Rick Mount
Encyclopedia
Richard Carl Mount (born January 5, 1947 in Lebanon, Indiana
) is a former American basketball
player in the American Basketball Association
(ABA). He was the first high school athlete to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated
.
During the summers, Rick worked as a lifeguard. Learning by repetition, he would shoot for hours at a time between shifts at the local Memorial Park. He gave kids ice cream money to help retrieve loose balls. After the likes of Glen Roberts
and Paul Arizin, Rick later helped establish the idealistic jump shot form before it was ever textbook
, influencing a number of future shooters at all levels in the sport.
in Lebanon, Indiana
. There, he led his team in scoring, including 33.1 ppg throughout his junior and senior seasons. His game started to attract national attention. In 1965, Lebanon played Crawfordsville High School at Hinkle Fieldhouse
in Indianapolis, Indiana
. With 10,000 people in attendance, the team made enough money to buy a bus. He scored 57 points in the game. On February 14, 1966, Mount became the first high school athlete to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated
, which featured him standing in front of a barn located in his Boone County
homeland. At the end of his Senior year, he won the Indiana "Mr. Basketball" award and was named "USA Basketball Yearbook Player of the Year," given to the nation's best high school player. He finished his Lebanon career with 2,595 points, currently the fourth highest total in Indiana high school history.
saw basketball as a second sport to football
, he stayed in-state and attended Purdue University
, located just 35 miles (56.3 km) northwest of his hometown, in West Lafayette, Indiana
to play basketball under head coach George King
.
As a freshman, Mount was unable to play on the varsity team due to NCAA regulations then in effect. Rick scored 33 points in a scrimmage against the varsity team in front of 9,500 in attendance at Lambert Fieldhouse
. He averaged 35 points a game while shooting 54.5 percent on the freshman squad, tallying 490 points.
team. It was also the first game played in Mackey Arena
. Averaging 28.4 points a game and leading Purdue to a 15-9 record, he was named a Second Team All-American and First Team All-Big Ten his sophomore season.
and Herm Gilliam
, he led the Boilermakers
to a Big Ten Conference
title and the school's first NCAA Tournament
appearance, leading to the NCAA Finals
game where they eventually lost to a Lew Alcindor
-led UCLA
.
In a win against Marquette
to bring the Boilers to the Final Four, Mount is remembered for his "leaping lofter" game-winning shot with two seconds left in overtime. He led all scorers in the tournament with a 40.6 point average in Purdue's three games. Purdue led the nation with 94.8 points a game during the 1968-69 season fronted by Mount's 33.3 a game, in effect beating Indiana
120-76 in the closing game of the regular season, becoming a school record for most points in a game.
Rick had a keen eye on telling if a goal wasn't balanced. He twice had officials adjust the same goal prior to the NCAA Finals game at Freedom Hall
in Louisville, Kentucky
. He went through the same procedure earlier in the season before a game at Iowa
. He led Purdue to a 23-5 record on the season. He shot 51.5 percent on the season, whereas well-known scorers such as Pete Maravich
and Calvin Murphy shot no better than 46 percent. He was selected as a First Team All-American and the Big Ten Player Of The Year.
, which was the NCAA Division I single-game record at the time. Thirty-two of his 61 points were scored in the first half alone. Later research found that if the three-point line had existed in 1970 in the NCAA, he would have scored 74 points in that game, credited with 13 three-point field goals. The official school record is eight, held by Cuonzo Martin
, Robbie Hummel
, and Ryne Smith.
Leading Purdue to an 18-6 season, he averaged 35.4 points a game and took second straight First Team All-American and Big Ten Player Of The Year honors. Mount left as the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,323 points throughout only three varsity seasons. At the time, it was also the Big Ten scoring record, surpassing the total of Indiana
's Don Schlundt. It is currently held by Indiana's Calbert Cheaney's 2,613.
Rick scored in double figures 72 consecutive games, while scoring 30-plus points in 46 of those games. Both remain school records. Rick broke numerous Purdue scoring records held by Dave Schellhase
and Terry Dischinger
. He led the Boilers to a 56-20 overall record during his career.
Rick Mount never received a national player of the year award. Although a favorite for one throughout his college career, he came up short behind the likes of UCLA's Lew Alcindor and LSU
's Pete Maravich
.
