The Indiana Pacers were the class of the old American Basketball Association to start their 49-year history. Who are their 25 best players of all-time?
The Indiana Pacers’ 49-year history can be split into two distinct parts—the first nine years, where they were the dominant force in the old American Basketball Association; and the last 39 years, where they have fought to find a place in the NBA.
The Pacers were the second-winningest team in ABA history, going 427-317 in regular-season play in the circuit’s nine-year history, but no team ruled the ABA postseason the way Indiana did.
The Pacers won three ABA titles—the lone franchise to do so—and played in five ABA Finals.
The problem for Indiana was that the merger came along a few years too late for the players from the glory years—three ABA championships in four seasons from 1970-73—to try their hand against the powers of the established NBA.
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Instead, it was a franchise in decline that entered the NBA in 1976, making the playoffs just twice in its first 13 NBA seasons and it wasn’t until 1994—the Pacers’ 18th year in the NBA—that Indiana won a postseason series.
After making the playoffs all nine seasons in the ABA, the Pacers have been in the postseason 23 times in 40 NBA campaigns, including nine straight years from 1998-2006, a period that also included the team’s lone visit to the NBA Finals in 2000.
The team’s longest serving player personnel decision maker was Donnie Walsh, who was in charge from April 1986 through July 2003 and again from June 2012 through June 2013.
Larry Bird has also served more than a decade in that capacity, from July 2003 to June 2012 and again since June 2013.
Bird is the franchise’s lone recipient of the NBA Executive of the Award, winning in 2011-12.
Slick Leonard, who took over as the Pacers’ coach nine games into their second season in the ABA, is the franchise’s winningest coach, amassing a record of 529-456 from 1968-80.
8 Points, 9 Seconds
A two-time All-American guard at Indiana, including the school’s NCAA title run in 1953, Leonard played seven seasons in the NBA with the Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers and the Chicago Packers/Zephyrs.
He was coach of the Zephyrs, later the Baltimore Bullets, for parts of two seasons as well.
Frank Vogel is the only other coach with more than 200 victories with Indiana, going 250-181 in parts of six seasons from 2010-11 through 2015-16, when his contract was not renewed.
Nate McMillan, a former Vogel assistant, will become the franchise’s 15th head coach when the 2016-17 opens.
Leonard was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach—the lone ABA coach to be so honored—in 2014.
Two Pacer coaches have been named NBA Coach of the Year, Jack McKinney in 1980-81 and Bird in 1997-98.
The franchise has played at Bankers Life Fieldhouse since 1999. They played at the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum from 1967-74 and at Market Square Arena from 1974-99.
In 49 seasons, the Pacers have an overall record of 2,033-1,942, a .511 winning percentage that is 12th among the current 30 NBA franchises.
With a 45-37 mark in 2015-16, the Pacers returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence, losing in the first round.
The Pacers have never had the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, picking second three times, third once and fourth once.
So who are the 25 best players ever to wear the blue, white and gold of the Pacers? Only time spent with the Pacers is considered and players had to play a minimum of 150 games to be on the list. The franchise’s time in both the ABA and NBA was considered.
Here are the 25 best Pacers of all-time:
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Chuck Person lit up the nets as a three-year starter at Auburn, averaging 21.5 points and 7.9 rebounds as a senior.
The Indiana Pacers, seeking some offensive punch, selected Person with the fourth overall pick in the 1986 NBA Draft.
Person was named Rookie of the Year in 1986-87 and topped the 20-points per game plateau once during his stay with the Pacers.
He was fourth in the NBA in three-pointers in 1991-92.
In September 1992, Person was traded along with Micheal Williams to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Pooh Richardson and Sam Mitchell.
In six seasons in Indiana, Person averaged 19.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 35.4 minutes per game, shooting .481/.350/.739.
He was released by the Timberwolves in July 1994 and signed later the same month with the San Antonio Spurs.
Person missed the entire 1996-97 season with the Spurs due to back surgery, but returned to play 61 games in 1997-98.
In January 1999, he was traded to the Chicago Bulls, who waived him three days later.
Two days after being let go in Chicago, Person landed a deal with the Charlotte Hornets.
In October 1999, he signed with the Seattle SuperSonics as a free agent.
He was part of a four-team trade in September 2000, going to the Los Angeles Lakers in a deal that also included the New York Knicks and Phoenix Suns. The Lakers waived Person nine days later and he opted to retire.
Person is currently an assistant coach at Auburn and spent seven years in the NBA as an assistant coach. He is 49th in NBA history with 1,220 three-pointers.
Next: Big Man Did All The Little Things
Jeff Foster was a mid-major standout at Southwest Texas State (now simply known as Texas State), averaging double-doubles as a junior and senior.
The Golden State Warriors picked Foster with the 21st overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft, then traded his rights to the Indiana Pacers on draft night in June 1999 in exchange for the rights to 26th overall pick Vonteego Cummings and a 2001 first-rounder.
Foster was never a star for the Pacers and only infrequently a starter. But he did the little things extremely well, crashing the boards, playing defense and setting picks–all of the things a good team needs to succeed.
A project at the beginning of his career, Foster did not play in the 2000 playoffs, which culminated in the Pacers’ lone NBA Finals berth.
Plagued by back problems late in his career, he opted to retire in March 2012.
In 13 seasons in Indiana, Foster averaged 4.9 points and 6.9 rebounds in 20.6 minutes per game, shooting .497/.130/.615.
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Antonio Davis was the definition of a fringe prospect coming out of UTEP, a player whose stats regressed as a senior to 10.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.
The Indiana Pacers took Davis in the second round of the 1990 NBA Draft at No. 45 overall, then played the long game.
Davis played two seasons in Greece and another in Italy before signing with the Pacers in July 1993. He came in and was a contributor in the rotation as a reserve big man right away.
