration in the workplace, It was another 10 to 15 years before you really 475 00:33:20,050 --> 00:33:21,050 saw that happening. 476 00:33:21,130 --> 00:33:23,890 I mean, I remember I graduated from college in 79. 477 00:33:24,210 --> 00:33:28,070 I was interested in being a journalist. It was that recent that you could meet 478 00:33:28,070 --> 00:33:32,590 every black person at the New York Times, or Sports Illustrated for that 479 00:33:32,650 --> 00:33:36,470 in 1979, because there were that few and there were that still recent. 480 00:33:39,150 --> 00:33:45,070 The ABA comes into existence at a really fascinating moment in American history. 481 00:33:46,000 --> 00:33:50,100 We think about 1967 as this really intense period. 482 00:33:50,500 --> 00:33:52,300 We are divided against ourselves. 483 00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:58,440 It's not clear what will be the true measure of equality coming out of the 484 00:33:58,440 --> 00:34:00,380 legislative victories of the civil rights movement. 485 00:34:00,620 --> 00:34:04,580 But what is clear is that young people aren't going to stand by and just accept 486 00:34:04,580 --> 00:34:05,580 the status quo. 487 00:34:09,420 --> 00:34:12,840 Sports become a larger metaphor for these changes. 488 00:34:16,480 --> 00:34:17,560 of activity. 489 00:34:25,060 --> 00:34:30,820 In the late 60s, you see the fight, you see the strength, you see the 490 00:34:30,820 --> 00:34:35,560 resilience, you see that in the ballplayers, that same inspiration that 491 00:34:35,560 --> 00:34:41,179 going on in the city and the fire you see in the players, you see it in the 492 00:34:41,179 --> 00:34:42,179 game. 493 00:34:43,800 --> 00:34:45,100 Anytime there's struggle, 494 00:34:45,870 --> 00:34:47,230 It enriches the soul. 495 00:34:47,909 --> 00:34:53,969 And guys from the ABA, like, went through those struggles, and that's why 496 00:34:53,969 --> 00:34:59,190 can come out with soul. Soul is like a pure expression, a divine expression of 497 00:34:59,190 --> 00:35:01,730 who you are. They were forced to know who they are. 498 00:35:02,290 --> 00:35:04,910 We were of another generation. We were younger. 499 00:35:05,670 --> 00:35:08,850 You know, Ali, you're not going to tell me what to do. 500 00:35:09,190 --> 00:35:10,190 No. 501 00:35:10,850 --> 00:35:12,030 No, it ain't going to work. 502 00:35:13,230 --> 00:35:18,690 In the late 1960s, the percentages of African Americans in the ABA far 503 00:35:18,690 --> 00:35:23,030 that of Major League Baseball, which was about 13%, and in the National Football 504 00:35:23,030 --> 00:35:24,590 League, which was around 21%. 505 00:35:24,590 --> 00:35:33,070 It 506 00:35:33,070 --> 00:35:38,870 was hard in that period to sort of shed all of the ideas about black laziness. 507 00:35:39,340 --> 00:35:45,180 African -Americans' inability to be team players, their selfishness. 508 00:35:45,620 --> 00:35:47,300 That's what they thought in the NBA. 509 00:35:47,700 --> 00:35:51,160 They wouldn't have, they didn't want black players on the team because they 510 00:35:51,160 --> 00:35:55,620 thought they just played as an individual to get, not as a team, but as 511 00:35:55,620 --> 00:35:59,500 individual player to get all the prestige on them, not as a team. 512 00:36:00,600 --> 00:36:03,940 While Bill Russell was thought to be the exception. 513 00:36:04,670 --> 00:36:08,830 The prevailing thought and stigma around black players was that you could not 514 00:36:08,830 --> 00:36:09,549 win with them. 515 00:36:09,550 --> 00:36:11,610 It was selfish and flashy. 516 00:36:12,290 --> 00:36:14,570 In some instances, non -coachable. 