Kansas City Knights Tournament Notes
April 10, 2002 - American Basketball Association (ABA)
Kansas City Knights News Release
THE TOURNAMENT: The ABA's second Championship Tournament will take place this week in Anaheim, California, and Las Vegas, Nevada, beginning Wednesday, April 10th. All seven ABA teams will participate in a single elimination tournament with three games to be played at the Anaheim Convention Center on Wednesday. On Thursday and Friday, April 11 and 12, the tournament will move to the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas.
The Knights, the regular season league champion, will receive a bye in the first round. The Phoenix Eclipse and the defending ABA champion Detroit Dogs will play the first game on Wednesday, followed by Indiana vs. Las Vegas and Kentucky vs. Southern California.
The Knights will play the winner of the Indiana-Las Vegas game in one semi-final on April 11 (approximately 8:30 p.m. local time). The other semi-final will feature the Southern California-Kentucky winner versus the Phoenix-Detroit winner. The finals will be held on April 12 at 7:30 p.m.
THE KNIGHTS MAGICAL SEASON: The Knights captured the ABA regular season title by nine full games with a 32-5 record. Kansas City closed out the regular season with a team- and league-record 22 consecutive wins. Those 22 straight victories are the most ever by a Kansas City professional sports franchise.
The Knights were dominant on their home court, winning all 20 games played at Kemper Arena this year. Few of the Knights 20 home wins were close as the Knights disposed of 16 visitors by 10 points or more.
Kansas City's success was remarkable considering the fact that the team was constantly juggling its roster because of NBA call-ups and injuries.
Four of the team's players this season saw action in the NBA: guards Eddie Gill (Memphis Grizzlies) and Doug Overton (Los Angeles Clippers) and forwards Donny Marshall (New Jersey Nets) and Reggie Slater (New Jersey Nets and Atlanta Hawks). All but Slater are still with their respective NBA teams. The Knights lost seven players to the NBA during the 2000-2001 ABA campaign.
The Knights relied heavily on a core group of players to surge to the top of the ABA: Pete Mickeal, David Vanterpool, Maurice Carter, Jason Williams and Nick Bradford.
Mickeal made an immediate impact on the Knights, who had a 24-2 record in his 26 games with the team. Mickeal led the team and finished fifth in the league in scoring with an average of 23.4 points per game. He also led in the team in field-goal percentage (58.8%, 227-386) and contributed 6.7 rebounds per contest. The team's finest all-around performer was Vanterpool, who averaged 16.4 points (third on team), 7.1 rebounds (tied for first), 4.9 assists (second) and 1.8 steals (second).
Carter was perhaps the most exciting player in the ABA this season. The high-flying Carter was Kansas City's second-leading scorer with an average of 23.1 ppg (sixth-best in ABA) and was the club's go-to guy during the first half of the season.
Williams and Bradford proved to be two of the team's most dependable players despite entering the season with little fanfare. Both players became starters during the final third of the season and look to have bright futures.
The Knights made several key acquisitions at the end of the season. Former KU star and NBA starter Rex Walters played in 11 games and contributed 14.0 points and 6.0 assists while hitting 25 of 60 three-point tries (41.7%). The team also got some steady minutes from guard Ryan Sears, who played in the team's final 14 games.
Kansas City enjoyed the services of bulky forward Rick Hughes during the final six games of the season. The former NBA player scored 21.3 points and hauled in 11.8 rebounds per outing.
Within the last week, the Knights also added forwards John Ford and Eric Taylor. Ford played in two games with the team, averaging 9.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.5 blocks. Taylor averaged 15.9 ppg and 12.9 rpg in 12 contests with the CBA's Sioux Falls Skyforce this season.
THE 2000-2001 ABA CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT: In the first round of last year's ABA Championship Tournament, the Knights pounded the Los Angeles Stars, 132-112, at Kemper. The Knights suffered a disappointing 106-105 loss to the Chicago Skyliners in the Western Conference Finals in Kansas City. The Detroit Dogs captured the ABA Championship with a 107-91 victory over the Skyliners at Kemper.