After missing nearly half of the 1994-95 season due to back surgery, Davis came back strong, still a part-time starter but getting the bulk of the minutes at power forward over the next four seasons.
In August 1999, the Pacers traded Davis to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for the rights to Jonathan Bender, the fifth overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft.
In six seasons in Indiana, Davis averaged 9.0 points and 6.6 rebounds in 25.4 minutes per game, shooting .482/.100/.682. He does not appear on any of the franchise’s all-time leaderboards.
With the Raptors, Davis earned his only All-Star bid in 2001. He was dealt to the Chicago Bulls in December 2003.
In October 2005, Davis was traded to the New York Knicks, who sent him back to Toronto in February 2006.
Waived by the Raptors in March 2006, Davis retired due to chronic back problems.
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The Indiana Pacers made a splash in August 1997 when they acquired Dream Teamer Chris Mullin from the Golden State Warriors in exchange for Erick Dampier and Duane Ferrell.
Mullin led the NBA in free-throw shooting in 1997-98, hitting 93.9 percent of his attempts and was a starter for two of his three seasons in Indianapolis before spending his final season as a reserve on the NBA Finals squad in 2000.
Mullin was second in the NBA in three-point percentage in 1998-99 after finishing third in 1997-98.
He played in just three of the six games in that Finals loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 1.3 points in 4.0 minutes per game while going 1-for-2 from the floor and hitting 1-of-2 at the foul line. He missed his lone three-point attempt.
Mullen was waived by the Pacers in September 2000.
In three seasons in Indiana, Mullin averaged 9.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 22.0 minutes per game, shooting .472/.441/.912.
He was the Wooden Award winner as a senior at St. John’s and a two-time All-American, averaging 19.9 points per game while getting the Redmen to the Final Four.
The Warriors selected Mullin with the seventh overall pick in the 1985 NBA Draft.
He was a four-time All-NBA selection and a five-time All-Star with Golden State. Mullen led the NBA in minutes per game in 1990-91 and 1991-92, while finishing third in scoring in 1991-92 and fifth in 1988-89.
He was also fifth in field-goal percentage in 1996-97 and second in three-point percentage in 1992-93.
He returned to the Warriors as a free agent in September 2000 before retiring after the 2000-01 campaign to close out a 16-year career.
He was the general manager in Golden State from 2004-09 and was inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011. Mullin was named head coach at St. John’s, his alma mater, in 2015 and was 8-24 in his first season at the helm.
Mullin is 38th in NBA history with 1,530 steals and 30th with a free-throw percentage of .866.
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Despite his status as an All-Rookie second teamer in 1994-95, Jalen Rose was viewed as something of a disappointment at the point the Indiana Pacers acquired him in a June 1996 trade.
Indiana got Rose along with Reggie Williams and a 1996 first-round pick from the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Mark Jackson, Ricky Pierce and a 1996 first-rounder.
Rose came of age in Indiana, first as a reserve and then as a starter. He was the NBA’s Most Improved Player in 1999-2000, helping the Pacers to their first NBA Finals appearance.
He started all six games in the loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 23.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 43.2 minutes per game, shooting .467/8-for-16/.833 in the series.
In February 2002, Rose was dealt with Travis Best, Norm Richardson and a 2002 second-round pick to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for Ron Artest (now known as Metta World Peace), Brad Miller, Ron Mercer and Kevin Ollie.
In parts of six seasons in Indiana, Rose averaged 14.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 29.8 minutes per game on .455/.346/.800 shooting.
He was a part of Michigan’s famed Fab Five recruiting class, earning All-America honors as a junior when he averaged 19.9 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. He also helped the Wolverines to back-to-back NCAA title games as a freshman and sophomore.
Rose entered the draft after his junior year and was taken by the Nuggets with the 13th overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft.
In December 2003, Rose was traded to the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors swapped Rose to the New York Knicks in February 2006 (with former Pacer Antonio Davis as part of the return package in both deals).
Waived by the Knicks in October 2006, Rose signed with the Phoenix Suns a week later.
After making only 29 appearances and going unsigned in free agency, Rose opted to retire in 2007.
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Micheal Williams was an NBA champion, but he hadn’t gotten a chance to spend much time on the court.
That changed when the Indiana Pacers signed the point guard to a free-agent deal in August 1990.
Williams excelled for the Pacers, finishing second in the NBA in steals and earning All-Defensive honors in 1991-92.
In September 1992, Williams was traded with Chuck Person to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Pooh Richardson and Sam Mitchell.
In two seasons in Indiana, Williams averaged 13.2 points, 6.5 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.5 steals in 29.3 minutes per game, shooting .494/.225/.875.
As a senior at Baylor, Williams averaged 18.4 points and 5.4 assists and was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the second round, 48th overall, in the 1988 NBA Draft.
He was part of the Pistons’ NBA championship club in 1988-89, but on draft night in June 1989 was dealt to the Phoenix Suns.
Waived in December 1989, Williams signed a 10-day contract with the Charlotte Hornets in March 1990 that eventually turned into a deal for the remainder of the season.
He was fourth in the NBA in free-throw shooting for the Timberwolves in 1992-93, but a series of injuries to his heel, foot, neck and knee shortcircuited his career. He played in only 37 games after the 1993-94 season and missed the entire 1996-97 campaign.
He set an NBA record with 97 consecutive free throws from March-November 1993.
In January 1999, Williams was sent to the Toronto Raptors in a three-team trade that also included the Denver Nuggets.
Released by Toronto in August 1999, Williams retired.
He is 28th in NBA history with a free-throw percentage of .868 and 40th with an average of 1.7 steals per game.
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Mark Jackson had already done the unthinkable, quarterbacking the Los Angeles Clippers to a playoff berth, so the Indiana Pacers looked to the veteran to direct their offense.
