Hubie's last call is the Bucks game this Sunday. I still remember him as coach of the 1975 ABA Champion Kentucky Colonels.
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Hubie Brown's Kentucky Colonels
- Thread starter FtWorthCat
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Big fan of Hubie Brown and loved the Kentucky Colonels. It was fun to go to the games at Freedom Hall with my Dad and Uncle to see Kentucky play. Played at the Louisville Gardens in their early years.
Issel, Dampier, Artis "A Train" Gilmore, and Hodgenville native Bird Averitt were on the Colonels. Indiana Pacers still going strong, Colonels long forgotten. The Colonels drew 17,000 for that championship game. The ABA invented the 3-point shot, and I still think the red, white and blue ball should have been adopted as well. This is the 50-year anniversary of the Colonels Championship and the UK Runner-Up team.
Ellie Brown passed away back in December.
Ellie Brown-Moore, former owner of Kentucky Colonels basketball team, dies at 84
The former chair of the Kentucky Colonels' board also donated millions to Louisville institutions, including the Actors Theatre and the YMCA.
www.courier-journal.com
I remember first seeing Dr J playing in Freedom Hall vs the KY Colonels. I don't think he missed a shot the entire game. This would've been mid 1970s.
Remember reading the book on the ABA and it pretty much saying Colonels would have had a spot in NBA during merger if not for owner John Y Brown
The ABA was something I read about more than actually got to see. I just remember a few of their games being televised in western KY. I became a huge Dr. J fan after I heard Adolph Rupp said he was the best player he had ever seen. Rupp was an executive with the Colonels/ABA after retiring at UK, iirc. This is the book. Has a damning part about Rupp, when what was a private conversation by the author with Rupp on an airplane when Rupp was a few bourbons in is rehashed. But otherwise, it is a fantastic read.
Loose Balls: Short, Wild Life of the American Basketball Association by Pluto, Terry: Very Good Hardcover (1990) | HPB-Diamond
ISBN: 9780671673901 - Hardcover - Simon & Schuster - 1990 - Condition: Very Good - Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! -...
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Was Bird from Hodgenville?
He played high school at Hoptown High.
He was wicked good!!
I could never shoot a red, white and blue ball as well as the brown seemed balls. The black leather was the worst for me.
I remember rooting for Colonels but didn't see but a handful of games on TV.
I remember rooting for Colonels but didn't see but a handful of games on TV.
Ellie wanted to merge with the NBA and John didn’t want to. I wish they would have merged, it was always a lot of run going to Louisville and watching the Colonels. In Hubies book he said the championship colonels were the best team he ever coached. Man they had a loaded roster, at one time Maurice Lucas, Issel and Gilmore were the front court, that was 3 studs. That era was the good old days.
Yes, you are correct. It was Hopkinsville. Not sure where I got Hodgenville. Bird was second team all-state in 1970, and Hopkinsville lost to Trigg County in the 2nd region final. (Source: Kentucky High School Basketball Encyclopedia by Jeff Bridgeman)
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I still have game programs from the 1975 ABA Playoffs.
My dad got me season tickets for Colonels, loved watching Ladner will never forget him diving for a ball and breaking the glass water bottles. tried to play but had blood all over him.
Dude was Issel's enforcer and then for Dr. J
Dude was Issel's enforcer and then for Dr. J
There is a good story about Ladner in the book. They were flying into DC for a game and he saw the Washington Monument. Ladner said "That must be the Washington Post!"
I believe that John Y Brown wanted to bring the Colonels to the NBA, but he wanted some support from the city of Louisville and they refused.
Brown went on to buy the Buffalo Braves, which is now the L.A. Clippers I believe.
I don’t remember the Braves. But he bought into the Celtics.
And many Bostonians say he ruined them.
"Little" Ronnie Lyons of Mason County, my first ever favorite UK player, was Mr. Basketball in 1970. In retrospect, Bird was better than Ronnie. Bird played a couple of years in the NBA after the Colonels.
www.basketball-reference.com
Bird Averitt Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft Status and more | Basketball-Reference.com
Checkout the latest stats of Bird Averitt. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, draft status, shoots, school and more on Basketball-Reference.com
www.basketball-reference.com
Issel and Lucas 2 badass dudes
I was waiting outside the locker room to see Rick Berry who promised me an autograph before going into locker room.
he walked right out past everyone and came straight to me and signed the program I had.
Remember Gilmore walking out in a mink coat carrying a case of beer.
Basically correct. The big difference is the owners in San Antonio, Indiana, Denver and NY fought for a spot in the NBA, whereas John Y. Brown didn’t even try. Instead, he sold the city out with a backroom deal where he agreed to fold the franchise in exchange for a gigantic check and a promise that he’d get first dibs on buying the next available NBA team (where he’d go on to attain a reputation as one of the most incompetent worst owners in pro sports history).
So how did Kentuckians deal with Brown screwing them over like that? By then electing him governor. Go figure.
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