1969 ABA playoffs

The 1969 ABA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1968–69 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Oakland Oaks defeating the Eastern Division champion Indiana Pacers, four games to one in the ABA Finals. Warren Jabali of the Oaks was named the Playoff MVP.

Notable events

The Oakland Oaks won the ABA championship after finishing with the league's best record during the regular season. The Pittsburgh Pipers had accomplished the same feat the year prior.
Rick Barry, now eligible to play for the Oaks after being forced to sit out the previous season, averaged 34.0 points during the regular season. However, Barry only played 35 regular season games before injuring a knee and missing the playoffs.
The Oaks, like the Pittsburgh Pipers before them, did not play in the following season as the same team. The Oakland Oaks became the Washington Caps for the 1969–1970 ABA season; the Pittsburgh Pipers had become the Minnesota Pipers after winning the ABA championship the prior season.
The Oaks' 60–18 record in this season was the best in ABA history until the Kentucky Colonels finished the 1971–1972 season with a record of 68–16, a record that was never surpassed.
Warren Jabali of Oakland was the Most Valuable Player of the ABA playoffs.

Division Semifinals

Eastern Division Semifinals

(1) Indiana Pacers vs. (3) Kentucky Colonels

This was the first time that the Pacers and Colonels played each other in the postseason. As it turned out, they would play each other four more times in the next eight years.
This was the first and only time in ABA history that a team overcame a 3–1 deficit to win a playoff series.

Division Finals

Eastern Division Finals

(1) Indiana Pacers vs. (2) Miami Floridians

Due to the Fairgrounds being booked for the circus, the Pacers played 35 miles down the road in Anderson, Indiana.

ABA Finals: (W1) Oakland Oaks vs. (E1) Indiana Pacers

In the second half of the season, Gary Bradds had taken over for an injured Rick Barry and acquired the nickname of "super sub". In Game 1, the "super sub" scored 40 points while going 16-of-25 with a perfect eight-for-eight from the free throw line as Oakland's fast break offense eventually pressed over Indiana in the final quarter.
The trio of Roger Brown, Bob Netolicky, and Freddie Lewis scored 110 points as the Pacers ran rough-shod over Oakland, scoring 40 points in the second quarter to lead by 23 at halftime. League MVP Mel Daniels had gone to the bench at the end of the first quarter with four fouls that led to their coach going to Netolicky to play center for the next two quarters, which resulted in him scoring 36 points. The Pacers won their first game over Oakland this year, having lost all six regular season matchups that year.
A tight game saw 14 ties and a few lead changes that saw Oakland lead by six with just seven minutes to go before Freddie Lewis stoked a 10–0 run to give them a 109–105 lead. With the Pacers leading 117–115, Roger Brown had a chance at the free-throw line to give them a bigger lead. However, he could only make one free throw and Gary Bradds recovered the rebound on the last miss and called time out to give Oakland the ball at the backcourt of Indiana with time expiring. Warren Jabali then posted up for a three-pointer and hit from over 25 feet out to send the game into overtime. The teams traded baskets in overtime before Oakland finally pulled away. With the score 126–125, Doug Moe hit two free throws before Jabali then hit a 22-foot shot to increase the lead to five as the Oaks eventually won by eight. Fans in Indiana were so emotional at the defeat that they apparently focused their attention on referees Ron Rakel and Andy Hershock and raised hands at them, with Rakel getting a cut lip.
The two teams exchanged leads seven times in the first eight minutes before Doug Moe pulled Oakland ahead for good with a shot to make it 17–16 as Oakland would proceed to lead by 10 at halftime and by 30 at the close of the third quarter.
Over 6,000 fans watched a climatic finish, among the biggest crowds attracted to see an Oaks game. The game went into overtime after Warren Jabali could only make one free throw to give Oakland a two-point lead before Ron Perry made two-of-three free throws to create overtime. The Oaks, leading 131–130, were then boosted by Doug Moe making two free throws before getting the ball back after Roger Brown missed a shot before the ball eventually made it to Larry Brown, who was fouled with 14 seconds remaining to sink two more free throws to clinch the game.
Following the conclusion of the championship series, the Oaks were slated to have been the first ABA champion to ask for a competitive championship match against the NBA champions, which became the Boston Celtics season|Boston Celtics]. However, the Celtics would immediately reject to the idea, though the notion of the ABA champion asking the NBA champion to compete against each other to find out who the ultimate champion in the sport of basketball would supposedly continue beyond the Oaks with every other ABA champion presumably trying and failing to get a championship match-up to go down between each other, with the most famous attempt occurring in 1975.
The game turned out to be the last one played in Oakland. On August 21, 1969, the team was sold to Earl Foreman, who moved the team to Washington, D.C. in the summer despite owners Ken Davidson and Pat Boone saying differently in the title celebration.
It was later revealed in the book Loose Balls that the championship ring that was acquired by the Oaks' owners was accidentally written on a blank check as $1.5 million for his bank to spend on, which also helped lead to the Oaks franchise being sold off to Foreman that year.

Statistical leaders

Total leaders

Points

Rebounds

Assists

Minutes