517 00:36:15,230 --> 00:36:21,910 However, in the ABA, this stigma would be challenged by Warren Jabali. 518 00:36:23,230 --> 00:36:25,750 The baddest dude to come out of Missouri. 519 00:36:26,130 --> 00:36:27,770 A man among boys. He was a badass. 520 00:36:28,030 --> 00:36:30,090 Physical. He was militant. Militant. 521 00:36:30,310 --> 00:36:31,870 Militant. He had some anger in him. 522 00:36:32,630 --> 00:36:33,870 You know, he really did. 523 00:36:36,360 --> 00:36:38,100 Talk about your roommate. 524 00:36:39,260 --> 00:36:41,460 Ah, Jesus. 525 00:36:41,960 --> 00:36:43,680 I was hoping you wouldn't bring that up. 526 00:36:44,760 --> 00:36:47,880 I have never in my life, I used to cry. 527 00:36:48,320 --> 00:36:51,240 I just hated white people. 528 00:36:52,440 --> 00:36:54,560 What was Warren's feeling towards white people? 529 00:36:54,980 --> 00:36:55,980 Didn't like them. 530 00:36:56,900 --> 00:37:02,400 And he didn't like whites. Well, that's true, you know. He ain't like no white 531 00:37:02,400 --> 00:37:03,780 people. Right away. 532 00:37:04,400 --> 00:37:08,160 He let me know, you know, we're going to be teammates. We're going to play on 533 00:37:08,160 --> 00:37:09,160 the court together. 534 00:37:09,460 --> 00:37:13,900 But off the court, I don't want anything to do with you. I can't remember 535 00:37:13,900 --> 00:37:16,300 anybody ever being that direct. 536 00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:20,280 Did he come in the league as Warren Armstrong? 537 00:37:21,620 --> 00:37:25,460 Warren Armstrong played at Wichita State. 538 00:37:25,720 --> 00:37:30,780 Him and Kareem was supposed to have been the two best players to come out in 539 00:37:30,780 --> 00:37:31,780 high school. 540 00:37:32,720 --> 00:37:37,220 He had the physical tools there. He just could have his way on the court. 541 00:37:37,780 --> 00:37:39,880 He was built like a linebacker, right? 542 00:37:40,400 --> 00:37:43,200 Physically, he could do whatever he wanted with the other guards that could 543 00:37:43,200 --> 00:37:44,138 handle him. 544 00:37:44,140 --> 00:37:46,900 Man, he'd be over there checking me and going to grab my side. 545 00:37:47,120 --> 00:37:48,620 I couldn't even move. I'm being strong. 546 00:37:49,200 --> 00:37:56,120 And at 6 '2", he could jump like he was 6 '9". He was 547 00:37:56,120 --> 00:37:59,140 an amazing player, an amazing competitor. 548 00:38:01,069 --> 00:38:03,790 I don't know why he had this thing about white folks. 549 00:38:04,170 --> 00:38:05,890 I don't know where he got it from. 550 00:38:06,090 --> 00:38:08,910 I know we went after some of the white guys. I knew that. 551 00:38:10,110 --> 00:38:13,510 Shit. Jabali, I mean, that's just the way he was. 552 00:38:18,770 --> 00:38:23,170 I wouldn't say he hated white people, but he believed in his own people. 553 00:38:25,040 --> 00:38:29,160 He would always talk to me after the games about, you know, you got to be 554 00:38:29,160 --> 00:38:30,160 black, man. 555 00:38:31,060 --> 00:38:37,360 Howard Wright was a rookie. And after the game, we were in the locker room 556 00:38:37,360 --> 00:38:38,360 getting dressed. 557 00:38:38,380 --> 00:38:44,700 And Howard had a pair of tighty -whities, you know, jockey underwear on. 558 00:38:44,700 --> 00:38:50,860 Warren reached over and grabbed the underwear and ripped them off 559 00:38:50,860 --> 00:38:52,260 of Howard. 560 00:38:52,700 --> 00:38:55,860 And Jabali ripped them off and said, your family picked cotton. Don't you 561 00:38:55,860 --> 00:38:58,360 wear cotton underwear in this locker room again. 562 00:39:02,860 --> 00:39:07,200 You have to understand the kind of person that I was. 563 00:39:09,320 --> 00:39:10,820 Why did Jabali come along? 