On draft night in June 1994, the Pacers traded Pooh Richardson, Malik Sealy and the rights to 15th overall pick Eric Piatkowski to the Clippers in exchange for Jackson and the rights to 25th overall selection Greg Minor.
Jackson helped the Pacers back to the first conference finals in 1995, so he delivered.
In June 1996, Jackson was traded with Ricky Pierce and a 1996 first-round pick to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Jalen Rose, Reggie Williams and a 1996 first-rounder.
Proving that mistakes can sometimes be undone, Indiana re-acquired Jackson from the Nuggets in February 1997 along with LaSalle Thompson in exchange for Eddie Johnson, Vincent Askew and second-round selections in 1997 and 1998.
Jackson led the NBA in assists in 1996-97, finishing third in 1997-98 and helping Indiana to its first NBA Finals appearance in 2000.
In a six-game loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, Jackson put up 9.7 points, 7.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds in 31.0 minutes per game, shooting .413/.400/12-for-15.
In August 2000, he left the Pacers for good, signing with the Toronto Raptors as a free agent.
In parts of six seasons in Indiana, Jackson averaged 8.4 points, 8.1 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 29.8 minutes per game on .434/.362/.783 shooting.
Named an All-American after averaging 18.9 points and 6.4 assists per game as a senior at St. John’s, Jackson was the 18th overall pick of the New York Knicks in the 1987 NBA Draft.
Named Rookie of the Year in 1987-88, Jackson was also an All-Star in 1989 for the Knicks. He was third in the NBA in assists in 1987-88, as well.
In September 1992, he was sent to the Clippers in a three-team deal that included the Orlando Magic. He was fourth in the league in assists in 1992-93.
Jackson was traded back to New York in February 2001 and in June 2002 was sent back to the Nuggets in a trade.
Waived by Denver in September 2002, he signed with the Utah Jazz five days later.
Unsigned in the summer of 2003, Jackson eventually caught on with the Houston Rockets in January 2004, retiring after going unsigned as a free agent that summer.
He would later coach the Golden State Warriors for three seasons from 2011-14, going 121-109 in the regular season and 9-10 in the playoffs.
Jackson is 20th in NBA history with 1,296 games, 36th with 39,121 minutes, fourth with 10,334 assists, 30th with 1,608 steals and 15th with an average of 8.0 assists per game.
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Marist College hasn’t produced a lot of first-round NBA draft picks. Then again, Marist College hasn’t had a lot of players like Rik Smits.
Smits, a 7-foot-4 native of the Netherlands, averaged 24.7 points and 8.7 rebounds as a senior for the Red Foxes and the Indiana Pacers took the big man with the second overall pick in the 1988 NBA Draft.
Smits was a first team All-Rookie selection in 1988-89 and was named an All-Star for the only time in his career in 1998.
He was a solid low-post presence offensively, but never solved the problem he has with foul trouble, averaging 4.7 fouls per 36 minutes for his career.
Smits was part of the Pacer squad that reached the NBA Finals in 2000, averaging 10.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in just 19.3 minutes per game in the series, shooting .466/—/6-for-6 in the six-game loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
He announced his retirement in September 2000 after spending his entire career with the Pacers.
In 12 seasons in Indiana, Smits averaged 14.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 26.6 minutes per game on .507/.115/.773 shooting.
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Dale Davis was a double-double producer in three years as a starter at Clemson, averaging 17.9 points and 12.1 rebounds per game as a senior.
The Indiana Pacers took the rugged big man with the 13th overall pick in the 1991 NBA Draft and he brought his physical style to Indy for the better part of a decade.
Davis was an All-Star with the Pacers in 2000, finishing third in the NBA in field-goal percentage in 1992-93 and placing fifth in 1994-95.
He started at power forward and center during, helping the club to the 2000 NBA Finals. He started all six games of the loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 8.7 points, 10.0 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 29.5 minutes per game on .575/—/6-for-11 shooting.
In August 2000, Davis was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Jermaine O’Neal and Joe Kleine.
On the waiver wire in March 2005, Davis made a return to the Pacers, signing as a free agent for the remainder of the 2004-05 campaign.
In August 2005, he signed as a free agent with the Detroit Pistons.
In parts of 10 seasons in Indiana, Davis averaged 9.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 29.5 minutes per game, shooting .543/0-for-3/.531.
He remained with the Blazers until July 2004, when he was traded to the Golden State Warriors.
In February 2005, Davis was traded to the New Orleans Hornets, who waived him a week later.
He played out his two-year deal in Detroit and retired after the 2006-07 season.
Davis is 49th in NBA history with 1,270 blocked shots and 38th with a field-goal percentage of .530.
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Freddie Lewis was an afterthought as an NBA rookie and was left unprotected in an expansion draft after the season.
He found a new path, signing instead with the Indiana Pacers of the fledgling American Basketball Association in the summer of 1967.
It was a solid decision by Lewis, who helped the Pacers to four ABA Finals berths and championships in 1970, 1972 and 1973. He was a three-time ABA All-Star while with Indiana, as well.
He may not have filled up the stat sheet, but he was the leader of the bunch in Indy.
Lewis averaged 22.8 points per game in his first ABA Finals, a five-game loss to the Oakland Oaks in 1969.
In the 1970 ABA Finals, Lewis put up 16.7 points a game as the Pacers grabbed their first title with a six-game triumph over the Los Angeles Stars.
Back in the Finals in 1972, Lewis was named Playoff MVP after averaging 22.8 points a game in a six-game victory over the New York Nets.
He put up 19.1 points per game as Indiana became the lone repeat champions in ABA history with a seven-game win over the Kentucky Colonels in 1973.
In July 1974, the Pacers traded Lewis and Mel Daniels to the Memphis Sounds in exchange for Charlie Edge and cash.
