1970 NBA draft

The 1970 NBA draft was the 24th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on March 23, 1970, before the 1970–71 season. In this draft, 17 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each division, with the order determined by a coin flip.[1] The Detroit Pistons won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the San Diego Rockets were awarded the second pick. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. Three expansion franchises, the Buffalo Braves, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Portland Trail Blazers, took part in the NBA Draft for the first time and were assigned the seventh, the eighth and the ninth pick in each round. In the first round, the Cavaliers had the seventh pick, while the Blazers and the Braves had the eighth and the ninth pick respectively. In the subsequent rounds, the Cavaliers and the Braves exchanged their order of selection, while the Blazers had the eighth pick throughout the draft. The draft consisted of 19 rounds comprising the selection of 239 players; it holds the record for the most prospects selected in any NBA draft.

1970 NBA draft
General information
SportBasketball
Date(s)March 23, 1970
LocationNew York City, New York
Overview
239 total selections in 19 rounds
LeagueNBA
First selectionBob Lanier, Detroit Pistons

Draft selections and draftee career notes

Bob Lanier from St. Bonaventure University was selected first overall by the Detroit Pistons. Rudy Tomjanovich from the University of Michigan and Pete Maravich from Louisiana State University were selected second and third respectively. Fourth pick Dave Cowens from Florida State University and eighth pick Geoff Petrie from Princeton University went on to be named as joint winners of the Rookie of the Year Award in their first season.[2] Six players from this draft, Lanier, Maravich, Cowens, 18th pick Calvin Murphy, 19th pick Nate Archibald and 122nd pick Dan Issel, have been inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame.[3] Maravich, Cowens and Archibald were also named to the list of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History announced at the league's 50th anniversary in 1996.[4] Maravich had four All-NBA Team selections and five All-Star Game selections.[5] Cowens won two NBA championships with the Boston Celtics in 1974 and 1976, one Most Valuable Player Award in 1973, and had three All-NBA Team selections and seven All-Star Game selections.[6] Archibald won one NBA championship with the Celtics in 1981 and had five All-NBA Team selections and six All-Star Game selections.[7] Lanier and Murphy were selected to eight and one All-Star Games respectively.[8][9] Dan Issel initially opted to play in the American Basketball Association (ABA) with the Kentucky Colonels. He played six seasons in the ABA before finally joining the NBA with the Denver Nuggets when both leagues merged. He was selected to five All-ABA Teams, six ABA All-Star Games and one NBA All-Star Game.[10][11]

Randy Smith, who was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the 205th pick, did not enter the league until the 1971–72 season, after he was drafted again in the 1971 Draft by the Buffalo Braves with the 104th pick. He was selected to both the All-NBA Team and the All-Star Game.[12] Tomjanovich was selected to five All-Star Games during his career.[13] Charlie Scott, the 106th pick, initially opted to play in the ABA with the Virginia Squires before joining the NBA in 1972. He was selected to two All-ABA Teams, two ABA All-Star Games and three NBA All-Star Games.[14] Three other players from this draft, fifth pick Sam Lacey, seventh pick John Johnson and eighth pick Geoff Petrie, was also selected to at least one All-Star Game.[15][16][17] The Rockets' first and second round picks, Tomjanovich and Murphy spent all of their playing career with the Rockets. Tomjanovich played 11 seasons while Murphy played 13 seasons with the Rockets.[9][13]

Lanier, Tomjanovich, Cowens and Issel all became head coaches after ending their playing career. Lanier was the interim head coach of the Golden State Warriors in the 1995.[18] Tomjanovich coached two NBA teams, the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Lakers. He coached the Rockets for 12 seasons, leading them to the NBA championship twice in 1994 and 1995.[19] He also coached the United States national basketball team to a gold medal at the 2000 Olympic Games. Cowens started his coaching career as a player-coach with the Celtics during the 1978–79 season, before returning to a full-time player in the next season. He later coached two more NBA teams, most recently with the Golden State Warriors.[20] Issel coached the Denver Nuggets for six seasons in two separate three-year stints.[21] Two other players drafted also went on to have coaching careers in the NBA: 40th pick Gar Heard and 125th pick George Irvine.[22][23]

The 1970 draft class is considered to be one of the best in NBA history as it produced six Hall of Famers and twelve All-Stars from those draftees who played in the NBA.[24] Three of the first four picks were inducted to the Hall of Fame and seven of the first eight picks became All-Stars. The 1970 Draft is also known as the first draft where international players who had never played U.S. high school and college basketball were selected. In the 10th and 11th round, the Atlanta Hawks drafted Mexican Manuel Raga and Italian Dino Meneghin; both were playing in the Italian league at the time.[25] They became the first two international players drafted to the NBA.[26] However, neither of them ever played in the league as the Hawks did not have US$35,000 to buy out either of their contracts with their teams.[27] Meneghin, who played 28 seasons in Italy, has been inducted by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) to the FIBA Hall of Fame and also to the Basketball Hall of Fame.[28][29][30] Raga has also been inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.