564 00:39:12,760 --> 00:39:17,700 Well, it's like I was saying, you know, like after listening to Malcolm, you 565 00:39:17,700 --> 00:39:20,380 start thinking about these things that he was talking about. 566 00:39:20,830 --> 00:39:23,670 African -Americans should name themselves, 567 00:39:24,450 --> 00:39:28,070 define themselves, speak for themselves. 568 00:39:28,810 --> 00:39:30,490 What does Jabali mean? 569 00:39:31,230 --> 00:39:36,470 Jabali, a large, conspicuous rock. 570 00:39:36,730 --> 00:39:39,550 That's right. That works? 571 00:39:39,970 --> 00:39:41,410 That works? 572 00:39:41,930 --> 00:39:43,010 Okay! 573 00:39:44,570 --> 00:39:51,140 It is in 1968, Oakland, where Warren Jabali and Rick Barry, would be brought 574 00:39:51,140 --> 00:39:53,880 together as teammates on the Oakland Oaks. 575 00:39:54,580 --> 00:39:59,260 The slender 6 '7 blonde bomber from the Bay Area proved to everyone that he was 576 00:39:59,260 --> 00:40:01,740 everything there was to be in a basketball uniform. 577 00:40:03,250 --> 00:40:07,310 Talented Warren Armstrong, the Oakland strong boy, easily earned Rookie of the 578 00:40:07,310 --> 00:40:12,890 Year honors in the ABA. The 6 '7 Barry, former scoring champion of the NBA, to 579 00:40:12,890 --> 00:40:16,430 give Coach Hannum's Oaks the potential to go all the way. 580 00:40:16,810 --> 00:40:20,770 Armstrong's rebounds show his ability to drive in close where the action is 581 00:40:20,770 --> 00:40:21,770 rough. 582 00:40:22,050 --> 00:40:29,010 35 games into the 1968 -69 season, with Barry averaging a league -leading 34 583 00:40:29,010 --> 00:40:30,170 points per game. 584 00:40:30,730 --> 00:40:34,550 The dynamics of the Oakland Oaks team was suddenly altered. 585 00:40:36,470 --> 00:40:41,130 Rick Barry's big fear was that he would be injured in the ABA by guys that were 586 00:40:41,130 --> 00:40:42,170 jealous of his contract. 587 00:40:43,810 --> 00:40:47,370 And he did get injured, and pretty badly, and was out. 588 00:40:49,170 --> 00:40:52,630 Physically, I think that I got knocked around a little bit more in the ABA than 589 00:40:52,630 --> 00:40:53,630 I did in the NBA. 590 00:40:54,220 --> 00:40:57,320 because the ABA, of course, was concentrating on my great deal. The 591 00:40:57,320 --> 00:41:01,140 out to try and prove something by stopping me. I did have a reputation, 592 00:41:01,140 --> 00:41:02,320 is the price that you have to pay. 593 00:41:02,560 --> 00:41:05,260 It really hurts to have Rick Barry sidelined for the rest of the season, 594 00:41:05,260 --> 00:41:09,040 it's the risk you take and the increasingly rough sport of pro 595 00:41:09,640 --> 00:41:14,940 I remember when Rick got hurt, he got hurt the next game we had. We were 596 00:41:14,940 --> 00:41:17,140 in Indiana against the Pacers. 597 00:41:17,930 --> 00:41:20,590 And you could tell Alex thought we had no chance. 598 00:41:20,870 --> 00:41:25,850 He didn't think we had a chance. We are a young team, and I believe learning 599 00:41:25,850 --> 00:41:27,410 something every time we go on the floor. 600 00:41:28,410 --> 00:41:34,770 I definitely feel that we would have been better with Rick, but there's 601 00:41:34,770 --> 00:41:35,870 little silver lining someplace. 602 00:41:37,370 --> 00:41:42,190 Our strong only 6 -2 from Wichita State played both front and backcourt for the 603 00:41:42,190 --> 00:41:43,190 Oaks. 604 00:41:45,290 --> 00:41:47,170 After Rick Berry got hurt. 605 00:41:47,760 --> 00:41:52,100 Warren Jabali. As a rookie, he really carried the team. 606 00:41:57,140 --> 00:42:01,060 Oakland, California sees the deciding series of the ABA playoffs. 607 00:42:01,440 --> 00:42:04,220 It's the Oakland Oaks versus the Indiana Pacers. 