ABA names fourth division after Spencer Haywood
Published on April 26, 2005 under American Basketball Association (ABA) News Release
Indianapolis, IN. The American Basketball Association (ABA) today named its fourth division after another legend of the original ABA - Spencer Haywood. He joins Freddie Lewis, Marvin Barnes and Roger Brown as players honored in this way. On the court, Haywood was such a devastating force in his prime that no opponent could defensively keep him off the boards. Off the court, he had a lasting effect on the game of basketball largely because he provided the 1970 legal test case that opened the NBA to undergraduate college players.
Haywood joined the ABA with the Denver Nuggets in 1969-70 and had a phenomenal first season and was both the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player winning the ABA scoring title with a 30.0 average and leading the league in rebounding with a remarkable 19.5 rpg to set the ABA record. The next season, the 21-year old Haywood shook up both the ABA and the NBA when he left to sign with the NBA Seattle Supersonics. He was twice selected to the All-NBA First Team and twice to the All-NBA Second Team. though Spencer played only one year in the ABA, he left an indelible mark on the league and the game of basketball.
Other highlights of his stellar career included leading the nation in rebounding as a sophomore at the University of Detroit with 21.5 rpg and a 32.1 scoring average and being an Olympic Gold Medalist in the 1968 Olympic Games as well as an NBA Championship with the Los Angeles Lakers. According to Dick Tinkham, original ABA co-founder, "There weren't many players like Spencer. It was a shame he only played one season in the ABA. He was truly a dominant player and we were proud to have him."
For more information, visit www.abalive.com.
Note: OurSports Central no longer actively covers the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a professional league due in part to its inability to publish and play a schedule and the transitory nature of many of its teams. For information on professional minor leagues, please see OSC's basketball section.
American Basketball Association Stories from April 26, 2005
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