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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 is named after the state of Indiana's history with the Indianapolis 500's pace cars and with the harness racing industry.
David Joshua Harrison is an American former professional basketball player. A former National Basketball Association (NBA) player for the Indiana Pacers, he was a member of the Beijing Ducks for the 2008–09 season and played with the Guangdong Southern Tigers for the next two years. He also played for the Tianjin Ronggang. At Brentwood Academy, Harrison received TSSAA Division 2 Mr. Basketball in 2000 and 2001. He was drafted by the Indiana Pacers out of the University of Colorado at Boulder with the 29th pick of the 2004 NBA draft.
Rik Smits, nicknamed "the Dunking Dutchman" is a Dutch former professional basketball player who spent his entire career with the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 7-foot-4-inch (2.24 m) center was drafted by the Pacers out of Marist College with the second overall pick in the 1988 NBA draft. An NBA All-Star in 1998, Smits reached the NBA Finals in 2000.
Kevin Lee Pritchard is an American basketball executive, and a former player and coach, who is currently the president of basketball operations for the Indiana Pacers. Pritchard played 4 seasons in the NBA as a player, and was also the general manager of the Portland Trail Blazers, and the Indiana Pacers.
George F. McGinnis was an American professional basketball player who played 11 seasons in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers, earning third-team All-American honors in 1971, before starting his pro career in the ABA with the Indiana Pacers. A three-time ABA All-Star with the Pacers, McGinnis was named the ABA Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1975 and won two ABA championships with the team. He was a three-time NBA All-Star with the Philadelphia 76ers. He was named to the ABA All-Time Team and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
The 1978 NBA draft was the 32nd annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 9, 1978, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York, before the 1978–79 season. In this draft, 22 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Indiana Pacers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Kansas City Kings, who obtained the New Jersey Nets' first-round pick in a trade, were awarded the second pick. The Pacers then traded the first pick to the Portland Trail Blazers before the draft. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. Before the draft, five college underclassmen were declared eligible for selection under the "hardship" rule. These players had applied and gave evidence of financial hardship to the league, which granted them the right to start earning their living by starting their professional careers earlier. Prior to the start of the season, the Buffalo Braves relocated to San Diego and became the San Diego Clippers. The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 202 players.
Melvin Joe Daniels was an American professional basketball player. He played in the American Basketball Association (ABA) for the Minnesota Muskies, Indiana Pacers, and Memphis Sounds, and in the National Basketball Association for the New York Nets. Daniels was a two-time ABA Most Valuable Player, three-time ABA Champion and a seven-time ABA All-Star. Daniels was the All-time ABA rebounding leader, and in 1997 was named a unanimous selection to the ABA All-Time Team. Daniels was enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.
Jonathan Rene Bender is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A highly-touted 6’11 prospect who mostly played shooting guard in high school, Bender’s unusual height and potential garnered much attention leading up to the 1999 NBA draft. After playing 78 games for the Pacers in 2001, knee injuries limited him to a combined 76 games over the next four seasons. He played 25 games for the Knicks in 2009 before his retirement.
Roy Denzil Hibbert is a Jamaican–American former professional basketball player. He is a two–time NBA All–Star, and earned NBA All-Defensive Second Team honors in 2014 with the Indiana Pacers. Hibbert was the runner–up for the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award in the 2013–14 NBA season, placing second behind Joakim Noah.
William Quinn Buckner is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played collegiate basketball for the Indiana University Hoosiers, and won a national championship in 1976. He was a captain of both the last undefeated NCAA Division I basketball champion and the 1976 Olympics gold medal team. Buckner was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 7th pick of the 1976 NBA draft. He had a ten-year NBA career for three teams. In 1984, he won an NBA title with the Celtics.
William Robert "Slick" Leonard was an American professional basketball player, coach and color commentator. He played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers, where he was a two-time All-American and a member of their national championship squad in 1953. After playing professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA), Leonard coached the Indiana Pacers to three American Basketball Association (ABA) championships. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach in 2014.
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.
William R. Knight is an American former professional basketball player and executive. Playing with the Indiana Pacers in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and later the National Basketball Association (NBA), he was both an ABA and NBA All-Star. He played college basketball with the Pittsburgh Panthers, who retired his No. 34.
James Patrick Johnson is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was the starting power forward for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons from 2007 to 2009. He was drafted 16th overall in the 2009 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls.
The 1992–93 NBA season was the Pacers' 17th season in the National Basketball Association, and 26th season as a franchise. The Pacers had the fourteenth overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft, and selected Malik Sealy out of St. John's University, and acquired Pooh Richardson and Sam Mitchell from the Minnesota Timberwolves during the off-season. The team played mediocre basketball once again, losing six straight games between December and January after a 13–10 start, then went on a 7-game losing streak in February, and held a 23–28 record at the All-Star break. However, they would recover and play above .500 for the remainder of the season. On the final day of the regular season, the Pacers defeated the Miami Heat, 94–88 at home on April 24, finishing fifth in the Central Division with a 41–41 record, and winning a tie-breaker over the Orlando Magic for the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Kehinde Babatunde Victor Oladipo is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers, where in the 2012–2013 season he was named the Sporting News Men's College Basketball Player of the Year, the Co-NABC Defensive Player of the Year, and a first-team All-American by the USBWA and Sporting News. That year, he was also named the winner of the Adolph Rupp Trophy, given annually to the top player in men's NCAA Division I basketball.
The 1988–89 NBA season was Indiana's 13th season in the NBA and 22nd season as a franchise. Despite finishing with a 38–44 record the previous season, the Pacers had the second overall pick in the 1988 NBA draft, and selected 7' 4" Dutch center Rik Smits out of Marist College. Before the season began, center Steve Stipanovich was out with a left knee injury, and would be sidelined for the entire season after undergoing knee surgery.
The 1974–75 Indiana Pacers season was Indiana's eighth season in the American Basketball Association and eighth as a team.
Edmond Byron Sumner is an American professional basketball player who last played for Žalgiris Kaunas of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) and the EuroLeague. A point guard, he played college basketball for the Xavier Musketeers and after averaging 15.0 points per game as a junior he participated in the 2017 NBA draft. He was drafted 52nd overall by the New Orleans Pelicans, but was subsequently traded to the Indiana Pacers.
References
- "Indiana Pacers Draft Register". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved October 23, 2008.