When the team entered the NBA in 1976, Lewis returned to Indianapolis as a free agent in August 1976, but retired in February 1977.
In parts of eight seasons in Indiana, Lewis averaged 16.1 points, 4.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 34.0 minutes per game, shooting .427/.279/.815.
He was a 10th-round pick out of Arizona State in the 1966 NBA Draft by the Cincinnati Royals and was claimed by the San Diego Rockets in the May 1967 expansion draft.
Traded to the Spirits of St. Louis in October 1974, Lewis was an All-Star in 1975, earning All-Star Game MVP honors. He was fourth in the ABA in minutes per game and fifth in both free-throw shooting and steals in 1974-75.
When the Spirits folded as part of the NBA-ABA merger in August 1976, Lewis was not selected in the dispersal draft.
He is third in ABA history with 686 games, second with 24,038 minutes, ninth with 275 three-pointers, fourth with 2,883 assists and sixth with 11,660 points.
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The Indiana Pacers picked up a big man in a July 2008 trade and he helped backstop them to back-to-back conference finals runs.
The Pacers sent Jermaine O’Neal and the rights to second-round pick Nathan Jawai to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston and the rights to 17th overall selection Roy Hibbert.
Hibbert was named All-Defensive in 2013-14 and was a two-time All-Star for the Pacers, selected in 2012 and 2014.
He was fourth in the NBA in blocks in both 2012-13 and 2013-14 and placed fifth in 2011-12 as Indiana made back-to-back runs to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2013 and 2014.
Hibbert was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in July 2015 in exchange for a future second-round pick.
In seven seasons in Indiana, Hibbert averaged 11.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.9 blocks in 25.9 minutes per game, shooting .464/.273/.748.
An All-American as a senior at Georgetown, Hibbert put up 13.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game before being selected by the Raptors at No. 17 overall in the 2008 NBA Draft.
In 81 games for the Lakers in 2015-16, Hibbert averaged 5.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 23.2 minutes per game on .443/0-for-2/.807 shooting.
He signed a one-year, $5 million free-agent deal with the Charlotte Hornets on July 7, 2016.
Hibbert is 30th in NBA history with an average of 1.8 blocks per game.
Next: A Hometown Breakout
When looking for a point guard to bolster the backcourt, the Indiana Pacers remembered the Alamo and picked up an Indianapolis native in a draft night deal in June 2011.
The Pacers acquired George Hill from the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for the rights to 15th overall pick Kawhi Leonard, second-round selection Davis Bertans and Erazem Lorbek, a second-round pick in 2005 whom Indiana never signed.
Hill missed 16 games in his first season with the Pacers with a chip fracture in his ankle, but assumed the starting point guard duties the following season.
A groin injury forced him out for almost half of the 2014-15 season, a lost season for the club due to health woes of several players.
In 2015-16, Hill averaged 12.1 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.5 assist and 1.1 steals in 34.1 minutes per game on .441/.408/760 shooting.
On July 7, 2016, he was swapped to the Utah Jazz as part of a three-team deal. The Pacers got back Jeff Teague from the Atlanta Hawks in the trade.
In five seasons in Indiana, Hill averaged 12.3 points, 3.9 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.0 steals in 31.7 minutes a game, shooting .448/.376/.793.
A mid-major standout at nearby IUPUI, Hill averaged 21.5 points and 6.8 rebounds as a senior with the Jaguars.
The Spurs took him with the 26th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft.
He was a solid backup in the backcourt for three seasons with San Antonio.
Hill’s contract runs through 2016-17 on an extension he inked in July 2012.
Next: Power Forward Brought His Jumper Along
It didn’t take long after the NBA lockout ended in December 2011 for David West to find a new home.
He signed with the Indiana Pacers as a free agent and brought his rugged demeanor and mid-range jumper to bear for a team that grew into an Eastern Conference contender.
The Pacers played in back-to-back conference finals in 2013 and 2014, but an aging West missed 16 games in 2014-15 because of a sprained ankle.
He declined his option after the season and became a free agent, signing with the San Antonio Spurs in July 2015.
In four seasons in Indiana, West averaged 14.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 30.6 minutes per game, shooting .487/.222/.776.
A two-time All-American and the Associated Press player of the year as a senior at Xavier, West averaged 20.1 points and 11.8 rebounds that season.
He was taken by the New Orleans Hornets with the 18th overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft.
A little-used reserve as a rookie, West missed most of the 2004-05 season with a knee injury. But he earned a starting spot in 2005-06 and never lost it, bouncing back from missing 30 games with an elbow injury to earn All-Star berths in 2008 and 2009.
West was fourth in the NBA in minutes per game in 2008-09.
With the Spurs in 2015-16 in a reserve role, West averaged 7.1 points and 4.0 rebounds in 18.0 minutes per game on .545/3-for-7/.788 shooting.
He inked a one-year veteran’s minimum deal with the Golden State Warriors on July 9, 2016.
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Danny Granger put together two solid years at New Mexico after transferring from Bradley, averaging 18.8 points and 8.9 rebounds per game as a senior.
The Indiana Pacers took the small forward project with the 17th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft.
Granger was a hit as a reserve as a rookie, earning second team All-Rookie honors, but the meteoric rise was yet to come.
Steady improvement came to a head when Granger was named the NBA’s Most Improved Player in 2008-09, also earning an All-Star appearance in 2009.
He was fourth in the NBA in three-pointers in 2008-09 while finishing fifth in the league in scoring.
But a series of injuries robbed Granger of his effectiveness, culminated by a knee injury that limited him to just five games in 2012-13. He came back, but was never the same player.
In February 2014, Granger was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers with a 2015 second-round pick in exchange for Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen.
