1971–72 Denver Rockets season

ABA professional basketball team season

NBA professional basketball team season
1971–72 Denver Rockets season
Head coachAlex Hannum
ArenaDenver Auditorium Arena
Results
Record34–50 (.405)
PlaceDivision: 4th (Western)
Playoff finishABA Western Division semifinals
(lost to Pacers 3–4)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
< 1970–71 1972–73 >

The 1971–72 ABA season was the fifth season of the Denver Rockets. They finished 34-50, but managed to qualify for the fourth and final playoff spot in the five team Western Division by eight games. They went the distance with the Pacers, who went on to be the eventual ABA champions.

Roster

No. Player Position Height Weight Birth Date Experience (years) College
40 Byron Beck C 6-9 225 January 25, 1945 4 University of Denver
14 Arthur Becker PF 6-7 205 January 12, 1942 4 Arizona State University
11 Larry Brown PG 5-9 160 September 14, 1940 4 University of North Carolina
20 Frank Card SF 6-7 195 December 28, 1944 3 South Carolina State University
22 Julian Hammond SF 6-5 205 May 27, 1943 4 University of Tulsa
13 Julius Keye PF 6-10 200 September 5, 1946 2 Alcorn State University
23 Steve Mix F 6-7 215 December 30, 1947 2 University of Toledo
31 Marv Roberts SF 6-8 200 January 29, 1950 R Utah State University
25 Dave Robisch C 6-10 235 December 22, 1949 R University of Kansas
44 Ralph Simpson SG 6-5 200 August 10, 1949 1 Michigan State University
10 Al Smith SF 6-1 185 January 15, 1947 R Bradley University
24 Dwight Waller F 6-6 220 October 5, 1945 2 Tennessee State University
21 Chuck Williams PG 6-2 175 June 6, 1946 1 University of Colorado
12 Stephen Wilson SG 6-5 185 October 16, 1948 1 Hanover College

Season standings

Eastern Division

Team W L % GB
Kentucky Colonels 68 16 .810 -
Virginia Squires 45 39 .536 23
New York Nets 44 40 .524 24
The Floridians 36 48 .429 32
Carolina Cougars 35 49 .417 33
Pittsburgh Condors 25 59 .298 43

Western Division

Team W L % GB
Utah Stars 60 24 .714 -
Indiana Pacers 47 37 .560 13
Dallas Chaparrals 42 42 .500 18
Denver Rockets 34 50 .405 26
Memphis Pros 26 58 .310 34

Playoffs

Western Division semifinals[1]

Game Date Location Score Record Attendance
1 March 31 Indiana 95-102 0-1 6,103
2 April 1 Indiana 106-105 1-1 6,521
3 April 4 Denver 120-122 (OT) 1-2 5,304
4 April 6 Denver 112-96 2-2 6,109
5 April 8 Indiana 79-91 2-3 9,428
6 April 9 Denver 106-99 3-3 5,815
7 April 13 Indiana 89-91 3-4 8,643

Rockets lose 4-3

Game log

  • 1971-72 Denver Rockets Schedule and Results | Basketball-Reference.com

Statistics

Rk Player Age G MP FG FGA FG% 3P 3PA 3P% 2P 2PA 2P% FT FTA FT% ORB DRB TRB AST TOV PF PTS
1 Ralph Simpson 22 84 35.8 11.0 23.8 .460 0.0 0.3 .136 10.9 23.5 .464 5.4 6.8 .805 2.0 2.7 4.7 3.1 3.2 2.9 27.4
2 Julius Keye 25 84 30.4 2.3 5.7 .403 0.0 0.0 .000 2.3 5.6 .405 1.3 2.1 .621 3.8 7.9 11.7 1.8 1.7 4.1 5.9
3 Dave Robisch 22 84 28.8 6.0 13.5 .444 0.0 0.1 .000 6.0 13.5 .446 3.5 5.0 .702 3.4 6.2 9.6 2.4 1.3 3.0 15.5
4 Byron Beck 27 66 27.5 5.1 10.1 .504 0.0 0.0 .000 5.1 10.1 .506 2.1 2.5 .843 2.6 5.4 8.0 2.1 1.5 3.2 12.3
5 Larry Brown 31 76 26.5 3.2 7.3 .437 0.1 0.3 .200 3.1 7.0 .448 2.6 3.2 .811 0.7 1.5 2.2 7.2 2.9 2.7 9.1
6 Arthur Becker 30 84 26.1 5.2 11.4 .456 0.0 0.0 .000 5.2 11.3 .457 2.0 2.3 .846 2.0 3.6 5.6 1.3 1.6 3.2 12.3
7 Al Smith 25 83 21.3 3.5 8.1 .433 0.4 1.3 .299 3.1 6.8 .458 1.8 2.5 .725 1.0 1.7 2.7 3.0 2.0 2.9 9.3
8 Frank Card 27 73 19.8 3.1 6.8 .455 0.0 0.0 .000 3.1 6.8 .455 1.5 2.4 .651 1.9 2.6 4.5 1.1 1.6 2.8 7.7
9 Chuck Williams 25 84 18.8 3.1 6.9 .451 0.0 0.0 .000 3.1 6.9 .454 2.4 3.3 .745 0.7 1.1 1.9 1.9 1.2 1.7 8.7
10 Julian Hammond 28 25 16.4 2.6 5.6 .471 0.0 0.0 2.6 5.6 .471 1.2 2.0 .620 1.9 2.7 4.6 1.2 1.2 1.9 6.5
11 Marv Roberts 22 68 15.4 3.2 7.8 .407 0.0 0.1 .250 3.2 7.8 .408 1.3 1.8 .717 1.8 2.5 4.3 0.9 1.1 2.2 7.7
12 Dwight Waller 26 2 5.0 1.0 2.0 .500 0.0 0.0 1.0 2.0 .500 0.0 0.0 0.5 2.0 2.5 0.5 0.5 1.5 2.0
13 Steve Mix 24 1 4.0 1.0 1.0 1.000 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.0 1.000 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 2.0
14 Stephen Wilson 23 9 4.0 0.6 2.6 .217 0.0 0.2 .000 0.6 2.3 .238 0.4 0.8 .571 0.3 0.1 0.4 0.7 0.3 1.0 1.6[2]

Awards and honors

  • All-ABA 2nd Team: Ralph Simpson
  • ABA All-Stars: Ralph Simpson, Arthur Becker[3]

Transactions

References

  1. ^ "Remember the ABA: 1971-72 Regular Season Standings and Playoff Results". Archived from the original on October 28, 2014. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  2. ^ 1971-72 Denver Rockets Roster and Stats | Basketball-Reference.com
  3. ^ 1971-72 ABA Season Summary | Basketball-Reference.com