THE COACH: Kevin Pritchard, who was a starting point guard on the University of Kansas' 1988 NCAA Championship team, returns for his second season as the Knights head coach and his first as the team's general manager. Last season, Pritchard's Knights overcame the loss of seven players to the NBA to finish with a 24-17 overall record, third best in the ABA. Under his direction, Kansas City was the league's second-highest scoring team with an average of 112 points per game. Because of the seven NBA defections, the Knights were forced to use 23 different players in games during the 2000-2001 campaign, yet remained one of the league's best teams.
The 34-year-old Pritchard has an outstanding basketball pedigree. During his college playing days at the University of Kansas, he was coached by both Larry Brown, now the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers, and current Jayhawks head coach Roy Williams. His first head coach as an NBA player was Don Nelson, who now directs the Dallas Mavericks fortunes. He ranks seventh on KU's career scoring list with 1,692 points. He was an All-Big Eight pick as a senior and a three-time All-Big Eight Academic Team selection. Following his distinguished college career, he was chosen in the second round of the 1990 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors. He played in 94 games during his four years in the NBA, making stops at Golden State, San Antonio, Boston, Miami, Philadelphia and Vancouver. Pritchard has a 59-22 (.728) record as the Knights head coach.
THE PLAYERS:
BRADFORD, Nick (G/F, 6-7, 205, Kansas '00): Played in 28 games, averaging 10.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists ... Set a team record (which has been broken twice since) for points in a game with 35 (16-25 FGs) vs. Detroit (2/10) ... Former KU star played in one game with the Knights last year ... Was on the Knights practice squad most of '00-01 ... During his four years at KU, the defensive specialist averaged 5.8 points in 140 career outings.
CARTER, Maurice (G, 6-5, 205, LSU '99): One of the most exciting players in the Knights brief two-year history ... Was second on the team and sixth in the league with an average of 23.1 points per contest ... Also registered 4.3 boards and 2.3 assists per game ... Had a season-high, which at the time was a team record, 37 points vs. Indiana (2/20) ... Had a 36-point effort against the Surf on 3/22 ... Was hampered late in the season by an ankle injury and missed eight games ... Last season he averaged 16.4 ppg for the IBL Champion St. Louis Swarm ... Played with the IBL's San Diego Stingrays in '99-00 ... Averaged 17.7 ppg as a senior at LSU ... His cousin, Cris Carter, is an All-Pro NFL wide receiver.
FORD, John (C/F, 6-10, 230, Colorado State '00): Joined team for the club's final two regular season games ... Averaged 9.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.5 blocks ... As a senior at Colorado State, he averaged 6.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game ... Led Rams in blocks as a junior and senior.
HUGHES, Rick (F, 6-9, 235, Thomas More '96): Made an immediate impact after joining the Knights on 3/20 ... In six games with the Knights, he dropped in 21.3 points per game and pulled down 11.8 rebounds per outing ... Had a monster first game with the Knights, getting 25 points and 16 boards vs. Southern California on 3/21 ...Averaged 25.8 points per game during his four years at Thomas More ... Played in 21 games for the Dallas Mavericks during the '99-00 season, averaging 3.9 point per game ... In '98 he averaged 36.3 ppg for a pro team in Lebanon ... Was in the Golden State Warriors training camp in '00.
MICKEAL, Pete (F, 6-7, 230, Cincinnati '00): The Knights were 24-2 in the 26 games he played with the team ... Joined the club as a free agent on 1/17 ... Led team and was fifth in the ABA with an average of 23.4 points per game ... Also grabbed 6.7 rebounds per game ... Led Knights in field goal shooting, making 227 of 386 shots for 58.8% ... Set a team single-game scoring record with 42 points (14-19 FGs, 12-14 FTs) against the Slam on 3/16 ... Played in four games with the ABA's Tampa Bay Thunder Dawgs in '00-01 before his season was cut short by an Achilles injury ... Was a two-time first team All-Conference USA pick at Cincinnati ... Averaged 14.2 points and 6.8 caroms in his two seasons with the Bearcats ... Transferred to UC from Indiana Hills (Ia.) Community College, where his teams went 76-1.