, he was not drafted until the middle of the 8th round of the 1970 NBA Draft
by the Los Angeles Lakers
. Mount was, however, drafted in the ABA by the Indiana Pacers
as the 1st overall pick in 1970. As a result, his legendary status in Indiana made it a foregone conclusion that he would sign with the Indiana Pacers of the rival ABA. At the time, the ABA was the only professional league that featured a three-point line, which worked to Mount's advantage, as he was an outside shooter. During his first season in the ABA, Mount was offered $40,000 from Pro Keds to wear its new suede
basketball shoe. He declined the offer, because he personally preferred Chuck Taylors of the Converse brand.
, along with such teammates as George McGinnis
and Bob Netolicky
, he led the Pacers to the 1972 ABA Championship against Rick Barry
and the New York Nets. He handed off 2.9 assists and averaged 14.2 points a game, racking up 57 three-pointers in his second season as a Pacer. Along with old college teammate Billy Keller and Roger Brown
, they made Indiana a constant threat beyond the arc.
for the 1972-73 season. He averaged 15 points a game on the season. Teamed with Dan Issel
, he averaged 17 points in playoff games while leading the Colonels to the ABA Finals against his former Pacers.
, where he joined Ron Boone
. For the third straight season, Mount led a different team to the ABA Finals, eventually losing to the New York Nets.
According to Charley Rosen
, Mount displayed the most astounding exhibition of pure, one-on-none shooting he ever saw. Rosen was invited by the Utah coach, Joe Mullaney, to participate in an intra-squad scrimmage. After Mullaney officially terminated the session, several players lingered to play HORSE
. Because of Mount, the Stars' rules were unique. Shots had to be perfectly clean, counted only if the ball didn't touch the rim. Despite this wrinkle, Mount won every game. In the end, only Mount and Rosen were left on the court, and Mount was able to adjust the trajectory of every jumper so that the ball hit the inner part of the backside-rim in such a way that the ball would nudge the iron, split the net, and then bounce back to him. He supposedly could do this about 90 percent of the time.
. He averaged a career season-high scoring average of 17.1 points a game. Due to a dislocated shoulder, he had the 1974-75 season and his career cut short, possibly keeping him from further progress and improvement in his professional basketball career.
, tallying a total of 676. He was also a fine free throw shooter with 82 percent accuracy. Rick shot 31.7 percent beyond the arc and held a 43.3 field goal percentage in his five seasons in the ABA.
Rick Mount currently runs "shoot camps" for high school players throughout the Midwest, where each player will take 2,500 supervised shots. The instructional school is based solely on shooting and there is no scrimmaging involved.
An avid quail hunter in his spare time, he opened Rick Mount's Sports Shop, a hunting and fishing shop. Purdue is among Mount's customers for the "Shoot-A-Way" retrieval system, a device which returns a basketball down a track to a player after a shot. Rick did not attain his college degree, being 11-12 credits short, keeping him from becoming a high school coach.
In 1992, both Rick and his father were inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame
, located in New Castle, Indiana
.
Lebanon, Indiana
Lebanon is a city in and the county seat of Boone County, Indiana, United States. The population was 15,792 at the 2010 census. The city was named Lebanon because a stand of hickory trees on the site reminded one of the town's commissioners of the Biblical cedars of Lebanon...
) is a former American basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player in the American Basketball Association
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association was a professional basketball league founded in 1967. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976.-League history:...
(ABA). He was the first high school athlete to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
.
Early life
Rick Mount's father, Pete, was an avid basketball player who intended Rick to learn the game as well. He cut out the bottom of a peanut can so Rick could shoot tennis balls through it. Rick's first time playing with an official basketball goal was during the fourth grade. He was known to beat 8th and 9th graders. When it was time to try out for the school basketball team, he wasn't able to do a standard lay up, so that very night he practiced for hours until he had it down. The next day of tryouts, he made the team.During the summers, Rick worked as a lifeguard. Learning by repetition, he would shoot for hours at a time between shifts at the local Memorial Park. He gave kids ice cream money to help retrieve loose balls. After the likes of Glen Roberts
Glen Roberts
Glen Roberts was an American National Basketball League player. In college basketball, Roberts was one of the first players to put the "jump shot" to practical use.-Overview:...
and Paul Arizin, Rick later helped establish the idealistic jump shot form before it was ever textbook
Textbook
A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...
