When Did The ABA and NBA Merge?
On June 7, 1976, the ABA and NBA merged, creating a more unified basketball league. The ABA had been around since 1967, while the NBA was founded in 1946.
The ABA’s Founding
The American Basketball Association was founded in 1966. The ABA was formed to compete with the established National Basketball Association (NBA). The ABA consisted of eleven teams, and they played their first season in 1967. The league quickly gained popularity due in large part to its innovative rules. These included a 30-second shot clock (compared to the NBA’s 24-second clock), a three-point line, and a microcosm of market competition via the infamous “red, white, and blue” basketball.
In its nine-year existence, the ABA proved to be a viable competitor to the NBA. Four ABA teams (the Indiana Pacers, the New York Nets, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Denver Nuggets) were absorbed into the NBA in 1976 as part of a merger agreement between the two leagues.
The ABA’s Merger with the NBA
In 1976, the ABA completed its merger with the National Basketball Association (NBA). The ABA had been in talks with the NBA since 1971, but the deal was not finalized until 1976. The merger allowed for the four strongest ABA teams to join the NBA: the New York Nets, the Denver Nuggets, the Indiana Pacers, and the San Antonio Spurs.
The ABA’s Legacy
The American Basketball Association was founded in 1967, and for nine seasons it served as the upstart challenger to the National Basketball Association’s supremacy. The ABA introduced many innovations to the game of basketball, including the three-point shot, flashy uniforms, and a more freewheeling style of play. But despite these on-court innovations, the ABA was ultimately unable to take on the established NBA, and in 1976 the two leagues completed a merger.
The ABA’s legacy lives on in many ways. Most notably, several of its teams--including the Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, and San Antonio Spurs--were absorbed into the NBA after the merger. And while the three-point shot exists in today’s NBA, it wasn’t fully adopted until the 1980s (and even then it wasn’t used very often). So next time you’re watching an NBA game and see a player sink a long three-pointer, remember that you have the ABA to thank for that!