In parts of nine seasons in Indiana, Granger averaged 17.6 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals in 32.5 minutes per game, shooting .435/.382/.849.
He never suited up for the 76ers, who waived him six days after the trade. Two days later, Granger signed with the Los Angeles Clippers for the remainder of the season.
Granger inked a free-agent deal with the Miami Heat in July 2014. In February 2015, he was traded to the Phoenix Suns in a three-way deal that included the New Orleans Pelicans.
In July 2015, he was traded to the Detroit Pistons, who waived him among their final cuts last preseason.
Granger sat out the 2015-16 season and remains unsigned.
Next: Boo Could Defend In Either Lead
Don Buse was the type of big guard that NBA teams loved in the early 1970s. But Buse opted to start his career in the ABA.
The Indiana Pacers acquired the draft rights for Buse, a fifth-round pick by the Virginia Squires in the 1972 ABA Draft, in April 1972 in a straight cash deal (a popular thing for the perennially nearly bankrupt Squires).
Buse was a reserve as a rookie as the Pacers returned to the ABA Finals for the second straight year. He played in five of the seven games in the series, averaging 2.2 points per game, in Indiana’s seven-game win over the Kentucky Colonels that gave it back-to-back titles.
Buse became a starter in his third season and was a two-time ABA All-Defensive selection and an All-ABA pick in 1975-76, when he was also named to the ABA All-Star Game.
He led the ABA in assists, steals and minutes per game in 1975-76, finishing second in three-pointers and fourth in three-point percentage.
Buse helped the Pacers back to the ABA Finals in 1975, playing all five games and averaging 3.6 points per game in Indiana’s five-game loss to the Colonels.
In the summer of 1976, the Pacers were admitted to the NBA and Buse kept rolling along, leading the NBA in assists and steals in 1976-77 while earning an All-Star bid and an All-Defensive nod.
He was traded to the Phoenix Suns in September 1977 in exchange for Ricky Sobers.
The teams made another swap in November 1980 that brought Buse back to the Pacers in exchange for second-round picks in 1981 and 1982.
He led the NBA in three-pointers in 1981-82, placing fifth in three-point percentage.
Unsigned through the summer of 1982, Buse eventually signed as a veteran free agent with the Portland Trail Blazers in January 1983, with the Pacers receiving cash and consultation services of Blazers vice president John Spoelstra as compensation (no, seriously).
In parts of seven seasons in Indiana, Buse averaged 7.7 points, 5.1 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.5 steals in 29.1 minutes per game, shooting .434/.343/.784.
Buse averaged 16.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per game as a senior at Evansville and besides being picked by Virginia, he was also a third-round selection by the Suns in the 1972 NBA Draft.
With the Suns, he was a three-time All-Defensive selection, finishing fifth in the NBA in steals in 1977-78.
Waived by Portland in August 1983, Buse signed with the Kansas City Kings in September 1983, retiring after the 1984-85 season.
He is the ABA’s all-time leader with an average of 2.7 steals per game and is third in ABA history with 658 steals and ninth with a three-point percentage of .327.
Buse is also 33rd in the history of the NBA with an average of 1.8 steals per game.
Next: Sixth Man Extraordinaire
With the Dallas Mavericks, Detlef Schrempf has started to gain some traction as a reserve forward.
But after he was traded with a 1990 second-round pick to the Indiana Pacers in February 1989 in exchange for Herb Williams, his career took off like a rocket.
Schrempf was named Sixth Man of the year in both 1990-91 and 1991-92 and was an All-Star in 1993 for the Pacers.
In November 1993, just before the start of the season, he was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics in exchange for Derrick McKey and Gerald Paddio.
In parts of five seasons in Indiana, Schrempf averaged 17.0 points, 8.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 33.7 minutes per game, shooting .511/.296/.813.
The native of Germany averaged 15.8 points and 8.0 rebounds as a senior at Washington and was taken by the Mavericks with the eighth overall pick in the 1985 NBA Draft.
With Dallas, Schrempf was second in the NBA in three-point shooting in 1986-87.
Schrempf was an All-NBA selection in 1994-95 with the Sonics and was a two-time All-Star there, posting a second-place finish in three-point shooting in 1994-95 and helping Seattle to the 1996 NBA Finals.
He signed as a free agent with the Portland Trail Blazers in August 1999. Bothered by a sore neck late in his career, he announced his retirement in October 2000 before returning to the Blazers for a final season.
Next: Neto An Early ABA Star
Coming out of Drake, Bob Netolicky was a second-round draft pick in two leagues–the established NBA and the just-starting-out ABA.
Netolicky chose to sign with the Indiana Pacers, who had taken him in the second round of the 1967 ABA Draft leading into the league’s inaugural campaign.
He was a first team ABA All-Rookie selection in 1967-68 and an All-ABA pick in 1969-70 while being named to four straight ABA All-Star games from 1968-71.
Netolicky was second in the ABA in field-goal percentage in 1968-69 and third in both 1967-68 and 1970-71.
He also helped the Pacers to three ABA Finals in a four-year span from 1969-72.
In a five-game loss to the Oakland Oaks in the 1969 ABA Finals, Netolicky led the Pacers with an average of 26.4 points per game.
He put up 20.3 points per game in the ABA Finals in 1970 as Indiana won its first championship in six games over the Los Angeles Stars.
Netolicky played a smaller role in the 1972 ABA Finals, averaging 4.3 points per game in a six-game triumph over the New York Nets.
In July 1972, he was traded to the Dallas Chaparrals in a straight cash deal.
The Pacers re-acquired Netolicky from the San Antonio Spurs for cash and an undisclosed draft pick in November 1973.
He did not play in the 1975 ABA Finals loss to the Kentucky Colonels and retired in November 1975 after appearing just sparingly in four games at the start of the 1975-76 season.
