NBA 25th Anniversary Team
Encyclopedia
The NBA 25th Anniversary Team was announced in 11 December 1971 to celebrate the 25-year existence of BAA
/NBA. This team was meant to be an All-NBA Team
for that period. Up that time, All-NBA Teams only consisted of 2 teams (First and Second), so this Team also only consists of 2 teams/10 players (4 Forwards, 2 Center
s, and 4 Guards). The list excluded players who were still playing in the NBA, such as Wilt Chamberlain
and Jerry West
.
, Ned Irish
, Eddie Gottlieb, Haskell Cohen
, Danny Biasone, Lester Harrison
, Fred Zollner
, Ben Kerner, Fred Schaus
, and Bob Feerick
.
).
Name Career Years
Center
Bill Russell was the only unanimous selection to the team. All players of the 25th Anniversary Team have been inducted to Naismith Basketball Hall Of Fame. Furthermore, all nominees of the 25th Anniversary Team besides Feerick, Guerin, and Zaslofky have also been inducted into Naismith Basketball Hall Of Fame.
In 1980, only four players of the 25th Anniversary Team were selected into NBA 35th Anniversary Team
(Pettit, Cousy, Russell, and Mikan). However, along them, four other players of this team (Arizin, Jones, Schayes, Sharman) were selected into NBA 50 Greatest Players of All-Time on 1996.
Some of 25th Anniversary Team players and nominees appear on NBA Live video game series (since 2000) as players of NBA Live Legend All-Stars Teams
(50's All-Stars or 60's All-Stars).
Basketball Association of America
The Basketball Association of America was a professional basketball league in North America, founded in 1946. The league merged with the National Basketball League in 1949, forming the National Basketball Association ...
/NBA. This team was meant to be an All-NBA Team
All-NBA Team
The All-NBA Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The voting is conducted by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. The team has been selected in every season of the...
for that period. Up that time, All-NBA Teams only consisted of 2 teams (First and Second), so this Team also only consists of 2 teams/10 players (4 Forwards, 2 Center
Center (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...
s, and 4 Guards). The list excluded players who were still playing in the NBA, such as Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain was an American professional NBA basketball player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers; he also played for the Harlem Globetrotters prior to playing in the NBA...
and Jerry West
Jerry West
Jerry Alan West is a retired American basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . His nicknames include "Mr...
.
Selection process
A panel selected 25 nominees from all eligible players, made up from 10 Forwards, 10 Guards, and 5 Centers. Then every NBA player that had been named All NBA 1st Team up to that time gave his vote. The four top voted forwards, two top voted centers, and four top voted guards made the team.Eligibility requirements
To be eligible as a nominee, a player must (by 1971):- have completed his career, and
- have been named All-NBA Team at least once.
Selection panels
Red AuerbachRed Auerbach
Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach was an American basketball coach of the Washington Capitols, the Tri-Cities Blackhawks and the Boston Celtics. After he retired from coaching, he served as president and front office executive of the Celtics until his death...
, Ned Irish
Ned Irish
Edward S. "Ned" Irish was a basketball promoter and one of the key figures in popularizing professional basketball. He was the president of the New York Knicks from 1946 to 1974...
, Eddie Gottlieb, Haskell Cohen
Haskell Cohen
Haskell Cohen was the public relations director of the National Basketball Association from 1950 to 1969. He is known as the creator of the NBA All-Star Game. He was inducted to the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame for his contributions in basketball.-Career:In 1951, Cohen joined the NBA...
, Danny Biasone, Lester Harrison
Lester Harrison
Lester "Les" Harrison was an American professional basketball player, coach, and team owner and is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame....
, Fred Zollner
Fred Zollner
Fred Zollner was called "Mr. Pro Basketball" as the founder and longtime owner along with his sister Janet of the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons and a key figure in the merger of National Basketball League and Basketball Association of America into the National Basketball Association in 1949.Zollner,...
, Ben Kerner, Fred Schaus
Fred Schaus
Frederick Appleton Schaus was an American basketball player, head coach and athletic director for the West Virginia University Mountaineers, player for the NBA's Fort Wayne Pistons and New York Knicks, general manager and head coach for the Los Angeles Lakers, head coach of Purdue University...
, and Bob Feerick
Bob Feerick
Robert Joseph Feerick was an American professional basketball player, coach and general manager. He was born in San Francisco, California....
.
Nominees
List of nominees, sorted by position, and last name (players denoted with an asterisk had been inducted into Basketball Hall Of FameBasketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...
).
Name Career Years
Forwards
- Paul Arizin*, 1950-1962
- Joe FulksJoe FulksJoseph Franklin "Jumping Joe" Fulks was an American professional basketball player, sometimes called "the first of the high-scoring forwards". He was one of the first players, albeit posthumously, enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978...
*, 1946-1954 - Harry Gallatin*, 1948-1958
- Tom GolaTom GolaThomas Joseph Gola is a retired American basketball player.-Early Life:Gola was praised as a great all-around player as a high school student at La Salle College High School, where he led the Explorers to a Philadelphia Catholic League Championship...
*, 1955-1966 - Vern MikkelsenVern MikkelsenArild Verner Agerskov "Vern" Mikkelsen is an American former professional basketball player. He was one of the NBA's first power forwards in the 1950s and was known for his tenacious defense.-Early life:...
*, 1949-1959 - Bob PettitBob PettitRobert Lee "Bob" Pettit Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks . He was the first recipient of the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970...