, influencing a number of future shooters at all levels in the sport.
1962-1966
Rick "the Rocket" Mount attended Lebanon High SchoolLebanon Senior High School
Lebanon Senior High School is the only secondary school in the Lebanon Community School Corporation. It is a medium sided school and a suburban school district located in Lebanon, Boone County, Indiana, about forty minutes from downtown Indianapolis. They are a 4A high school. Lebanon is part of...
in Lebanon, Indiana
Lebanon, Indiana
Lebanon is a city in and the county seat of Boone County, Indiana, United States. The population was 15,792 at the 2010 census. The city was named Lebanon because a stand of hickory trees on the site reminded one of the town's commissioners of the Biblical cedars of Lebanon...
. There, he led his team in scoring, including 33.1 ppg throughout his junior and senior seasons. His game started to attract national attention. In 1965, Lebanon played Crawfordsville High School at Hinkle Fieldhouse
Hinkle Fieldhouse
Hinkle Fieldhouse is a basketball arena located on the campus of Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. When it was built in 1928, it was the largest basketball arena in the United States, and it retained that distinction until 1950. It is the sixth-oldest college basketball arena still in...
in Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
. With 10,000 people in attendance, the team made enough money to buy a bus. He scored 57 points in the game. On February 14, 1966, Mount became the first high school athlete to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
, which featured him standing in front of a barn located in his Boone County
Boone County, Indiana
As of the census of 2000, there were 46,107 people, 17,081 households, and 12,810 families residing in the county. The population density was 109 people per square mile . There were 17,929 housing units at an average density of 42 per square mile...
homeland. At the end of his Senior year, he won the Indiana "Mr. Basketball" award and was named "USA Basketball Yearbook Player of the Year," given to the nation's best high school player. He finished his Lebanon career with 2,595 points, currently the fourth highest total in Indiana high school history.
1966-1967
Rick was considering committing to the University of Miami. Due to the fact that many in FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
saw basketball as a second sport to football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, he stayed in-state and attended Purdue University
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
, located just 35 miles (56.3 km) northwest of his hometown, in West Lafayette, Indiana
West Lafayette, Indiana
As of the census of 2010, there were 29,596 people, 12,591 households, and 3,588 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,381.1 people per square mile . The racial makeup of the city was 74.3% White, 17.3% Asian, 2.7% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.03% Pacific...
to play basketball under head coach George King
George King (basketball)
George Smith King was an American professional basketball player and collegiate coach. He was born in Charleston, West Virginia.-1946-1950:...
.
As a freshman, Mount was unable to play on the varsity team due to NCAA regulations then in effect. Rick scored 33 points in a scrimmage against the varsity team in front of 9,500 in attendance at Lambert Fieldhouse
Lambert Fieldhouse
Lambert Fieldhouse is an athletic facility on the campus of Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. It was built in 1937 on land bought by David Ross and George Ade as a replacement for Memorial Gymnasium to be the home of the Purdue basketball team, and also contained an indoor track...
. He averaged 35 points a game while shooting 54.5 percent on the freshman squad, tallying 490 points.
1967-1968
In his first varsity game, Mount scored a game-high 28 points in a last-second, two-point loss to a top-ranked UCLA1967-68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team
The 1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won UCLA's fourth NCAA National Basketball Championship under head coach John R. Wooden with a win over North Carolina....
team. It was also the first game played in Mackey Arena
Mackey Arena
Mackey Arena is located in West Lafayette, Indiana. Part of the Purdue University campus, it is home to the university's basketball teams, and occasionally hosts home games for the volleyball and wrestling teams...
. Averaging 28.4 points a game and leading Purdue to a 15-9 record, he was named a Second Team All-American and First Team All-Big Ten his sophomore season.
1968-1969
In his junior season at Purdue, along with seniors Billy KellerBilly Keller
William Curry "Billy" Keller is an American former professional basketball player.-1961-1965:...
and Herm Gilliam
Herm Gilliam
Herman L. Gilliam Jr. was an American professional basketball player. He was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.-1965-1969:...