Key
Pos.GFC
PositionGuardForwardCenter
^ Denotes player who has been inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
* Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game and All-NBA Team
+ Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game
# Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular season or playoff game

Draft
Bob Lanier was selected first overall by the Detroit Pistons.
Rudy Tomjanovich was selected second overall by the San Diego Rockets.
Pete Maravich was selected third overall by the Atlanta Hawks.
Dave Cowens was selected fourth overall by the Boston Celtics.
Geoff Petrie was selected eighth overall by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Calvin Murphy was selected 18th overall by the San Diego Rockets.
Round Pick Player Pos. Nationality Team School/club team
1 1 Bob Lanier^ C  United States Detroit Pistons St. Bonaventure
1 2 Rudy Tomjanovich+ F  United States San Diego Rockets Michigan
1 3 Pete Maravich^ G  United States Atlanta Hawks (from San Francisco)[a] Louisiana State
1 4 Dave Cowens^ F/C  United States Boston Celtics Florida State
1 5 Sam Lacey+ C  United States Cincinnati Royals New Mexico State
1 6 Jim Ard F/C  United States Seattle SuperSonics Cincinnati
1 7 John Johnson+ F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Iowa
1 8 Geoff Petrie+ G  United States Portland Trail Blazers Princeton
1 9 George E. Johnson C  United States Baltimore Bullets (from Buffalo)[b] Stephen F. Austin
1 10 Greg Howard F/C  United States Phoenix Suns Brill Cagliari (Italy)[31][32]
1 11 Jimmy Collins G  United States Chicago Bulls New Mexico State
1 12 Al Henry C  United States Philadelphia 76ers Wisconsin
1 13 Jim McMillian F  United States Los Angeles Lakers Columbia
1 14 John Vallely G  United States Atlanta Hawks UCLA
1 15 John Hummer F/C  United States Buffalo Braves (from Baltimore)[b] Princeton
1 16 Gary Freeman F  United States Milwaukee Bucks Oregon State
1 17 Mike Price G  United States New York Knicks Illinois
2 18 Calvin Murphy^ G  United States San Diego Rockets Niagara
2 19 Nate Archibald^ G  United States Cincinnati Royals (from San Francisco)[c] Texas-El Paso
2 20 Jake Ford G  United States Seattle SuperSonics (from Detroit)[d] Maryland State
2 21 Rex Morgan G  United States Boston Celtics Jacksonville
2 22 Doug Cook# F  United States Cincinnati Royals Davidson
2 23 Pete Cross F/C  United States Seattle SuperSonics San Francisco
2 24 Cornell Warner F/C  United States Buffalo Braves Jackson State
2 25 Walt Gilmore F  United States Portland Trail Blazers Fort Valley State
2 26 Dave Sorenson F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Ohio State
2 27 Fred Taylor G/F  United States Phoenix Suns Pan American
2 28 Paul Ruffner F/C  United States Chicago Bulls Brigham Young
2 29 Joe DePre# G  United States Phoenix Suns (from Philadelphia)[e] St. John's
2 30 Earnie Killum G  United States Los Angeles Lakers Stetson
2 31 Dan Hester# F  United States Atlanta Hawks Louisiana State
2 32 Ken Warzynski# F  United States Detroit Pistons (from Baltimore)[f] DePaul
2 33 Bill Zopf G  United States Milwaukee Bucks Duquesne
2 34 Howie Wright# G  United States New York Knicks Austin Peay

Other picks

The following list includes other draft picks who have appeared in at least one NBA game.[33][34]

Round Pick Player Pos. Nationality Team School/club team
3 35 Curtis Perry F  United States San Diego Rockets Southwest Missouri
3 38 Willie Williams F  United States Boston Celtics Florida State
3 39 Greg Hyder F  United States Cincinnati Royals Eastern New Mexico
3 40 Gar Heard F  United States Seattle SuperSonics Oklahoma
3 46 Dennis Awtrey C  United States Philadelphia 76ers Santa Clara
3 50 Marv Winkler G  United States Milwaukee Bucks Southwestern Louisiana
4 53 Ralph Ogden F  United States San Francisco Warriors Santa Clara
4 54 Bill Stricker F  United States Baltimore Bullets (from Detroit)[f] Pacific
4 64 Larry Mikan F  United States Los Angeles Lakers Minnesota
5 70 Levi Fontaine G  United States San Francisco Warriors Maryland State
5 76 Ron Knight F  United States Portland Trail Blazers Cal State-Los Angeles
5 79 George T. Johnson F/C  United States Chicago Bulls Dillard
5 82 Bob Riley F  United States Atlanta Hawks Mount St. Mary's
5 83 Gary Zeller G  United States Baltimore Bullets Drake
6 87 Vic Bartolome C  United States San Francisco Warriors Oregon State
6 94 Joe Cooke G  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Indiana
6 95 Joe Thomas F  United States Phoenix Suns Marquette
7 103 Billy Paultz F/C  United States San Diego Rockets St. John's
7 106 Charlie Scott^ G/F  United States Boston Celtics North Carolina
7 110 Claude English F  United States Portland Trail Blazers Rhode Island
8 120 Don Adams F  United States San Diego Rockets Northwestern
8 122 Dan Issel^ F/C  United States Detroit Pistons Kentucky
8 129 Steve Patterson C  United States Phoenix Suns UCLA
8 133 Herb White G  United States Atlanta Hawks Georgia
8 136 Greg Fillmore C  United States New York Knicks Cheyney State
10 155 Coby Dietrick F/C  United States San Francisco Warriors San Jose State
14 205 Randy Smith* G/F  United States Detroit Pistons Buffalo State
16 224 Harvey Marlatt G  United States Detroit Pistons Eastern Michigan