SEARS, Ryan (G, 6-0, 185, Creighton '01): Joined the Knights for the team's final 14 games ... Chipped in 4.9 points, 3.1 assists and 1.9 steals per game ... Averaged 10.6 ppg during his four years at Creighton ... Is Creighton's career leader in steals (276), assists (555), three-pointers made (241) and three-pointers attempted (672) ... Started all 121 games he played with the Blue Jays.
TAYLOR, Eric (F, 6-7, 245, St. Francis-PA '98): Joined Knights as a free agent on 4/8 ... Played in 12 games (nine starts) this season with the CBA's Sioux Falls Skyforce ... Averaged 15.9 points and 12.9 rebounds per game for Sioux Falls ... As a senior at St. Francis, he averaged 17.5 points and 11.9 rebounds per game ... Had averages of 14.6 points and 11.3 boards as a junior.
TROTTER, Maurice (G, 6-4, 195, Illinois State '96): Saw action in five games after making the team as one of four players invited to training camp from the tryout camp ... Made 4-10 FGs for a total of 10 points ... Led Illinois State in scoring as both a junior (11.4 ppg) and senior (14.9 ppg) ... Was a standout prep performer at Lawrence (Kan.) High School.
VANTERPOOL, David (G/F, 6-5, 196, St. Bonaventure '95): One of the finest all-around performers in the ABA ... Averaged 16.4 points (third on team), 7.1 rebounds (tied for first), 4.9 assists (second) and 1.8 steals (second) ... Recorded the only triple-double in Knights history vs. Las Vegas (2/23), getting 12 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds ... Played in 10 games with the Knights last year, averaging 18.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists ... Ended last season with the NBA's Washington Wizards, playing in 22 games (5.5 ppg and 3.0 apg) ... Was in a dominant player in the CBA for two seasons ('99-00 and first part of '00-01) with the Yakima Sun Kings.
WALTERS, Rex (G, 6-2, 195, Kansas '93): Rejoined the Knights on 2/21 after playing in Canary Islands ... Played in 11 games with Kansas City, contributing 14.0 points and 6.0 assists per game ... Missed some time with a hand injury ... In 13 games with the Knights last year, he averaged 11.2 points and 5.2 assists ... His production was limited in '00-01 because of a broken finger ... Spent six seasons in the NBA, playing with the New Jersey Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat ... In 335 career NBA games, he averaged 4.6 ppg ... The Nets selected him with the 16th overall pick in the '93 NBA Draft ... In two seasons at KU, he averaged 15.6 ppg and made 42.6% of his three-point shots.
WILLIAMS, Jason (F, 6-8, 230, Pacific '99): Matured as a player and gained confidence in his game as the season progressed ... Played in more games (35) than any other Knight ... Finished the year with averages of 9.5 points and 6.6 rebounds per game ... Became a starter during the last third of the season ... Was a first team All-IBA performer after averaging 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Des Moines Dragons in '00-01 ... Led Pacific in scoring (16.7 ppg) and rebounding (7.2 rpg) as a senior in '98-99.
THE ALL-STAR GAME: The Kansas City Knights will take on a team of league all-stars on Sunday, April 14, at Kemper Arena at 4:15 p.m. This is a change from the 3:00 p.m. game against the Southern California Surf that was originally scheduled. The complete ABA All-Star roster will be announced at the ABA Championship Tournament this week.
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 10, 2002
- Strong start Leads Las Vegas over Indiana - OSC Original by Steven Herbert
- Phoenix beats Detroit in ABA playoff opener - OSC Original by Steven Herbert
- Kansas City Knights Tournament Notes - Kansas City Knights
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