*, 1954-1965 - Jim Pollard*, 1947-1955
- Tom Heinsohn*, 1956-1965
- Dolph SchayesDolph SchayesAdolph "Dolph" Schayes is a retired American professional basketball player and coach in the NBA. A top scorer and rebounder, he was a member of the 1955 NBA champion Syracuse Nationals and a 12-time All-Star....
*, 1948-1964 - George YardleyGeorge YardleyGeorge Harry Yardley III , best known as simply George Yardley, was an NBA Hall of Fame basketball player. He was the first player in history to score 2,000 points in one season, breaking the 1,932-point record held by fellow Hall of Famer George Mikan...
*, 1953-1960
CenterCenter (basketball)The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...
s
- Neil JohnstonNeil JohnstonDonald Neil Johnston was an American Hall of Fame basketball player at the center position who played 8 years in the NBA from 1951 to 1959....
*, 1951-1959 - Ed MacauleyEd MacauleyCharles Edward "Ed" Macauley was a professional basketball player in the NBA. His playing nickname was "Easy Ed."...
*, 1949-1959 - George MikanGeorge MikanGeorge Lawrence Mikan, Jr. , nicknamed Mr. Basketball, was an American professional basketball player for the Chicago American Gears of the National Basketball League and the Minneapolis Lakers of the NBL, the Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball Association...
*, 1946-1954, 1955-1956 - Bill RussellBill RussellWilliam Felton "Bill" Russell is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association...
*, 1956-1969 - Maurice StokesMaurice StokesMaurice Stokes was an American professional basketball player in the 1950s, whose career was cut short by a debilitating injury...
*, 1955-1958
Guards
- Richie GuerinRichie GuerinRichard Vincent "Richie" Guerin is a retired American professional basketball player and coach. The 6'4" Guerin played with the National Basketball Association's New York Knicks from 1956 to 1963 and was a player-coach of the St...
, 1956-1970 - Bob CousyBob CousyRobert Joseph "Bob" Cousy is a retired American professional basketball player. The 6'1" , 175-pound Cousy played point guard with the National Basketball Association's Boston Celtics from 1951 to 1963 and briefly with the Cincinnati Royals in the 1969–70 season...
*, 1950-1963, 1969-1970 - Bob Davies*, 1946-1955
- Bob FeerickBob FeerickRobert Joseph Feerick was an American professional basketball player, coach and general manager. He was born in San Francisco, California....
, 1945-1950 - Sam JonesSam Jones (basketball)Samuel Jones is a retired American professional basketball player at shooting guard and a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was known for his quickness and game-winning shots, especially during the NBA Playoffs...
*, 1957-1969 - Slater MartinSlater MartinSlater Nelson "Dugie" Martin Jr. is an American retired professional basketball player and coach who played the guard position for 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association...
*, 1949-1960 - Dick McGuireDick McGuireRichard Joseph "Dick" McGuire was an American professional basketball player and coach.One of the premier guards of the 1950s, McGuire spent eleven seasons in the NBA , eight with the New York Knicks and three with the Detroit Pistons...
*, 1949-1960 - Bill SharmanBill SharmanWilliam Walton "Bill" Sharman is a former professional basketball player and coach. Sharman completed high school in the rural city of Porterville, California and is mostly known for his time with the Boston Celtics in the 1950s, partnering with Bob Cousy in what some consider the greatest...
*, 1950-1961 - Bobby WanzerBobby WanzerRobert Francis Wanzer, also known as "Hooks" Wanzer is a former basketball player and coach. A 6'0" guard, he played collegiately at Seton Hall University, and was selected by the Rochester Royals in 1947...
*, 1947-1957 - Max ZaslofskyMax ZaslofskyMax "Slats" Zaslofsky was an American professional basketball player and coach.-Biography:Zaslofsky attended Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn, and St. John's University. He was Jewish....
, 1946-1956
NBA 25th Anniversary Team
List of 25th Anniversary Team players, sorted by position and vote received.- F Bob Pettit
- F Dolph Schayes
- F Paul Arizin
- F Joe Fulks
- C Bill Russell
- C George Mikan
- G Bob Cousy
- G Bill Sharman
- G Bob Davies
- G Sam Jones
- Coach Red Auerbach
Bill Russell was the only unanimous selection to the team. All players of the 25th Anniversary Team have been inducted to Naismith Basketball Hall Of Fame. Furthermore, all nominees of the 25th Anniversary Team besides Feerick, Guerin, and Zaslofky have also been inducted into Naismith Basketball Hall Of Fame.
In 1980, only four players of the 25th Anniversary Team were selected into NBA 35th Anniversary Team
NBA 35th Anniversary Team
The NBA 35th Anniversary Team was announced in 30 October 1980 to celebrated 35th Anniversary of NBA. Unlike its predecessor, the NBA 25th Anniversary Team, that followed the concept of All-NBA Team, this team was more like an NBA All-Star Team that contains the eleven best players in the NBA's 35...
(Pettit, Cousy, Russell, and Mikan). However, along them, four other players of this team (Arizin, Jones, Schayes, Sharman) were selected into NBA 50 Greatest Players of All-Time on 1996.
Some of 25th Anniversary Team players and nominees appear on NBA Live video game series (since 2000) as players of NBA Live Legend All-Stars Teams
NBA Live Legend All-Stars Teams
NBA Live Legend All-Stars Teams is a video game featuring teams on the NBA Live video games series . It features five teams, each representing a decade, starting from the 1950s. Each team consists great players from that era...
(50's All-Stars or 60's All-Stars).