1970–71_Seattle_SuperSonics_season
1970–71 Seattle SuperSonics season
NBA professional basketball team season
The 1970–71 Seattle SuperSonics season was the Seattle SuperSonics 4th season in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In their second season with Lenny Wilkens as head coach, the Sonics finished in 8th place in the Western Conference with a 38–44 record.
Quick Facts Seattle SuperSonics season, Head coach ...
| 1970–71 Seattle SuperSonics season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Head coach | Lenny Wilkens | ||
| General manager | Bob Houbregs | ||
| Arena | Seattle Center Coliseum | ||
| Results | |||
| Record | 38–44 (.463) | ||
| Place | Division: 4th (Pacific) Conference: 8th (Western) | ||
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify | ||
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||
| Local media | |||
| Television | KTNT-TV | ||
| Radio | KOMO | ||
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Trouble arose with the injury of top scorer Bob Rule, who tore his Achilles tendon three games into the season during a game against the Portland Trail Blazers and lost him for the remainder of the season.[1]
During the offseason, the SuperSonics traded 10-year veteran Bob Boozer and their first round selection from the 1969 NBA draft, Lucius Allen to the Milwaukee Bucks for Don Smith[2] (later known as Zaid Abdul-Aziz). Despite the early retirement announcement made by 24-year-old Smith to the Sonics' front office,[3] he joined the team and played in 61 games in the regular season.
Draft picks
Main article: 1970 NBA draft
Note: only draft picks who participated in at least one game in the NBA are listed.
More information Round, Pick ...
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Jim Ard | Forward / center |  United States |
Cincinnati |
| 2 | 20 | Jake Ford | Guard | United States |
Maryland Eastern Shore |
| 2 | 23 | Pete Cross | Forward / center | United States |
San Francisco |
| 3 | 40 | Gar Heard | Forward | United States |
Oklahoma |
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More information Players, Coaches ...
| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Seattle SuperSonics Depth Chart - 1970-71 | ||||
| STARTER | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | |
| PG | Lenny Wilkens | Lee Winfield | Jake Ford | |
| SG | Dick Snyder | Jake Ford | Rod Thorn | |
| SF | Don Kojis | Barry Clemens | ||
| PF | Spencer Haywood | Tom Meschery | Gar Heard | |
| C | Bob Rule | Zaid Abdul-Aziz | Tom Black | Pete Cross |
Season standings
More information W, L ...
| W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Los Angeles Lakers | 48 | 34 | .585 | – | 30–11 | 17–22 | 1–1 | 15–7 |
| x-San Francisco Warriors | 41 | 41 | .500 | 7 | 20–18 | 19–21 | 2–2 | 12–10 |
| San Diego Rockets | 40 | 42 | .488 | 8 | 24–15 | 15–26 | 1–1 | 14–8 |
| Seattle SuperSonics | 38 | 44 | .463 | 10 | 27–13 | 11–30 | 0–1 | 10–14 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 29 | 53 | .354 | 19 | 18–21 | 9–26 | 2–6 | 3–15 |
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More information #, Team ...
| # | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | |
| 1 | z-Milwaukee Bucks | 66 | 16 | .805 |
| 2 | y-Los Angeles Lakers | 48 | 34 | .585 |
| 3 | x-Chicago Bulls | 51 | 31 | .622 |
| 4 | x-San Francisco Warriors | 41 | 41 | .500 |
| 5 | Phoenix Suns | 48 | 34 | .585 |
| 6 | Detroit Pistons | 45 | 37 | .549 |
| 7 | San Diego Rockets | 40 | 42 | .488 |
| 8 | Seattle SuperSonics | 38 | 44 | .463 |
| 9 | Portland Trail Blazers | 29 | 53 | .354 |
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- z – clinched division title
- y – clinched division title
- x – clinched playoff spot
Record vs. opponents
More information Team, ATL ...