In parts of eight seasons in Indiana, Netolicky averaged 15.7 points and 8.9 rebounds in 32.3 minutes per game, shooting .493/.207/.661.
He was also a second-round selection, 18th overall, by the San Diego Rockets in the 1967 NBA Draft, but never played in the NBA.
With the Chaparrals in 1972-73, Netolicky was fifth in the ABA in minutes per game. He was with the franchise for its move to San Antonio in 1973.
He is 10th in ABA history with 618 games, eighth with 20,554 minutes and fifth with 5,518 rebounds.
Next: Mooney A Cross-League Star
Billy Knight was an All-American as a senior on the wing at Pittsburgh, averaging 21.8 points and 13.4 rebounds per game.
The Los Angeles Lakers took Knight in the second round, 21st overall, in the 1974 NBA Draft.
The
, however, used the sixth overall pick in the 1974 ABA Draft on Knight and he signed with the Pacers in July 1974.
He was a first team ABA All-Rookie selection in 1974-75, helping Indiana to the ABA Finals, and erupted as an All-ABA player in 1975-76, earning an ABA All-Star bid in 1976.
He played like a veteran in the 1975 ABA Finals, averaging 22.8 points per game in a five-game loss to the Kentucky Colonels.
Knight was second in the ABA in both scoring and minutes per game in 1975-76.
He kept rolling after the Pacers entered the NBA in 1976, earning another All-Star nod in 1977. He was second in the league in scoring and fourth in minutes per game.
In September 1977, Knight was traded to the Buffalo Braves in exchange for Adrian Dantley and Mike Bantom.
He wasn’t gone long. In January 1979, Indiana re-acquired Knight from the Boston Celtics in exchange for Rick Robey.
Knight was traded to the New York Knicks in September 1983 in exchange for Vince Taylor and a 1984 first-round pick. The Knicks flipped him to the Kansas City Kings later the same day.
In parts of eight seasons in Indiana, Knight averaged 18.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 30.4 minutes per game, shooting .513/.250/.826.
With the Braves in 1977-78, Knight was again fourth in the league in minutes per game. After the franchise had moved in the summer of 1978 to become the San Diego Clippers, Knight was traded to the Celtics in a seven-player swap.
He was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in December 1984 and played a season in France after being waived by the Spurs in June 1985.
Knight retired after the 1985-86 season, serving as general manager for the Vancouver/Memphis Grizzlies from 2000-02 and in the same capacity for the Atlanta Hawks from 2003-08.
Next: Before He Was Metta, He Was A Pacer Standout
Ron Artest has struggled at times with his emotions, on and off the court, but his acquisition by the Indiana Pacers helped build an Eastern Conference contender in the early 21st century.
Artest, now known as Metta World Peace, was acquired from the Chicago Bulls in February 2002 along with Brad Miller, Ron Mercer and Kevin Ollie in exchange for Jalen Rose, Travis Best, Norm Richardson and a 2002 second-round pick.
Artest thrived with the Pacers, earning Defensive Player of the Year and All-NBA honors in 2003-04, when he finished third in the league in steals.
He was a two-time All-Defensive pick with Indiana as well and was second in the league in steals in both 2001-02 and 2002-03.
The Pacers reached the Eastern Conference Finals in 2004 and were poised to make noise again the following season until an incident known as “The Malice in the Palace” marred the end of a game against their bitter rivals, the Detroit Pistons.
Artest was slapped with a 68-game suspension–the rest of the season–and the Pacers gradually disassembled the team they had built.
In January 2006, Artest was dealt to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Peja Stojakovic.
In parts of five seasons in Indiana, Artest averaged 16.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.2 steals in 34.9 minutes per game, shooting .429/.312/.729.
He was an All-American as a sophomore at St. John’s, averaging 14.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, before opting into the draft.
The Bulls selected Artest with the 16th overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft. He was a second team All-Rookie selection in 1999-2000.
Artest was named All-Defensive in 2005-06 with the Kings and was second in the NBA in steals in both 2006-07 and 2007-08.
In August 2008, he was dealt to the Houston Rockets, earning another All-Defensive nod before signing as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers in July 2009.
Artest helped the Lakers to the 2010 NBA title, but was waived in July 2013, two years after the name change. He signed five days later with the New York Knicks.
Waived again in February 2014, World Peace played in both China and Italy in 2014-15, but returned to the Lakers on a one-year deal in September 2015.
He played in just 35 games in 2015-16, averaging 5.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 16.9 minutes per game on .311/.310/.702 shooting.
World Peace is unsigned for 2016-17. He is 22nd in NBA history with 1,711 steals and 35th with an average of 1.8 steals per game.
Next: Brooklyn Star Was The First Pacer
Roger Brown‘s pro basketball career was unnecessarily delayed and the small forward was already 25 years old by the time he got a shot with the Indiana Pacers of the fledgling ABA in the summer of 1967.
Brown had played a year of freshman basketball at Dayton before he was kicked out of school and banned from the NBA because of alleged links to notorious gambler Jack Molinas.
Brown was later cleared of any wrongdoing in the point-shaving scandal, but not in time to save his potential NBA career.
But he was a stalwart with the Pacers, earning three All-ABA nods and four ABA All-Star appearances while helping Indiana to three championships.
A versatile wing, Brown was fourth in the ABA in assists in 1967-68 and fifth in 1968-69. He also played third in minutes per game in 1969-70, fourth in three-point shooting in both 1972-73 and 1973-74 and fifth in field-goal percentage in 1968-69.
He averaged 25.6 points per game as the Pacers lost the 1969 ABA Finals to the Oakland Oaks in five games.
Brown was Playoffs MVP in 1970, however, averaging 32.7 points per game in the ABA Finals in a six-game win over the Los Angeles Stars.
