Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Indiana Pacers' 19721973 American Basketball Association Championship and their third American Basketball Association Championship in 5 seasons.

Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Indiana Pacers' 19721973 American Basketball Association Championship and their third American Basketball Association Championship in 5 seasons. Whereas the Indiana Pacers were founded in 1967, as members of the American Basketball Association; Whereas the Indiana Pacers won American Basketball Association Championships in the 19691970, 19711972, and 19721973 seasons and had 2 other championship appearances; Whereas, during the seasons between 1970 and 1975, the Indiana Pacers averaged 51 wins per season; Whereas Mel Daniels, Freddie Lewis, Roger Brown, and Billy Keller were members of all 3 Indiana Pacers championship teams; Whereas the 1973 Indiana Pacers championship team had a strong native Hoosier presence on the team; Whereas the 1973 Indiana Pacers championship team was built around George McGinnis, who attended George Washington Community High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, and later attended Indiana University; Whereas Billy Keller attended George Washington Community High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, and later attended Purdue University; Whereas Don Buse attended Holland High School in Holland, Indiana, and Evansville College in Evansville, Indiana; Whereas, during the 19721973 season, Don Buse, a rookie, made several contributions, and Gus Johnson, a National Basketball Association veteran at the end of his career, was brought onto the team to bring bench strength and leadership; Whereas the revived group finished with a 51 to 33 record after winning 11 consecutive games late in the 19721973 season, the fourth-best record in the league behind the Carolina Cougars and the Kentucky Colonels in the East and the Utah Stars in the West; Whereas the Indiana Pacers took control of the 19721973 series by winning Game 4 on the home court of the Houston Rockets, as Billy Keller hit a game-winning 3-pointer from the left wing off a broken play with 14 seconds left for a 97 to 95 victory; Whereas that shot gained historical value in passing years because William Robert Slick Boom, Baby! Whereas Boom, Baby! Slick Whereas, on May 12, 1973, the Indiana Pacers beat the Kentucky Colonels 88 to 81 in Game 7 of the American Basketball Association Championship; and Whereas that win gave the Indiana Pacers their third and final American Basketball Association title, the most titles held by a team in the history of the American Basketball Association: Now, therefore, be it That it is the sense of the Senate that (1) basketball has a rich history and passionate fan base in the Hoosier State and the Indiana Pacers have highlighted that rich history during the time in which they participated in the American Basketball Association; and (2) the history of the Indiana Pacers and their storied legacy should be recognized, especially during 2023, which marks the 50th anniversary of the Indiana Pacers' third and last American Basketball Association title and championship.

Summary: This resolution recognizes the 50th anniversary of the Indiana Pacers' third American Basketball Association title and championship.