| 1970–71 NBA Records | |||||||||||||||||
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| Team | ATL | BAL | BOS | BUF | CHI | CIN | CLE | DET | LAL | MIL | NYK | PHI | PHO | POR | SDR | SFW | SEA |
| Atlanta | — | 3–3 | 2–4 | 3–1 | 1–4 | 2–4 | 4–0 | 0–5 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 1–4 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 3–2 |
| Baltimore | 3–3 | — | 3–3 | 3–1 | 2–3 | 3–3 | 4–0 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 1–4 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 4–1 | 2–3 | 3–2 |
| Boston | 4–2 | 3–3 | — | 4–0 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 2–3 | 3–2 | 0–5 | 0–6 | 4–2 | 2–3 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 3–2 |
| Buffalo | 1–3 | 1–3 | 0–4 | — | 0–4 | 0–4 | 5–7 | 1–5 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 1–3 | 6–6 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 1–3 |
| Chicago | 4–1 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 4–0 | — | 4–0 | 4–0 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 1–5 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 3–3 | 3–1 | 6–0 | 4–2 | 3–2 |
| Cincinnati | 4–2 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 4–0 | 0–4 | — | 5–1 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 2–4 | 1–5 | 1–4 | 4–0 | 1–3 | 2–3 | 1–4 |
| Cleveland | 0–4 | 0–4 | 1–3 | 7–5 | 0–4 | 1–5 | — | 2–2 | 0–4 | 0–4 | 0–4 | 1–3 | 0–4 | 2–10 | 0–4 | 1–3 | 0–4 |
| Detroit | 5–0 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 5–1 | 3–3 | 4–1 | 2–2 | — | 2–3 | 1–5 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2–4 | 3–1 | 4–2 | 1–4 | 3–1 |
| Los Angeles | 2–3 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 2–2 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 4–0 | 3–2 | — | 1–4 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2–4 | 4–0 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 4–2 |
| Milwaukee | 4–1 | 4–1 | 5–0 | 4–0 | 5–1 | 4–1 | 4–0 | 5–1 | 4–1 | — | 1–4 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 6–0 | 5–1 |
| New York | 3–3 | 4–2 | 6–0 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 4–0 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 4–1 | — | 2–4 | 4–1 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 3–2 | 2–3 |
| Philadelphia | 2–4 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 4–0 | 2–3 | 5–1 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 1–4 | 4–2 | — | 3–2 | 4–0 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 3–2 |
| Phoenix | 4–1 | 2–3 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 3–3 | 4–1 | 4–0 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 2–4 | 1–4 | 2–3 | — | 4–0 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 3–2 |
| Portland | 2–2 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 6–6 | 1–3 | 0–4 | 10–2 | 1–3 | 0–4 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 0–4 | 0–4 | — | 0–4 | 1–3 | 2–4 |
| San Diego | 3–2 | 1–4 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 0–6 | 3–1 | 4–0 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 4–0 | — | 2–4 | 5–1 |
| San Francisco | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 2–4 | 0–6 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 4–2 | — | 3–3 |
| Seattle | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 2–3 | 4–1 | 4–0 | 1–3 | 2–4 | 1–5 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 1–5 | 3–3 | — |
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Game log
More information 1970–71 game log Total: 38–44 (Home: 27–13; Road: 11–30; Neutral: 0–1), Game ...
| 1970–71 game log Total: 38–44 (Home: 27–13; Road: 11–30; Neutral: 0–1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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October: 5–5 (home: 4–1; road: 1–4)
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November
: 7–8 (home: 5–2; road: 2–6)
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December
: 6–9 (home: 4–4; road: 2–5)
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January
: 7–8 (home: 4–2; road: 3–6)
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February
: 6–9 (home: 5–4; road: 1–5)
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March
: 7–5 (home: 5–1; road: 2–4) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1970–71 season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
More information Player, GP ...
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Black [a] | 55 | – | 14.1 | .414 | – | .699 | 4.1 | .8 | – | – | 5.0 |
| Barry Clemens | 78 | – | 16.5 | .470 | – | .728 | 3.1 | 1.2 | – | – | 7.4 |
| Pete Cross | 79 | – | 27.8 | .442 | – | .690 | 12.0 | 1.4 | – | – | 8.0 |
| Bob Rule | 4 | – | 35.5 | .480 | – | .833 | 11.5 | 1.8 | – | – | 29.8 |
| Jake Ford | 5 | – | 13.6 | .360 | – | .727 | 1.8 | 1.8 | – | – | 6.8 |
| Spencer Haywood | 33 | – | 35.2 | .449 | – | .734 | 12.0 | 1.5 | – | – | 20.6 |
| Gar Heard | 65 | – | 15.8 | .381 | – | .656 | 5.0 | .7 | – | – | 5.9 |
| Don Kojis | 79 | – | 27.1 | .446 | – | .778 | 5.5 | 1.6 | – | – | 14.6 |
| Tom Meschery | 79 | – | 23.1 | .463 | – | .750 | 6.1 | 1.4 | – | – | 9.3 |
| Don Smith | 61 | – | 20.9 | .441 | – | .739 | 7.7 | .7 | – | – | 10.9 |
| Dick Snyder | 82 | – | 34.4 | .531 | – | .837 | 3.1 | 4.3 | – | – | 19.4 |
| Rod Thorn | 63 | – | 12.2 | .472 | – | .676 | 1.6 | 2.9 | – | – | 5.6 |
| Lenny Wilkens | 71 | – | 37.2 | .419 | – | .803 | 4.5 | 9.2 | – | – | 19.8 |
| Lee Winfield | 79 | – | 20.3 | .466 | – | .664 | 2.4 | 2.8 | – | – | 10.5 |
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- a Statistics with the Seattle SuperSonics.
- Lenny Wilkens was named Most Valuable Player at the 1971 NBA All-Star Game.
Overview
| Players Added Via draft Via trade Via free agency
|
Players Lost Via trade |
^ The Sonics signed Haywood as a free agent after he spent a season with the American Basketball Association's Denver Rockets, who signed Haywood after his sophomore year at the University of Detroit Mercy under a hardship clause. Because eligibility rules of the National Basketball Association at the time required a span of four years after high school graduation for a player to be picked by any team, a legal battle ensued, with the federal court ruling in favor of Haywood.[4]
Trades
| September 17, 1970 | To Seattle SuperSonics Don Smith Cash considerations |
To Milwaukee Bucks Lucius Allen Bob Boozer |
- "Boston Minutemen on Time". The Evening News. October 23, 1970. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
- "Boozer to Bucks". Evening Independent. September 18, 1970. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
- "Smith Claims Retirement". Florence Times. September 20, 1970. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
- "Spencer Haywood Wins Court Permission to Play With Supersonics". The Day. March 2, 1971. Retrieved June 11, 2012.