The 1971 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1970-1971 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Utah Stars defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA finals.
| Division semifinals | Division finals | ABA finals | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Indiana Pacers | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Memphis Pros | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Indiana Pacers | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Western Division | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Utah Stars | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Texas Chaparrals | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Utah Stars | 4 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Utah Stars | 4 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Kentucky Colonels | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Virginia Squires | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | New York Nets | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Virginia Squires | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Division | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Kentucky Colonels | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | The Floridians | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Kentucky Colonels | 4 | ||||||||||||
There was a one-game playoff for fourth place in the Western Division because the Texas Chaparrals and Denver Rockets had tied with regular season records of 30–54. The game was played on April 1 and the Chaparrals won 115–109.
This was the first season in ABA history in which the team with the best regular season record did not win the ABA championship. The Indiana Pacers had the league's best record during this season at 58–26 (.690), putting them one game ahead of the eventual league champion Utah Stars in the Western Division.
This was the first season in ABA history in which neither regular season division champion made it to the ABA finals. The second place Utah Stars represented the West while the Kentucky Colonels, second place in the East behind the Virginia Squires, met them in the finals.
Game 3 of the Eastern Finals saw 287 total points scored. This was the most points scored in any ABA playoff game, and would be the most points scored in a playoff game in either the NBA or ABA until 1992.
13,260 fans attended Game Seven of the ABA championship series between the Utah Stars and Kentucky Colonels at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah on May 18, 1971. After the Stars won 131-121 the fans stormed the floor and mobbed the court for twenty minutes. Willie Wise and Zelmo Beaty rode off the floor carried upon the shoulders of Utah fans. [1]
Zelmo Beaty was named Most Valuable Player of the ABA playoffs.
Champion: Utah Stars
Division Semifinals
(1) Indiana Pacers vs. (3) Memphis Pros: Pacers win series 4-0
(2) Utah Stars vs. (4) Texas Chaparrals: Stars win series 4-0
Division Finals
(1) Indiana Pacers vs. (2) Utah Stars : Stars win series 4-3
Champion: Kentucky Colonels
Division Semifinals
(1) Virginia Squires vs. (3) New York Nets: Squires win series 4-2
(2) Kentucky Colonels vs. (4) The Floridians: Colonels win series 4-2
Division Finals
(1) Virginia Squires vs. (2) Kentucky Colonels : Colonels win series 4-2
(2) Utah Stars VS. (2) Kentucky Colonels: Stars win series 4-3
The Utah Stars were an American Basketball Association (ABA) team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Under head coach Bill Sharman the Stars were the first major professional basketball team to use a pre-game shootaround.
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association (ABA) for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky Colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did not join the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the 1976 ABA–NBA merger. The downtown Louisville Convention Center was the Colonels' venue for their first three seasons before moving to Freedom Hall for the remaining seasons, beginning with the 1970–71 schedule.
Zelmo "Big Z" Beaty was an American basketball player. He played eight seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and four in the rival American Basketball Association (ABA). A three-time ABA All-Star, Beaty was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in 2016.
Robert Netolicky is a retired American basketball player. A 6'9" power forward/center, he played professionally in the now–defunct American Basketball Association (ABA) from 1967 to 1976. Netolicky was a four–time ABA All–Star and two–time ABA Champion.
The 1975 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1974–75 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels defeating the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers, four games to one in the ABA Finals.
The 1974 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1973-1974 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion New York Nets defeating the Western Division champion Utah Stars, four games to one in the ABA Finals.
The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA Finals.
The 1972 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1971–1972 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion New York Nets, four games to two in the 1972 ABA Finals.
The 1970 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1969-1970 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Western Division champion Los Angeles Stars, four games to two in the ABA Finals.
The 1973–74 American Basketball Association season saw the San Diego Conquistadors acquire Wilt Chamberlain as a player and coach, finish tied for fourth place in the ABA's Western Division, defeat the Denver Rockets in a one-game playoff for that spot and then bow out to the Utah Stars 4 games to 2 in the Western Division Semifinals.
The 1973–74 Kentucky Colonels season was their seventh in the American Basketball Association. The Colonels finished in second place in the ABA's Eastern Division. They met the Carolina Cougars in the Eastern Division Semifinals and swept them in 4 games. They met the eventual champion New York Nets in the Eastern Division Finals, where they lost. McCarthy was let go after this season.
The 1974–75 American Basketball Association season saw the Kentucky Colonels, led by Dan Issel, Artis Gilmore, Louie Dampier and coach Hubie Brown, win the 1975 ABA Championship.
The 1975–76 ABA season was the ninth and final season of the American Basketball Association. The shot clock was changed from 30 to 24 seconds to match the NBA. Dave DeBusschere was the league's new commissioner, its seventh and last. This was also the only season that did not use the East-West division setup. The NBA would adopt the ABA's three-point shot for the 1979–80 season.
The 1974–75 ABA season was the eighth season of the American Basketball Association. The Kentucky Colonels won the 1975 ABA Championship after winning the Eastern Division; the Denver Nuggets won the Western Division. Julius Erving and George McGinnis shared the league's MVP award.
The 1970–71 ABA season was the fourth season of the American Basketball Association.
The 1971–72 ABA season was the fifth season of the American Basketball Association. The Indiana Pacers won the championship, defeating the New York Nets, 4 games to 2, in the ABA Finals.
The 1972–73 ABA season was the sixth season of the American Basketball Association. The Pittsburgh Condors and Miami Floridians had folded, leaving the league with nine teams. However, the ABA decided to award an expansion franchise to Dr. Leonard Bloom for $1 million to play in San Diego, California, named the San Diego Conquistadors. Subsequently, this meant that the Memphis Tams would move to the Eastern Division. Once again, the best regular season team did not win the ABA Finals, with the Indiana Pacers, led by playoff MVP George McGinnis, winning the ABA championship, 4 games to 3 over the Kentucky Colonels.
The 1973–74 ABA season was the seventh season of the American Basketball Association. The New York Nets won the ABA championship, 4 games to 1 over the Utah Stars.
The 1970–71 Utah Stars season was the first season for the Stars in Utah. After one season in Anaheim and two seasons in Los Angeles, the team moved to Utah in June 1970. The Stars finished second in the Western Division and won their first and only ABA title. In the Semifinals, the Stars swept the Texas Chaparrals in four games. In the Division Finals, they beat the Indiana Pacers in seven games to advance to the ABA Finals. In seven games, they beat the Kentucky Colonels, to give the state of Utah its first pro championship.
The 1971–72 Utah Stars season was the 2nd season of the Stars in Utah and 5th overall in the American Basketball Association. The Stars went 31–11 in the first half of the season, while going 29–13 in the second half of the season, with a ten-game winning streak near the end of the season. Their biggest losing streak was three, which happened four times during the season. They finished 3rd in points scored at 117.8 per game, and 4th in points allowed at 112.0 per game. The Stars swept the Dallas Chaparrals in the Semifinals but lost to the Indiana Pacers in seven games, denying them a repeat ABA Finals appearance.