, he led the Boilermakers
Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball
The Purdue Boilermakers basketball team is a college basketball program that competes in NCAA Division I and is a member of the Big Ten Conference. Purdue basketball holds the record for most Big Ten Championships with 22, along with being the only program in the conference to boast winning records...
to a Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
title and the school's first NCAA Tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
appearance, leading to the NCAA Finals
1969 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1969 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 25 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 8, 1969, and ended with the championship game on March 22 in Louisville, Kentucky...
game where they eventually lost to a Lew Alcindor
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a retired American professional basketball player. He is the NBA's all-time leading scorer, with 38,387 points. During his career with the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers from 1969 to 1989, Abdul-Jabbar won six NBA championships and a record six regular season...
-led UCLA
1968-69 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team
The 1968–69 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won UCLA's fifth NCAA National Basketball Championship under head coach John R. Wooden with a win over Purdue, coach Wooden's alma mater. The Bruins started the season with a 25–0 record....
.
In a win against Marquette
Marquette
-Locations:United States*Marquette, Iowa*Marquette, Kansas*Marquette, Michigan**Roman Catholic Diocese of Marquette*Marquette, Nebraska*Marquette , Wisconsin**Marquette, Wisconsin, village within the town*Marquette County, Michigan...
to bring the Boilers to the Final Four, Mount is remembered for his "leaping lofter" game-winning shot with two seconds left in overtime. He led all scorers in the tournament with a 40.6 point average in Purdue's three games. Purdue led the nation with 94.8 points a game during the 1968-69 season fronted by Mount's 33.3 a game, in effect beating Indiana
Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball
The Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing Indiana University . The school competes in the Big Ten Conference in Division I of the NCAA. The Hoosiers play on Branch McCracken Court at the Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana on the IU...
120-76 in the closing game of the regular season, becoming a school record for most points in a game.
Rick had a keen eye on telling if a goal wasn't balanced. He twice had officials adjust the same goal prior to the NCAA Finals game at Freedom Hall
Freedom Hall
Freedom Hall is a multipurpose arena in Louisville, Kentucky, on the grounds of the Kentucky Exposition Center, which is owned by the Commonwealth of Kentucky...
in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. He went through the same procedure earlier in the season before a game at Iowa
Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball
The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team represents the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, as a member of the Big Ten Conference and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. They currently play in 15,500-seat Carver-Hawkeye Arena, along with the school's women's basketball, wrestling, and...
. He led Purdue to a 23-5 record on the season. He shot 51.5 percent on the season, whereas well-known scorers such as Pete Maravich
Pete Maravich
Peter "Pistol Pete" Press Maravich was an American professional basketball player. Born and raised in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, Maravich starred in college at Louisiana State University and played for three NBA teams until injuries induced him to retire in 1980...
and Calvin Murphy shot no better than 46 percent. He was selected as a First Team All-American and the Big Ten Player Of The Year.
1969-1970
In his senior year, Rick had two 53-point games plus a 61-point game against conference champ IowaIowa Hawkeyes men's basketball
The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team represents the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, as a member of the Big Ten Conference and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. They currently play in 15,500-seat Carver-Hawkeye Arena, along with the school's women's basketball, wrestling, and...
, which was the NCAA Division I single-game record at the time. Thirty-two of his 61 points were scored in the first half alone. Later research found that if the three-point line had existed in 1970 in the NCAA, he would have scored 74 points in that game, credited with 13 three-point field goals. The official school record is eight, held by Cuonzo Martin
Cuonzo Martin
Cuonzo LaMar Martin is a retired American professional basketball player and is the current head coach of the University of Tennessee men's basketball team.-1986-1990:...
, Robbie Hummel
Robbie Hummel
Robert John Hummel is an American college basketball player for Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana...
, and Ryne Smith.
Leading Purdue to an 18-6 season, he averaged 35.4 points a game and took second straight First Team All-American and Big Ten Player Of The Year honors. Mount left as the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,323 points throughout only three varsity seasons. At the time, it was also the Big Ten scoring record, surpassing the total of Indiana
Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball
The Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing Indiana University . The school competes in the Big Ten Conference in Division I of the NCAA. The Hoosiers play on Branch McCracken Court at the Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana on the IU...
's Don Schlundt. It is currently held by Indiana's Calbert Cheaney's 2,613.