608 00:42:06,060 --> 00:42:12,680 When I had fun during the playoffs of the first year when we were playing the 609 00:42:12,680 --> 00:42:13,880 Indiana Pacers. 610 00:42:14,360 --> 00:42:16,180 Because I was having 33. 611 00:42:17,800 --> 00:42:21,660 Like, the playoffs is a different game, man. The playoffs turned into, like, 612 00:42:21,660 --> 00:42:22,660 school ground. 613 00:42:22,760 --> 00:42:25,740 Because, like, they just let you go. You do your thing. 614 00:42:28,820 --> 00:42:34,420 In the fourth quarter, with seconds left in the game, we were down three points. 615 00:42:35,100 --> 00:42:40,940 And Warren just got the ball and just turned around and launched a Steph Curry 616 00:42:40,940 --> 00:42:43,120 three -point shot, and he swished it. 617 00:42:45,100 --> 00:42:46,260 We won the game. 618 00:42:48,000 --> 00:42:50,300 Then Warren just took over. 619 00:42:53,320 --> 00:42:55,320 Larry Brown passing to Warren Armstrong. 620 00:42:55,800 --> 00:42:57,060 A beautiful shot. 621 00:42:59,940 --> 00:43:06,020 One of the 622 00:43:06,020 --> 00:43:12,940 commonplace ideas was that you could not win with black players as your 623 00:43:12,940 --> 00:43:14,660 main components of your team. 624 00:43:15,000 --> 00:43:20,160 One of the players who first had the opportunity to erase that stigma was 625 00:43:20,160 --> 00:43:25,060 Jabali. And he broke the stigma because he was just a great player. 626 00:43:26,160 --> 00:43:27,900 Armstrong assists to Akins. 627 00:43:32,900 --> 00:43:35,920 He really carried the team to the championship. 628 00:43:36,660 --> 00:43:40,380 Warren Armstrong stops two of 39 points for the game. 629 00:43:42,540 --> 00:43:44,440 His free throws make it final. 630 00:43:44,750 --> 00:43:49,590 Oaks 135, Pacers 131. The Oaks are the new ABA champions. 631 00:43:58,950 --> 00:44:02,830 By season three, the ABA had the NBA's attention. 632 00:44:03,270 --> 00:44:08,210 The NBA hadn't thought their competition would survive this long, but the ABA 633 00:44:08,210 --> 00:44:11,930 proved willing to do whatever necessary to stay in existence. 634 00:44:12,290 --> 00:44:18,700 And now... The ABA was set to challenge the NBA for the most prized player to 635 00:44:18,700 --> 00:44:20,420 ever come out of the college ring. 636 00:44:21,700 --> 00:44:25,820 The article in Sports Illustrated made a mistake when they pronounced it 637 00:44:25,820 --> 00:44:27,960 Alcindor. It's Alcindor. 638 00:44:29,060 --> 00:44:33,160 In Lou Alcindor of UCLA, we have a three times the most valuable player of the 639 00:44:33,160 --> 00:44:37,620 NCAA. He led the Bruins to three national championships and the most 640 00:44:37,620 --> 00:44:38,620 player by the pros. 641 00:44:39,370 --> 00:44:44,110 Lew Alcindor at the time, now Kareem Abdul -Jabbar, graduated from UCLA in 642 00:44:44,630 --> 00:44:49,670 He was by far the greatest prospect coming into the league, at least in the 643 00:44:49,670 --> 00:44:51,130 of Will Chamberlain, maybe ever. 644 00:44:51,930 --> 00:44:55,970 This is somebody who is known nationally as a star. 645 00:44:56,930 --> 00:45:01,930 And now, of course, choosing between the ABA and the NBA. 646 00:45:02,310 --> 00:45:08,530 So both leagues felt like they needed to have him in their respective leagues. 647 00:45:11,720 --> 00:45:15,340 Lou Alcindor decided to come with us since he is probably the most publicized 648 00:45:15,340 --> 00:45:18,480 basketball player in the history of the sport and he's internationally known 649 00:45:18,480 --> 00:45:20,840 that he would guarantee the success of the league. 