70's

    

    Before starting this new part I'd like to make a report on different events that are related to the league and its functioning. To start with I haven't mentioned the All-Star Game since the beginning of this blog, which is a major event in a season since it brings together the best players of the 2 conferences of the league. If the word "conference" confuses you, just know that the league is divided into 2 parts, the West and the East (also called conference), each of them has its own ranking and only the first 4 teams of each conference can go to the Playoffs, which are the playoffs, the winner of the tournament wins the title (see picture below). Today it is still the same scheme that is in force despite some small changes. Then the draft, this event is specific to all American leagues, it is the selection of new players coming out of college by the league teams. The way it works is quite simple at that time, the 2 teams with the worst record in the league flip a coin to determine which of the 2 will get the first pick and then it continues to go up (the 3rd worst record will get the 4th pick, the 4th worst record will get the 5th pick, etc.) this process keeps the level of play fair between the different teams.

The 70's

    So let's begin to talk about the 70's, this decade has perhaps been the least publicised in history for a number of reasons. First of all the absence of star, indeed Bill Russell retired in 1969, Chamberlain and his Lakers dominate at the beginning of the decade but decline quickly, there is the young prospect Lew Alcindor drafted in 1969 by the Milwaukee Bucks thanks to a coin toss which seems promising, but his engagement against the war of Vietnam and the state in general is not well seen by the big authorities of the league. The player even converted to Islam and changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, simply the player who scored the most points in the NBA, a record that still stands.

    Another reason for this lack of visibility is the large presence of drugs, including cocaine, which circulates enormously in the locker room, add to that a presence of more and more black players and the public quickly loses interest in the league leaving the rooms empty and not even watching the games on TV.                                                                                                            Finally the last reason is that a competing league will be born, the ABA, it brings with it a new style of play with new rules (the 3 point shot line for example) and will quickly overtake the NBA in terms of ratings. The story will end in 1976 when the NBA will absorb the ABA and its 4 remaining teams (Spurs, Pacers, Nets and Nuggets).

    While the league seemed to be on the verge of collapse, it was saved again by two players who formed the most incredible rivalry in the history of the sport.