RealGM

"Reborn: The Pacers and the Return of Pro Basketball to Indianapolis" tells the story of the formation of the franchise in 1967 and its first two tumultuous seasons in the American Basketball Association -- seasons that laid the groundwork for the championships that followed. The first game was played on Oct. 14, 1967, so the timing is right to tell the story of the franchise that brought professional basketball back to Indy after a 14-year absence.

I have attempted to capture the dedicated effort to establish the franchise, the carefree, raucous nature of professional basketball at the time, and the unique stories of the players and other people involved with the team. It was an era never to be repeated, when a $6,000 down payment could claim a franchise, games were played in primitive arenas before a couple hundred fans, fights were commonplace, a player could toss a gun into his duffel bag and take it on a road trip and an 88-foot desperation game-winning heave could alter a life.

I grew up in Indianapolis and attended some of the games during these two seasons, and went on to cover the Pacers for The Indianapolis Star for 12 seasons, from 1996-2008, so I am familiar with most of the team's history. For this project, which goes deep rather than broad, I combed through the archives of several newspapers throughout the country, was given access to the personal files of one of the owners and interviewed dozens of players and other people connected with the franchise. I've exposed myths, revealed insights and told heart-warming, heart-breaking and hilarious anecdotes.

boomershadow wrote:even though I've read a lot on the history of the team, I'm sure this goes into some depth.