650 00:45:21,600 --> 00:45:25,900 Our plan is to have him play somewhere in the league. Wherever he desires to 651 00:45:25,900 --> 00:45:28,620 play, we'd like to make that available to him. 652 00:45:28,880 --> 00:45:31,740 He wanted to play in New York, so they were going to say, fine, you can play in 653 00:45:31,740 --> 00:45:32,740 New York. 654 00:45:32,760 --> 00:45:35,160 New York Nets had the ABA rights to Kareem. 655 00:45:35,420 --> 00:45:38,380 Kareem, grown up in New York, was very partial to New York. 656 00:45:38,910 --> 00:45:42,610 So that would have made the New York offer almost certainly better than the 657 00:45:42,610 --> 00:45:44,270 offer, which was in Milwaukee. 658 00:45:44,590 --> 00:45:48,470 He was not particularly interested in living full -time in Milwaukee. 659 00:45:49,450 --> 00:45:55,050 Now, Lew Alcindor, always a man of integrity, even as a 20 -year -old, told 660 00:45:55,050 --> 00:45:58,490 ABA and the NBA, I will hear one offer. 661 00:45:59,170 --> 00:46:02,550 Make me your best offer, and then I will decide. 662 00:46:02,910 --> 00:46:06,890 We set the ground rules. We told them there would be one negotiation. 663 00:46:07,900 --> 00:46:14,620 and to do their best at that one negotiation they got together as a 664 00:46:14,620 --> 00:46:20,240 all agreed we'll all put in a big pool of money to get lou to sign with us and 665 00:46:20,240 --> 00:46:24,720 the idea was that they would present him with a check for one million dollars 666 00:46:24,720 --> 00:46:29,480 and when they sat down with him that would be kind of their big sales pitch 667 00:46:29,480 --> 00:46:35,540 here's a million dollars today we do have a certified check for one million 668 00:46:35,540 --> 00:46:36,540 dollars 669 00:46:36,800 --> 00:46:42,440 It's in the Lou Alcindor collateral account, a check for him, right there. 670 00:46:42,440 --> 00:46:43,440 can pick it up. 671 00:46:44,860 --> 00:46:47,520 George Mikan, he's going to be doing the negotiations. 672 00:46:48,220 --> 00:46:52,520 Mikan either brings the check and doesn't give it to him or doesn't even 673 00:46:52,520 --> 00:46:58,940 it and makes an offer to Alcindor that was significantly less than what the ABA 674 00:46:58,940 --> 00:47:00,760 guys had agreed on doing. 675 00:47:01,290 --> 00:47:04,730 That was supposed to be the thing that really iced this deal was this million 676 00:47:04,730 --> 00:47:05,729 -dollar check. 677 00:47:05,730 --> 00:47:08,530 Mikan said subsequently that Kareem was aware of the check. 678 00:47:08,910 --> 00:47:12,810 That doesn't seem to hold true for me from looking at things, given that 679 00:47:12,810 --> 00:47:16,610 in his memoir, basically said that he would have preferred to have played for 680 00:47:16,610 --> 00:47:19,370 the New York Nets so he could stay in New York. So that would seem to indicate 681 00:47:19,370 --> 00:47:21,410 that he was not given the check. 682 00:47:25,050 --> 00:47:28,650 Llewellyn sent a sign to play professional basketball. 683 00:47:30,010 --> 00:47:32,530 with the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association. 684 00:47:37,130 --> 00:47:43,650 In our dealings with the ABA, they made things very clear at the beginning and 685 00:47:43,650 --> 00:47:48,250 then proceeded to get more and more unrealistic. 686 00:47:49,150 --> 00:47:52,990 Their offer did not compare with the offer that I got from the Milwaukee 687 00:47:53,050 --> 00:47:54,050 It was as simple as that. 688 00:47:55,350 --> 00:47:59,490 The ABA guys lost their mind and started screaming at Mikan. 689 00:47:59,840 --> 00:48:01,080 What did you do? What happened? 