Trades
  • a On February 2, 1970, the Atlanta Hawks acquired a first-round pick and future consideration (the Hawks acquired Clyde Lee on October 4, 1974) from the San Francisco Warriors in exchange for Zelmo Beaty.[35][36] The Hawks used the pick to draft Pete Maravich.
  • b 1 2 On the draft-day, the Baltimore Bullets acquired the Buffalo Braves' first-round pick from the Braves in exchange for Mike Davis and the Bullets' first-round pick.[37][38] The Bullets used the pick to draft George E. Johnson while the Braves used the pick to draft John Hummer.
  • c On December 25, 1969, the Cincinnati Royals acquired a second-round pick from the San Francisco Warriors in exchange for Adrian Smith.[36][39] The Royals used the pick to draft Nate Archibald.
  • d On November 1, 1969, the Seattle SuperSonics acquired a second-round pick from the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Erwin Mueller.[40][41] The Sonics used the pick to select Jake Ford.
  • e On September 13, 1969, the Phoenix Suns acquired a second-round pick from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Bill Melchionni.[42] The Suns used the pick to draft Joe DePre.
  • f 1 2 On February 1, 1970, the Detroit Pistons acquired Bob Quick and a second-round pick from the Bullets in exchange for Eddie Miles and a fourth-round pick.[41][43] The Pistons used the pick to draft Ken Warzynski. The Bullets used the pick to select Bill Stricker.

Notable undrafted players
Player Position Nationality School/Club team
Jeff Webb PG  United States Kansas State


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References
General
  • "Complete First Round Results 1970–79". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 21 March 2010. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
  • "1970 NBA Draft". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
  • "1967–1971 NBA Drafts". The Association for Professional Basketball Research. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
Specific
  1. "Evolution of the Draft and Lottery". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 21 March 2010. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
  2. "Rookie of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 29 March 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  3. "Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Inductees". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 10 May 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  4. "The NBA's 50 Greatest Players". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 5 April 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  5. "Pete Maravich Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 2 April 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  6. "Dave Cowens Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 24 March 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  7. "Nate "Tiny" Archibald Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 24 March 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  8. "Bob Lanier Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 20 March 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  9. "Calvin Murphy Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  10. "Dan Issel Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  11. "Dan Issel Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2010. Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  12. "Randy Smith Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  13. "Rudy Tomjanovich Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  14. "Charlie Scott Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  15. "Geoff Petrie Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 24 May 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  16. "Sam Lacey Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 4 April 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  17. "John Johnson Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 28 April 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  18. "Bob Lanier Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved May 19, 2010.
  19. "Rudy Tomjanovich Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 11, 2010.
  20. "Dave Cowens Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on May 17, 2008. Retrieved April 11, 2010.
  21. "Dan Issel Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 11, 2010.
  22. "Gar Heard Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
  23. "George Irvine Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
  24. "NBA's Best Draft Classes". Sports Illustrated. Time Warner Company. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  25. Zilgitt, Jeff (June 27, 2003). "NBA goes global, with good reason". USA Today. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  26. Friedman, Brad. "Out of the South". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on December 10, 2010. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  27. Rovell, Darren (June 22, 2004). "Searching for the next Pau Gasol". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  28. "Un'altra Hall of Fame per Dino Meneghin". Retrieved February 8, 2013.
  29. "FIBA announces 2010 Hall of Fame Class". FIBA. August 20, 2010. Archived from the original on 19 October 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  30. "Dino Meneghin Bio". FIBA. August 18, 2010. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  31. "Pete 3rd Draft Pick; Cowens 4th". St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. March 24, 1970. Retrieved March 31, 2010.
  32. "La prima volta in A nel 1969 con Greg Howard, il fuggiasco". L'Unione Sarda (in Italian). March 30, 2006. Retrieved March 31, 2010.
  33. https://www.basketball-reference.com/draft/NBA_1970.html
  34. http://basketball.realgm.com/nba/draft/past_drafts/1970
  35. "Zelmo Beaty Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 2 May 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  36. "Golden State Warriors 2009–10 Media Guite: Draft & Transactions" (PDF). NBA.com/Warriors. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 March 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  37. "Mike Davis Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  38. "Clippers: All-Time Transactions". NBA.com/Clippers. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 19 March 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  39. "Adrian Smith Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  40. "Erwin Mueller Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 16 March 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  41. "Pistons: All-Time Transactions". NBA.com/Pistons. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 20 March 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  42. "Bill Melchionni Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  43. "Eddie Miles Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2010.

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