Rick scored in double figures 72 consecutive games, while scoring 30-plus points in 46 of those games. Both remain school records. Rick broke numerous Purdue scoring records held by Dave Schellhase
Dave Schellhase
Dave Schellhase is a retired American collegiate basketball coach and basketball player in the National Basketball Association .-Evansville North:...
and Terry Dischinger
Terry Dischinger
Terence Gilbert "Terry" Dischinger is a retired American basketball player in the NBA. He currently practices orthodontics.-High school career:...
. He led the Boilers to a 56-20 overall record during his career.
Rick Mount never received a national player of the year award. Although a favorite for one throughout his college career, he came up short behind the likes of UCLA's Lew Alcindor and LSU
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
's Pete Maravich
Pete Maravich
Peter "Pistol Pete" Press Maravich was an American professional basketball player. Born and raised in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, Maravich starred in college at Louisiana State University and played for three NBA teams until injuries induced him to retire in 1980...
.
1970-1971
Mount was considered an excellent professional prospect, but because the general managers of the NBA knew that Mount was already signed by the ABAAmerican Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association was a professional basketball league founded in 1967. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976.-League history:...
, he was not drafted until the middle of the 8th round of the 1970 NBA Draft
1970 NBA Draft
The 1970 NBA Draft was the 24th annual draft of the National Basketball Association . 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...
by the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
. Mount was, however, drafted in the ABA by the Indiana Pacers
Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers are a professional basketball team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They are members of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association...
as the 1st overall pick in 1970. As a result, his legendary status in Indiana made it a foregone conclusion that he would sign with the Indiana Pacers of the rival ABA. At the time, the ABA was the only professional league that featured a three-point line, which worked to Mount's advantage, as he was an outside shooter. During his first season in the ABA, Mount was offered $40,000 from Pro Keds to wear its new suede
Suede
Suede is a type of leather with a napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, shirts, purses, furniture and other items. The term comes from the French "gants de Suède", which literally means "gloves of Sweden"....
basketball shoe. He declined the offer, because he personally preferred Chuck Taylors of the Converse brand.
1971-1972
Playing for head coach Bob "Slick" LeonardSlick Leonard
William Robert "Slick" Leonard is a former professional basketball player and coach. A 6'3" guard, Leonard played high school basketball at Terre Haute Gerstmeyer High School, where he excelled as a tennis player, as well...
, along with such teammates as George McGinnis
George McGinnis
George F. McGinnis is a retired American professional basketball player, most notably with the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association . He was drafted into the ABA from Indiana University in 1971...
and Bob Netolicky
Bob Netolicky
Robert Netolicky is a retired American basketball player. A 6'9" power forward/center, he played professionally in the now-defunct American Basketball Association from 1967 to 1976....
, he led the Pacers to the 1972 ABA Championship against Rick Barry
Rick Barry
Richard Francis Dennis Barry III , better known as Rick Barry, is a retired American professional basketball player. He is considered by many veteran basketball observers to be one of the greatest pure small forwards of all time as a result of his very precise outside shot, uncanny court vision,...
and the New York Nets. He handed off 2.9 assists and averaged 14.2 points a game, racking up 57 three-pointers in his second season as a Pacer. Along with old college teammate Billy Keller and Roger Brown
Roger Brown
Roger William Brown , nicknamed "The Rajah", was an American professional basketball player.-Career:A 6'5" forward/guard, Brown starred at Brooklyn's George W...
, they made Indiana a constant threat beyond the arc.
1972-1973
Rick Mount was traded to the Kentucky ColonelsKentucky Colonels
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did...
for the 1972-73 season. He averaged 15 points a game on the season. Teamed with Dan Issel
Dan Issel
Daniel Paul Issel is a retired American Hall of Fame professional basketball player and coach.-Collegiate playing career:...
, he averaged 17 points in playoff games while leading the Colonels to the ABA Finals against his former Pacers.
1973-1974
In the middle of the 1973-74 season, Rick was traded to the Utah StarsUtah Stars
The Utah Stars was an American Basketball Association team based in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.Under head coach Bill Sharman the Stars were the first major professional basketball team to use a pre-game shootaround.-History:...