690 00:48:01,440 --> 00:48:06,060 And my understanding is he kind of said, well, I just didn't believe that he 691 00:48:06,060 --> 00:48:07,060 would do that. 692 00:48:07,580 --> 00:48:14,560 Mikan was somebody who was a star in the NBA back in the 50s and was sort 693 00:48:14,560 --> 00:48:20,460 of operating on the mindset of what it was like for players back in the 50s and 694 00:48:20,460 --> 00:48:27,160 the early 60s who had no leverage, who didn't understand their worth. 695 00:48:27,799 --> 00:48:33,540 Didn't have the advisors to tell them how much to ask for and what to ask for. 696 00:48:34,240 --> 00:48:39,280 So, I mean, I think part of it was just being out of step with this new pro 697 00:48:39,280 --> 00:48:41,200 basketball terrain of competition. 698 00:48:41,780 --> 00:48:47,300 And probably some of it was like, well, he should just be grateful for what 699 00:48:47,300 --> 00:48:48,300 we're offering him. 700 00:48:48,920 --> 00:48:52,480 And even though they tried to go back to him and say, no, no, no, no, wait a 701 00:48:52,480 --> 00:48:54,340 minute. We'll give you way more than that. 702 00:48:54,880 --> 00:48:58,820 He was done, and he's a man of his word, and he said, no, I'm good. I made my 703 00:48:58,820 --> 00:49:00,720 call, and it was game over. 704 00:49:01,860 --> 00:49:06,160 Not coincidentally, George Mikan was not commissioner much longer beyond that. 705 00:49:06,400 --> 00:49:11,520 There was a great deal of anguish and frustration at Mikan for not giving the 706 00:49:11,520 --> 00:49:15,080 very best offer to the ABA and taking Kareem's direction seriously. They 707 00:49:15,080 --> 00:49:19,580 basically discarded his clear instructions, and the result was the ABA 708 00:49:20,490 --> 00:49:24,830 That was probably the worst possible move they could have made and really 709 00:49:24,830 --> 00:49:31,450 changed the history of the league. I mean, getting someone of his 710 00:49:31,450 --> 00:49:35,530 stature, that would have been a huge, huge plus for the ABA. 711 00:49:36,950 --> 00:49:42,910 I think with Lew Alcindor, a .k .a. Kareem Abdul -Jabbar, it could have 712 00:49:42,910 --> 00:49:48,410 accelerated the process of merging if it had happened earlier. 713 00:49:49,210 --> 00:49:51,130 It would be basketball history. 714 00:49:54,090 --> 00:49:56,030 You know, long -term, big picture. 715 00:49:56,610 --> 00:49:58,530 He was the guy who could have changed all that. 716 00:49:58,930 --> 00:50:05,710 By 1969, the ABA had tried everything in their fight against the NBA, and 717 00:50:05,710 --> 00:50:06,710 nothing had worked. 718 00:50:06,990 --> 00:50:12,190 First, they tried stealing the star player in Rick Barry, but the NBA got 719 00:50:12,190 --> 00:50:16,890 banned from playing for a year, which discouraged other NBA players from 720 00:50:16,890 --> 00:50:17,890 the jump. 721 00:50:18,140 --> 00:50:22,920 Then they tried welcoming cast -offs like Connie Hawkins, but in giving 722 00:50:22,920 --> 00:50:28,540 platform to shine, they gave him the necessary exposure to win his lawsuit 723 00:50:28,540 --> 00:50:29,580 jump to the NBA. 724 00:50:30,640 --> 00:50:36,220 They had polled position on the race for Lou Alcindor, but made a mistake that 725 00:50:36,220 --> 00:50:39,620 cost them Lou and cost Commissioner Mike and his job. 726 00:50:40,460 --> 00:50:44,600 The defeats only made the renegade league more reckless. 727 00:50:45,520 --> 00:50:49,540 They decided to break the NBA's whole damn system. 728 00:50:50,000 --> 00:50:54,420 The ABA decided to draft underclassmen. 729 00:50:55,360 --> 00:50:59,240 The rule in the NBA was class graduation. 730 00:50:59,760 --> 00:51:04,220 You couldn't even sign up for the NBA until four years out of high school. 731 00:51:04,340 --> 00:51:06,920 You're ineligible to sign a contract. 