1 and the only… The net to win the goalscorer title: Julius Erving
Time: 1973-74 and 1975-76
Background: The New York Nets obtained Erving from Virginia Squires in 1973, right after the Long Island natives led the American Basketball Association with 31.9 of the highest career points per match. The deal sent $ 750,000, George Carter and draft rights to Kermit Washington to Squires for Erving and Willie Sojourner, while also sending cash to the Atlanta Hawks NBA, with whom Erving had signed in 1972, although he never played regular season games for they. When he arrived at the Nets, they only had one winning season in their six years of existence.
Thin: Dr. J immediately reversed the franchise, lifting the Nets to the ABA title in 1974 and 1976 with a pair of MVP playoffs to show. He led the league in scoring both seasons, dropping 27.4 ppg in 1973-74 and 29.3 ppg in 1975-76. The electric striker made the crowd buzz with his acrobatic dunks and picked them up again in the postseason, averaging 31.1 ppg during the championship.
The Other Coming Nearby: 31.5 Rick Barry points per game were the second highest at ABA in 1971-72 and still last as a single season franchise record. Vince Carter had a pair of top-10s completed in 2004-05 (27.5 as Net after trading from Toronto) and 2006-07 (25.2), as Stephon Marbury did, in 2000-01 (23.9) and 1998 -99 (23.4 as Net after trading from Minnesota).
Quote: “I’m not sure who is bigger in New York right now, us or the Twin Towers!” – Erving after the Nets’ won the ABA championship in 1974.
The tail: Months after the Nets’ title 1976, ABA and the NBA joined. The problem is that the Nets have to pay an expansion fee of $ 3.2 million, plus an additional $ 4.8 million compensation to the Knicks. They offered Erving in exchange for waiving fees, but the Knicks refused. In exchange, the Nets sold Erving to 76ers to be able to pay to the NBA.
Legacy: The Hall of Famer went on to play 11 seasons in the NBA, all of which were All-Star campaigns in Philadelphia. He averaged 22 ppg with 76ers, but is still widely regarded as the biggest Net.
