- 1975-76 Utah Stars season
NBA season
team = Utah Stars
end_year = 1976
wins = 4
losses = 12
coach =Tom Nissalke
arena =Salt Palace
playoffs = folded prior to end of seasonThe 1975-76American Basketball Association season saw theUtah Stars , a mainstay of the league, fold due to financial pressures prior to the end of the regular season. As a result the Stars were not part of the ABA-NBA merger that occurred at the conclusion of the season.Offseason
Draft picks
Preseason transactions
* May 1975: Stars sign Steve Green
Preseason exhibition games
Like most ABA teams, the Stars played several preseason exhibition games against
NBA opponents. Their first for the 1975 preseason came on October 1, 1975 against thePhiladelphia 76ers . The two teams met in the 76ers' home arena and the 76ers prevailed, 116-111.On October 7 the Stars hosted the
Seattle SuperSonics . The two teams combined for 119 shots from the free-throw line. Ron Boone scored 23 points and led all scorers. Seattle's Leonard Gray was ejected for punching Utah's Steve Green. The Stars won, 122-119.On October 11, 1975 the Kansas City-Omaha Kings met the Stars in the
Denver Nuggets ' home arena inColorado . The game was part of a double-header, with the Nuggets facing the NBA'sGolden State Warriors in the other half. 17,018 fans attended, which at the time was a record crowd for a basketball game in Colorado. Ron Boone led the Stars with 40 points (18 of them in the first quarter) and the Stars defeated the Kings 114-111.On October 14 the Chicago Bulls came to Salt Lake City to face the Stars. The game went into overtime and the Bulls pulled it out, 122-119. In a sign of what was to come for the Stars later in the season, the Bulls later filed a lawsuit against the Stars, claiming that Utah failed to pay the Bulls a guaranteed $17,000 for playing the game at the Salt Palace. The next day, on October 15, the Stars went on the road to face the Seattle SuperSonics again, this time in Seattle.
John Roche scored 33 points for the Stars as Utah won 108-98.On October 21, 1975 the
Milwaukee Bucks came to the Salt Palace to face the Stars. Unbeknownst to anyone at the time, this would be the final exhibition game ever played between ABA and NBA teams, as the two leagues merged at the end of the season. The final ABA vs. NBA contest ended with the Stars victorious, 106-101. [ [http://www.remembertheaba.com/ABAStatistics/ABANBAExhibitions.html Remember the ABA: ABA vs. NBA Exhibition Game Results ] ]Regular season
Roster
*24
Ron Boone
*32Randy Denton
*25Jim Eakins
*34Steve Green
*22Moses Malone
*15John Roche
*20Al Smith
*42Charlie Edge
*44Goo Kennedy
*10Rick Mount
*5Travis Grant
*14Ken Gardner eason standings
1975-76 Utah Stars season
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-! colspan=2 style="color:#0000FF" | [http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/KEN/1974_games.html 1973–74 Schedule]
Month by Month
October 1975
On October 25 the Stars opened their season at home against the November 1974 On November 1 the Stars traveled to Louisville to face the November 12 saw the Stars win at home against the New York Nets, 134-114; Ron Boone led all scorers with 35 before 7,125 fans. November 14 saw the Stars at home again, this time before 6,995 fans, but Billy Knight scored 43 points (31 in the second half) to lead the Indiana Pacers to a 127-119 win. November 19 saw the Stars host the Pacers at home again and this time Billy Keller led all scorers with 33 as the Pacers won 130-110 in front of 9,073 fans. November 21 saw the Stars on the road, losing to the lowly Virginia Squires 106-98 in front of 7,292 fans in Norfolk as Ticky Burden tallied a game-high 34 points. On November 23 the Stars lost on the road to the New York Nets 113-106 as Julius Erving scored 33 points before 6,664 fans. On November 25 the Stars took the homestanding ABA Champion Kentucky Colonels to two overtimes before succumbing 125-123 before 8,477 fans. On November 29 the Stars hosted the Spirits of St. Louis before 4,683 fans. The game was played amid reports that the two franchises were in negotiations to merge. Ron Boone and Maurice Lucas each scored 28 points. The Stars won 136-100. Though it was not known that night, the contest would prove to be the Utah Stars' final game. December 1975 The Utah franchise, beset with financial problems, had gained and lost new owners who were unable to make their payments and the team reverted back to owner Bill Daniels as a result. Daniels was in poor financial shape himself by this point and had entered into negotiations with the Upon the Stars' dissolution the ABA allowed the franchise to sell four players (Moses Malone, Ron Boone, Randy Denton and Steve Green) and one player (Jim Eakins) to the Virginia Squires. The Utah Stars were no more. The ABA merged with the NBA at the conclusion of the season but Salt Lake City would go without professional basketball until the NBA's Player statistics Legend eason Playoffs Awards and records Records * Most personal fouls by two teams in one game (83): Utah Stars at Denver Nuggets, October 29, 1975 Transactions Draft and preseason signings May 20, 1975: Stars are purchased from Bill Daniels by Snellen M. Johnson and Lyle E. JohnsonMay 1975: Stars sign Steve Green October 1975: Moses Malone misses the start of season due to a broken foot Trades and transactions November 1975: franchise reverts back to Bill Daniels as new owners fail to make required payments November 29, 1975: Spirits of St. Louis and Utah Stars unsuccessfully negotiated for a merger of the two franchises December 1, 1975: Utah Stars folded by ABA after failing to meet payroll. Moses Malone, Ron Boone, Randy Denton and Steve Green sold to the Spirits of St. Louis; Jim Eakins sold to the Virginia Squires References * [http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/UTS/1976.html 1975-76 Utah Stars season on BasketballReference.com] External links * [http://www.remembertheaba.com/PlayoffPages/1976Playoffs.html RememberTheABA.com 1975-76 regular season and playoff results]
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
* GP: Games played
* GS: Games started
* MPG: Minutes per game
* FG%: Field goal percentage
* 3FG%: 3-point field goal percentage
* FT%:
* RPG: Rebounds per game
* APG: Assists per game
* SPG: Steals per game
* BPG: Blocks per game
* PPG: Points per game
* [http://www.remembertheaba.com/Utah-Stars.html RememberTheABA.com Utah Stars page]
* [http://www.remembertheaba.com/ABAYearlyGameLogs/7576Part1.html RememberTheABA.com 1975-76 game by game results]