, where he joined Ron Boone
Ron Boone
Ronald Bruce Boone is a retired American Basketball Association player.During his years at Tech High in North Omaha, Nebraska, Boone stood 6'2" and weighed 175 pounds....
. For the third straight season, Mount led a different team to the ABA Finals, eventually losing to the New York Nets.
According to Charley Rosen
Charley Rosen
Charles Elliot Rosen is an American author and former basketball coach. From 1983–1986, he was an assistant to Phil Jackson with the Albany Patroons of the Continental Basketball Association ....
, Mount displayed the most astounding exhibition of pure, one-on-none shooting he ever saw. Rosen was invited by the Utah coach, Joe Mullaney, to participate in an intra-squad scrimmage. After Mullaney officially terminated the session, several players lingered to play HORSE
HORSE
H.O.R.S.E. is a form of poker commonly played at the high stakes tables of casinos. It consists of rounds of play cycling among:*Texas Hold 'em,*Omaha eight or better,*Razz,*Seven card Stud, and...
. Because of Mount, the Stars' rules were unique. Shots had to be perfectly clean, counted only if the ball didn't touch the rim. Despite this wrinkle, Mount won every game. In the end, only Mount and Rosen were left on the court, and Mount was able to adjust the trajectory of every jumper so that the ball hit the inner part of the backside-rim in such a way that the ball would nudge the iron, split the net, and then bounce back to him. He supposedly could do this about 90 percent of the time.
1974-1975
Mount spent the last season of his ABA and professional basketball career playing for the Memphis SoundsMemphis Sounds
Memphis Sounds was the final name of a franchise in the American Basketball Association. The team had begun as the New Orleans Buccaneers, and after three seasons in New Orleans, Louisiana moved to Memphis, Tennessee, where it had occasionally played some home games in the past to reasonable crowds...
. He averaged a career season-high scoring average of 17.1 points a game. Due to a dislocated shoulder, he had the 1974-75 season and his career cut short, possibly keeping him from further progress and improvement in his professional basketball career.
Career notes
Mount was amongst the top of the league in three-point shooting during the time he spent in the ABA, while averaging 11.8 points a game and in his career with a total of 3,330 points. Known mainly for his scoring abilities in high school and college, Mount contributed in a greater variety of ways during his pro career. As one of the finest passers in the league, he averaged 2.4 assistsAssist (basketball)
In basketball, an assist is attributed to a player who passes the ball to a teammate in a way that leads to a score by field goal, meaning that he or she was "assisting" in the basket. There is some judgment involved in deciding whether a passer should be credited with an assist...
, tallying a total of 676. He was also a fine free throw shooter with 82 percent accuracy. Rick shot 31.7 percent beyond the arc and held a 43.3 field goal percentage in his five seasons in the ABA.
After Retirement
Today, Rick Mount still lives in his hometown of Lebanon, Indiana with his wife, Donna. His son, Rich, played on the Purdue basketball team for two seasons (1989–1991) before transferring to VCU. Rich, who also played at Lebanon, left high school with the ninth most points in Indiana high school history. He currently works as a police officer in Lebanon.Rick Mount currently runs "shoot camps" for high school players throughout the Midwest, where each player will take 2,500 supervised shots. The instructional school is based solely on shooting and there is no scrimmaging involved.
An avid quail hunter in his spare time, he opened Rick Mount's Sports Shop, a hunting and fishing shop. Purdue is among Mount's customers for the "Shoot-A-Way" retrieval system, a device which returns a basketball down a track to a player after a shot. Rick did not attain his college degree, being 11-12 credits short, keeping him from becoming a high school coach.
In 1992, both Rick and his father were inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame
Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame
The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame is a sports museum and hall of fame in New Castle, Indiana. It honors men and women associated with high school, college and professional basketball in Indiana....
, located in New Castle, Indiana
New Castle, Indiana
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,780 people, 7,462 households, and 4,805 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,987.5 people per square mile . There were 8,042 housing units at an average density of 1,351.3 per square mile...
.
Sources
- Jeff Washburn, Tales from Indiana High School Basketball (Sports Publishing 2004).
- Mike Bresnahan, Covered in Glory (Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles TimesThe Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, January 3, 2003) - The Lafayette Journal and Courier, Most Memorable Moments In Purdue Basketball History (Sports Publishing 1998)