732 00:51:07,530 --> 00:51:11,590 That was an NBA rule. That's all it was. This was sort of like a gentleman's 733 00:51:11,590 --> 00:51:17,510 agreement between the NCAA and the team owners and league officials of the NBA. 734 00:51:17,650 --> 00:51:21,930 And that sort of controlled the flow of players into the league automatically. 735 00:51:22,330 --> 00:51:24,270 They had a monopoly on your life. 736 00:51:24,490 --> 00:51:29,710 So it was kind of those okey -doke rules that, you know, could certainly be 737 00:51:29,710 --> 00:51:34,070 defied. We're in competition with the NBA for talent. 738 00:51:35,130 --> 00:51:36,130 We are. 739 00:51:36,480 --> 00:51:40,740 We're going to make a determined effort to acquire the best talent for our 740 00:51:40,740 --> 00:51:47,620 league. The ABA did its most masterful work in terms of disrupting the NBA's 741 00:51:47,620 --> 00:51:54,600 labor system by going into colleges and getting underclassmen. They knew that 742 00:51:54,600 --> 00:51:56,120 they were working against the system. 743 00:51:56,620 --> 00:52:00,400 And that's changed things too, hasn't it, right? Now we're talking about one 744 00:52:00,400 --> 00:52:04,800 done. That started with the ABA saying, you know what, a guy has a right to make 745 00:52:04,800 --> 00:52:05,800 a living. 746 00:52:07,500 --> 00:52:11,820 It allowed them access to a number of NBA -worthy players. 747 00:52:12,100 --> 00:52:17,780 It gave the ABA a real shot in the arm to take underclassmen. In the 60s, the 748 00:52:17,780 --> 00:52:22,560 widely held belief was that an underclassman would not be physically 749 00:52:22,560 --> 00:52:25,540 handle the demands of a pro basketball season. 750 00:52:26,020 --> 00:52:32,140 The ABA had to make sure the first underclassman they brought in was the 751 00:52:32,140 --> 00:52:33,140 guy. 752 00:52:35,850 --> 00:52:37,330 No one knew who I was. 753 00:52:37,630 --> 00:52:40,990 Everybody saw me play and said, oh, my God, he's a phenom. 754 00:52:45,610 --> 00:52:51,290 You can divide basketball history in terms of who can become a professional 755 00:52:51,290 --> 00:52:55,510 not become a professional in pre -Sensor Haywood and post -Sensor Haywood. 756 00:52:56,730 --> 00:53:00,570 I was an accidental revolutionary. 757 00:53:01,950 --> 00:53:03,990 He goes to one year at University of Detroit. 758 00:53:04,770 --> 00:53:11,530 and then decides he's done with college, and he signs with the ABA. All hell 759 00:53:11,530 --> 00:53:12,530 broke loose in the NBA. 760 00:53:14,870 --> 00:53:18,230 The Senate Monopoly subcommittee continued hearings on the professional 761 00:53:18,230 --> 00:53:19,650 basketball leagues today. 762 00:53:19,950 --> 00:53:23,210 The story has to be told, and the truth has to come out. 763 00:53:23,850 --> 00:53:26,790 I threw the league all the way to the Supreme Court. 764 00:53:27,890 --> 00:53:31,310 I got tired of the press screwing me over, and the team screwed me over, and 765 00:53:31,310 --> 00:53:33,170 said, okay, great, I can play the same game. 766 00:53:33,890 --> 00:53:37,710 The NBA had to adapt or it was going to die. 767 00:53:38,130 --> 00:53:39,890 I'm being asked to tone it down. 768 00:53:40,590 --> 00:53:41,950 What does tone it down mean? 769 00:53:43,270 --> 00:53:44,470 We're about to put on a show. 770 00:53:46,070 --> 00:53:47,150 Nobody knew it was coming. 771 00:53:48,270 --> 00:53:49,270 Absolutely nobody. 772 00:54:02,830 --> 00:54:07,010 And it will fly to you. 773 00:54:10,690 --> 00:54:14,930 This heart, it speaks 774 00:54:14,930 --> 00:54:21,370 sweet words 775 00:54:21,370 --> 00:54:23,490 to you. 776 00:54:32,720 --> 00:54:37,540 and smile these 777 00:54:37,540 --> 00:54:40,360 hearts