1974–75 Denver Nuggets season

1974–75 Denver Nuggets season
Division champions
Head coach	Larry Brown
Arena	Denver Auditorium Arena
Results
Record	65–19 (.774)
Place	Division: 1st (Western)
Playoff finish	Division Finals (lost to Pacers 3–4)
Radio	KOA

The 1974–75 Denver Nuggets season was the franchise's eighth season and first as the Nuggets. The Nuggets were ranked first in points per game (118.7 ppg). They also had the best record in the ABA at 65–19 for their first division title in five years. However, they lost to the Indiana Pacers in the Division Finals.

Roster

1974–75 Denver Nuggets roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From PF 40 Byron Beck 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) January 25, 1945 Denver PG 20 Mack Calvin 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) July 27, 1947 USC C 22 Mike Green 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 200 lb (91 kg) August 6, 1951 Louisiana Tech PF 24 Bobby Jones 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) December 18, 1951 North Carolina SG 15 Patrick McFarland 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) December 7, 1951 Saint Joseph's C 25 Dave Robisch 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) December 22, 1949 Kansas SG 44 Ralph Simpson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) August 10, 1949 Michigan State PG 14 Fatty Taylor 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) March 13, 1946 La Salle SF 21 Claude Terry 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) January 12, 1950 Stanford SF 32 Jan van Breda Kolff 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) December 16, 1951 Vanderbilt SF 10 Donald Washington 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) April 22, 1952 North Carolina

Head coach Larry Brown Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster

Standings

Eastern Division

Team	W	L	PCT.	GB
Kentucky Colonels	58	26	.690	-
New York Nets	58	26	.690	-
Spirits of St. Louis	32	52	.381	26
Memphis Sounds	27	57	.321	31
Virginia Squires	15	69	.179	43

Western Division

Team	W	L	PCT.	GB
Denver Nuggets	65	19	.774	-
San Antonio Spurs	51	33	.607	14
Indiana Pacers	45	39	.536	20
Utah Stars	38	46	.452	27
San Diego Conquistadors	31	53	.369	34

Game log

• 1974-75 Denver Rockets Schedule and Results | Basketball-Reference.com

Stats

Rk	Player	Age	G	MP	FG	FGA	FG%	3P	3PA	3P%	2P	2PA	2P%	FT	FTA	FT%	ORB	DRB	TRB	AST	STL	BLK	TOV	PF	PTS
1	Ralph Simpson	25	82	34.9	8.5	16.8	.505	0.0	0.1	.083	8.5	16.6	.509	3.7	4.9	.754	1.3	3.5	4.8	5.4	2.0	0.2	3.8	2.6	20.6
2	Mack Calvin	27	74	33.3	6.5	13.5	.485	0.0	0.2	.188	6.5	13.2	.490	6.4	7.2	.896	0.5	2.4	2.8	7.7	1.9	0.1	3.8	2.8	19.5
3	Bobby Jones	23	84	32.2	6.3	10.4	.604	0.0	0.0	.000	6.3	10.4	.605	2.2	3.2	.695	2.7	5.5	8.2	3.6	2.0	1.8	2.8	3.1	14.8
4	Mike Green	23	81	31.6	7.3	13.5	.542	0.0	0.0	.000	7.3	13.5	.544	2.8	3.8	.738	3.5	5.8	9.2	1.2	1.0	2.1	2.5	3.3	17.4
5	Fatty Taylor	28	76	26.6	3.3	7.7	.428	0.1	0.3	.286	3.2	7.4	.434	1.7	2.3	.750	1.1	1.8	2.9	4.4	2.3	0.2	3.3	3.1	8.4
6	Dave Robisch	25	84	22.6	4.7	9.3	.503	0.0	0.0	.000	4.7	9.3	.504	3.6	4.1	.879	1.9	4.1	6.0	1.8	0.5	0.6	1.3	2.4	13.0
7	Byron Beck	30	84	21.6	4.6	8.9	.515	0.0	0.0	.000	4.6	8.9	.516	1.0	1.2	.835	1.5	2.6	4.1	1.3	0.7	0.2	0.9	3.2	10.1
8	Jan van Breda Kolff	23	84	19.5	1.8	4.1	.453	0.0	0.0	.000	1.8	4.0	.457	2.1	2.5	.839	1.4	2.8	4.3	2.2	0.6	0.5	1.5	2.0	5.8
9	Claude Terry	25	70	14.1	2.8	5.2	.530	0.1	0.4	.400	2.6	4.8	.540	1.0	1.3	.761	0.8	1.2	2.0	1.6	0.5	0.0	1.1	1.2	6.7
10	Patrick McFarland	23	70	13.5	2.9	6.1	.472	0.0	0.2	.125	2.8	5.8	.485	0.7	0.9	.788	0.5	1.2	1.7	1.7	0.7	0.1	1.5	0.9	6.5
11	Donald Washington	22	50	8.8	1.6	3.7	.432	0.0	0.0	.000	1.6	3.6	.436	0.8	1.1	.679	0.8	1.0	1.8	0.6	0.2	0.4	1.0	1.8	3.9

Playoffs

Western Semifinals

Game	Date	Location	Score	Record	Attendance
1	April 6	Denver	122–107	1–0	7,200
2	April 7	Denver	126–120	2–0	7,298
3	April 9	Utah	108–122	2–1	5,694
4	April 11	Utah	110–132	2–2	9,106
5	April 12	Denver	130–119	3–2	7,498
6	April 14	Utah	115–113	4–2	8,448

Nuggets win series 4–2

Western Division finals

Game	Date	Location	Score	Record	Attendance
1	April 20	Denver	131–128	1–0	7,444
2	April 22	Denver	124–131	1–1	7,491
3	April 24	Indiana	112–118	1–2	15,496
4	April 25	Indiana	126–109	2–2	17,389
5	April 27	Denver	90–109	2–3	7,483
6	April 30	Indiana	104–99	3–3	17,421
7	May 3	Denver	96–104	3–4	7,401

Nuggets lose series 4–3

Awards and honors

League leaders

• Field goal percentage: Bobby Jones
• Free throw percentage: Mack Calvin
• Assists per game:Mack Calvin
• Offensive Rating: Dave Robisch

All-ABA Teams

• Mack Calvin - 1st Team

All-Defensive Team

• Bobby Jones

All-Rookie Team

• Bobby Jones

ABA All-Stars

• Mack Calvin
• Mike Green
• Ralph Simpson