He put up 21.3 points a game in a six-game victory over the New York Nets in the 1972 ABA Finals and averaged 10.3 points a night in a seven-game triumph over the Kentucky Colonels in the 1973 ABA Finals.
Brown played out his contract and signed with the Memphis Sounds in July 1974.
But after a month on the waiver wire, he returned to the Pacers as a free agent in March 1975. He played in three games in Indiana’s five-game loss to the Colonels in the 1975 ABA Finals, averaging 5.3 points per game, and is the only player to appear in all five ABA Finals for the Pacers.
Brown retired after the 1974-75 season.
In parts of eight seasons in Indiana, he averaged 18.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 36.3 minutes per game, shooting .471/.317/.792.
He played only seven games with the Sounds before he was traded to the Utah Stars in November 1974. The Stars waived him in January 1975.
Brown is sixth in ABA history with 21,454 minutes, seventh with 312 three-pointers and 10th with 2,315 assists and 10,498 points.
He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013, which unfortunately came well after his death from liver cancer in March 1997 at the age of 54.
Next: Early Entrant An ABA Superstar
George McGinnis was an All-American as a sophomore at Indiana, averaging 30.0 points and 14.7 rebounds per game and the Indiana Pacers wanted desperately to keep the hometown kid in Indy.
The Pacers signed McGinnis to a pro contract on April 23, 1971, agreeing to forfeit their first-round pick in the 1972 ABA Draft.
It was absolutely the right call.
McGinnis was a first team ABA All-Rookie selection in 1971-72 before making three straight All-ABA teams between 1972-73 and 1974-75. He was co-MVP of the ABA in 1974-75, sharing the honor with Julius Erving of the New York Nets, and was a three-time ABA All-Star.
He led the ABA in scoring in 1974-75, while finishing second in steals and three-pointers, third in assists (as a power forward), fourth in three-point shooting and fifth in rebounding in a tour de force while leading Indiana to a surprising bid in the ABA Finals.
McGinnis was second in the league in scoring in 1972-73 and 1973-74, also finishing second in rebounding in 1973-74 and fourth in 1972-73 and, for good measure, was fifth in field goal percentage in 1972-73.
He helped the Pacers to ABA titles in each of his first two seasons, averaging 18.3 points per game in a six-game win over New York in 1972 and earning Playoff MVP honors in 1973 after putting up 22.3 points per game in a seven-game victory over the Kentucky Colonels.
McGinnis’ 27.4 points per game weren’t enough in 1975, when Indiana fell in five games to the Colonels in the ABA Finals.
Along the way, the Philadelphia 76ers of the NBA had thrown a second-round pick at McGinnis in the 1973 NBA Draft. In July 1975, McGinnis jumped leagues, signing with the 76ers after buying out his option year for $85,000.
He had first signed with the New York Knicks in May 1975, but the Knicks were ordered to forfeit their 1976 first-round pick and reimburse Philadelphia for legal expenses after NBA commissioners Larry O’Brien voided the deal.
McGinnis returned to Indy in February 1980, acquired from the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Alex English and a 1980 first-round pick in a trade the Pacers would just as soon forget.
Waived by the Pacers in October 1982 after two seasons as a reserve, McGinnis retired.
In parts of seven seasons in Indiana, McGinnis averaged 19.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.8 steals in 32.8 minutes per game, shooting .462/.276/.650.
He was a two-time All-Star with the 76ers, earning All-NBA honors in 1975-76 and 1976-77 and finishing fifth in the MVP voting in 1975-76. He was also second in the league in steals that season.
McGinnis helped Philadelphia to the NBA Finals in 1977, but in August 1978 was dealt to the Nuggets. With Denver, he was an All-Star in 1979.
The only MVP winner in either league that is Hall of Fame eligible but not selected for induction, McGinnis is sixth in ABA history with 525 steals and an average of 38.2 minutes per game and fifth with averages of 25.2 points and 12.9 rebounds per game.
Next: Uncle Reg Had Range, Attitude
He was a skinny kid who could score, as evidenced by him topping the 20-point-per-game mark as a junior and senior at UCLA. But Reggie Miller entered the NBA with plenty of doubters.
He and the Indiana Pacers got the last laugh … and then some. The Pacers selected Miller with the 11th overall pick in the 1987 NBA Draft and the 6-foot-7, 185-pound stringbean strung together an 18-year ride through the league.
Miller was a three-time All-NBA selection and a five-time All-Star. He led the NBA in three-pointers in 1992-93 and 1996-97 and finished in the top five in the category a whopping 13 times.
He also paced the league in free-throw shooting five times among 10 top-five finishes. He was fifth in minutes per game in 1989-90 and third in three-point shooting in 1993-94.
It was late in Miller’s career when he got a chance to play in the NBA Finals in 2000, leading the Pacers in scoring while averaging 24.3 points, 3.7 assists and 2.7 rebounds in 42.0 minutes per game in the six-game loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, shooting .413/.375/.978.
Miller soldiered on until May 2005, when he announced his retirement. The Pacers, in a salary cap move, used the amnesty provision to waive him in August 2005.
In 18 seasons in Indiana, Miller averaged 18.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.1 steals in 34.3 minutes per game on .471/.395/.888 shooting.
Most well-known for his exchanges with Spike Lee during the playoffs against the New York Knicks and his famous eight-points-in-nine-seconds flurry against the Knicks in the 1995 NBA Playoffs, Miller was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.
He is ninth in NBA history with 1,389 games and 47,619 minutes, second with 2,560 three-pointers, 43rd with 1,505 steals, 19th with 25,279 points, 49th with a three-point percentage of .395 and 10th with a free-throw percentage of .888.
Next: J.O. Grew Up Fast In Indy
The Portland Trail Blazers drafted Jermaine O’Neal out of high school and spent four years teaching him the NBA. The Indiana Pacers then reaped the rewards.
