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Richard Nixon was president, “Laugh-In” was the No. 1 TV show, bell-bottom pants were in, psychedelic art was the rage and Michael Jordan was 6 years old when pro basketball came to Charlotte 40 years ago.
The Carolina Cougars of the upstart American Basketball Association played their first game in the Charlotte Coliseum (the original one on Independence Boulevard) before 5,410 fans, defeating the Washington Caps on Oct. 22, 1969.
The Cougars – with Bob Verga of Duke and Doug Moe of North Carolina and coach Bones McKinney, the colorful former Wake Forest coach – scored a 122-91 victory over the reigning ABA champs, who were the Oakland Oaks the year before.
It was the beginning of a five-year relationship as a regional team playing in Charlotte, Greensboro and Raleigh until the franchise moved to St. Louis in 1974. The NBA Charlotte Hornets didn't arrive until 1988; they're now the New Orleans Hornets.
The ABA introduced the three-point shot, played with red, white and blue basketballs and started the dunk contest. Former Cougar Randy Mahaffey of Clemson remembers seeing the gaudy ball for the first time. “It looked like a beach ball,” said Mahaffey, 64, who played 167 games in two seasons and now lives in Jefferson, Ga.
The Cougars stocked the team with ACC players such as forward Billy Cunningham and guard Larry Miller, both from North Carolina (Miller scored a league-high 67 points in 1972) to draw fans. The team was based in Greensboro.
Mahaffey, a forward, recalled playing the New York Nets and guarding Rick Barry. After the game, he was delighted to see stats that showed he outscored and outrebounded the ABA star. Then someone shouted into the dressing room, “‘Barry was playing with a 103 temperature today.' It took my legs right out from under me,” Mahaffey said.
Other Cougars included center Jim McDaniels of Western Kentucky, guard Gene Littles of High Point and guard Joe Caldwell of the Atlanta Hawks. Former ABA player Larry Brown coached the Cougars to their best season with a 57-27 record in 1972-73.
The ABA lasted from 1967 to 1976. It produced superstars such as Julius (“Dr. J”) Erving. Four of its teams – Denver, Indiana, New York (now New Jersey) and San Antonio – merged with the NBA. St. Louis and other remaining teams folded.
Carolina Cougars crowds were enthusiastic if not large by today's NBA standards. Charlotte averaged more than 5,000 a game.
“I had a wonderful, wonderful experience,” Mahaffey said. “I made a lot of friends, ballplayers, people who were around the game. To play the game in front of an appreciative crowd just ratchets it up a notch or two.”