The Pacers acquired O’Neal along with Joe Kleine in an August 2000 trade, sending Dale Davis to the Trail Blazers in return.
O’Neal was just about to explode onto the scene. He was the NBA’s Most Improved Player in 2001-02, also earning All-NBA honors that season as well as the next two. He was a six-time All-Star for Indiana and was third in the MVP voting in 2003-04.
He was second in the NBA in blocks in 2000-01, finishing third in 2006-07. He also had a fourth-place finish in rebounding in 2002-03.
Injuries began to take a toll on O’Neal, however. He missed 31 games with a torn groin muscle in 2005-06, was limited to 69 games in 2006-07 because of a bad ankle and played in just 42 games in 2007-08 because of an injured knee.
The Pacers traded O’Neal and the rights to second-round pick Nathan Jawai to the Toronto Raptors in July 2008 in exchange for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston and the rights to Roy Hibbert, the 17th overall pick.
In eight seasons in Indiana, O’Neal averaged 18.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 2.0 assists in 35.0 minutes per game, shooting .458/.163/.719.
He was the 17th overall pick by the Trail Blazers out of Eau Claire High School in Columbia, S.C., in the 1996 NBA Draft and played sparingly during his four seasons there.
In February 2009, he was traded to the Miami Heat and finished that season fifth in the NBA in blocks.
He signed as a free agent with the Boston Celtics in July 2010.
Waived by Boston in April 2012, he eventually signed in August of the same year with the Phoenix Suns.
O’Neal moved on to the Golden State Warriors as a free agent in July 2013.
He sat out the 2014-15 season unsigned and as of February 2016 has not submitted an official retirement.
O’Neal is 22nd in NBA history with 1,820 blocked shots and 29th with an average of 1.8 blocks per game.
Next: All The Way Back ... And Then Some
Paul George was an intriguing prospect coming out of Fresno State. A 6-foot-9 wing, George averaged 16.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game as a sophomore before opting to turn pro.
The Indiana Pacers took George with the 10th pick in the 2010 NBA Draft and he was a second-team All-Rookie selection in 2010-11.
His career took off from there. He was named Most Improved Player in 2012-13, earning All-Defensive and All-NBA honors as well as his first All-Star berth. He repeated as All-Defensive and All-NBA with an All-Star bid in 2013-14, finishing fifth in the NBA in steals.
Then disaster struck.
During a Team USA intrasquad scrimmage on Aug. 1, 2014, in Las Vegas, George came down awkwardly while trying to block a shot, coming down at a hideous angle against the basket stanchion and suffering a compound fracture in his right leg.
The injury kept George out for all but six games in 2014-15 and there were questions about his ability to make it all the way back.
He answered those questions emphatically with the best season to date of his career in 2015-16, averaging 23.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.9 steals in 34.8 minutes per game on .418/.371/.860 shooting.
He was once again an All-Star and added All-Defensive and All-NBA honors to the mix.
George has three years remaining on the five-year extension he signed in September 2013, with the 2018-19 season a player option.
In six seasons in Indiana, George has averaged 16.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.7 steals in 32.2 minutes per game, shooting .425/.364/.838.
Next: The ABA’s Chairman Of The Boards
The Indiana Pacers wanted a center and zeroed in on Minnesota Muskies big man Mel Daniels.
In May 1968, the Pacers got the deal they wanted, acquiring Daniels from Minnesota–soon to become the Miami Floridians–in exchange for Jimmy Dawson, Ronald Kozlicki, a future first-round pick and $75,000 cash.
And a dynasty was born soon after.
Daniels was named ABA MVP in 1968-69 and 1970-71, being named All-ABA four times for the Pacers and going to six ABA All-Star games–earning All-Star Game MVP honors in 1971.
He led the ABA in rebounding in 1968-69 and 1970-71, finishing second three times and fifth in 1973-74, and placing fifth in scoring in 1968-69 as well. He was second in field-goal percentage in 1970-71.
Daniels paced Indiana to four ABA Finals, averaging 19.0 points per game in a five-game loss to the Oakland Oaks in 1969.
In 1970, he put up 20.0 points per game in Indiana’s first title run, a six-game victory over the Los Angeles Stars.
Daniels averaged 15.2 points per game in a six-game triumph over the New York Nets in 1972 and 16.1 points a night in a seven-game victory over the Kentucky Colonels in 1973.
In july 1974, Daniels was traded with Freddie Lewis to the Memphis Sounds in exchange for Charles Edge and cash.
In six seasons in Indiana, Daniels averaged 19.4 points, 16.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 37.1 minutes per game, shooting .483/.069/.679.
An All-American as a senior at New Mexico, Daniels averaged 21.5 points and 11.6 rebounds per game that season and was taken ninth overall by the Cincinnati Royals in the 1967 NBA Draft.
Also selected by the Muskies, Daniels opted to join the ABA. He was Rookie of the Year in 1967-68, earning All-ABA honors and an All-Star nod, leading the ABA in rebounding.
Daniels was with the Memphis franchise when it became the Baltimore Claws in the summer of 1975 and was not selected in the dispersal draft when the club folded days before the start of the 1975-76 season.
Instead, Daniels played in Italy. He returned to the U.S. and signed a free agent deal with the Nets in October 1976, getting his only NBA playing experience.
Waived by New York in December 1976, Daniels retired.
He posted an 0-2 record as interim coach of the Pacers in 1988-89, replacing Jack Ramsay after an 0-7 start before George Irvine and later Dick Versace took on the job.
Inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012, Daniels died Oct. 30, 2015, at the age of 71.
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He was the ABA’s all-time leader with 9,494 rebounds and was second in league history with an average of 15.1 rebounds per game, ninth with 628 games, fourth with 22,340 minutes, 10th with 351 blocked shots and fourth with 11,739 points.