| 1964 NBA draft | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Date(s) | May 4, 1964 |
| Location | Plaza Hotel (New York City, New York)[1] |
| Overview | |
| 101 total selections in15 rounds | |
| League | NBA |
| Territorial pick(s) | Walt Hazzard,Los Angeles Lakers George Wilson,Cincinnati Royals |
| First selection | Jim Barnes,New York Knicks |
The1964 NBA draft was the 18th annualdraft of theNational Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 4, 1964, before the1964–65 season. In thisdraft, nine NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S.college basketball players. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. In each round, the teams select in reverse order of their win–loss record in theprevious season. Before the draft, a team could forfeit its first-round draft pick and then select any player from within a 50-mile (80 km) radius of its home arena as theirterritorial pick.[2][3] The draft consisted of 15 rounds comprising 101 players selected.
Walt Hazzard andGeorge Wilson were selected asLos Angeles Lakers' andCincinnati Royals' territorial picks before the draft respectively.Jim Barnes fromTexas Western College was selectedfirst overall by theNew York Knicks.Willis Reed fromGrambling College, who went on to win theRookie of the Year Award in his first season, was selected eighth overall by the New York Knicks.[4] Reed has been inducted into theBasketball Hall of Fame as a player and was also named in the50 Greatest Players in NBA History list announced at the league's 50th anniversary in 1996.[5][6] Reed, who spent all of his 10-year playing career with the Knicks, won theNBA championships twice in1970 and1973. In bothNBA Finals, he was named theFinals MVP. He also won theMost Valuable Player Award in 1970 and was selected to fiveAll-NBA Teams and sevenAll-Star Games.[7] He became a head coach after ending his playing career. He coached the Knicks for two seasons and then theNew Jersey Nets for two seasons.[8]
Paul Silas, the 10th pick, won three NBA championships, two with theBoston Celtics in1974 and1976 and one with theSeattle SuperSonics in1979. He also had two All-Star Game selections.[9] After his playing career, he coached four NBA teams, most recently with theCharlotte Bobcats (nowCharlotte Hornets).[10]Jerry Sloan, the 19th pick, was selected to two All-Star Games in his playing career before becoming a head coach. He coached theChicago Bulls for three seasons before being fired during the1981–82 season. He then became the head coach of theUtah Jazz in1988, the position he held until resigning in early2011.[11] He has been inducted to theBasketball Hall of Fame as a coach.[5] Hazzard, 2nd pickJoe Caldwell, 4th pickLucious Jackson and 5th pickJeff Mullins are the only other players from this draft who have been selected to an All-Star Game.[12][13][14][15]John Thompson, the 25th pick, has also been inducted to the Basketball Hall of Hame as a coach.[5] After finishing his playing career, he became a successful college basketball head coach atGeorgetown University. He coached theGeorgetown Hoyas for 27 seasons, winning theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)championship in1984 and becoming the firstAfrican American head coach to win a major collegiate championship.[16][17] Aside from playing basketball, 12th pickCotton Nash also playedprofessional baseball in theMajor League Baseball (MLB). He played baseball for three seasons in between his basketball career.[18][19] He is one of only 12 athletes who have played in both NBA and MLB.[20][21][22]
Also of note was a player who was officially undrafted in 1964 namedConnie Hawkins. While a successful player overall, Hawkins during his freshman year at theUniversity of Iowa back in 1961 was involved with a point shaving scandal. Despite never being convicted of point shaving (with the only involvement being him borrowing $200 byJack Molinas for school expenses, which he paid back to Jack's brother, Fred Molinas, before the scandal broke out), he was officially kicked out of the team before having a chance to play due to NCAA rules and regulations at the time. Hawkins would later play with thePittsburgh Rens of the rivalingAmerican Basketball League and the independentHarlem Globetrotters before officially being undrafted in 1964. He became undrafted again in 1965 before being permanently banned from the NBA altogether in 1966. However, Hawkins would sue the NBA for $6 million in damages to his reputation, saying the league banned him unfairly and that they had no substantial evidence linking him to the point shaving scandal of that time. Eventually, the league settled with Hawkins by paying him a settlement of $1.3 million and assigning him to thePhoenix Suns in 1969, effectively removing his permanent ban. While he would only play in the NBA for seven seasons afterwards, his number would be retired by the Suns on November 19, 1976, before being in theNaismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992.
| Pos. | G | F | C |
| Position | Guard | Forward | Center |
| ^ | Denotesplayer who has been inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |
| + | Denotesplayer who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game |
| # | Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular season or playoff game |
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The following list includes other draft picks who have appeared in at least one NBA game.[23][24]
| Round | Pick | Player | Pos. | Nationality | Team | School/club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 18 | Wali Jones | G |  United States | Detroit Pistons | Villanova |
| 3 | 19 | Jerry Sloan^ | G/F | United States | Baltimore Bullets | Evansville |
| 3 | 20 | Larry Jones | G/F | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | Toledo |
| 3 | 23 | McCoy McLemore | F/C | United States | San Francisco Warriors | Drake |
| 3 | 24 | Steve Courtin | G | United States | Cincinnati Royals | Saint Joseph's |
| 3 | 25 | John Thompson | F | United States | Boston Celtics | Providence |
| 4 | 26 | Freddie Crawford | G/F | United States | New York Knicks | St. Bonaventure |
| 4 | 27 | Jim Davis | F/C | United States | Detroit Pistons | Colorado |
| 4 | 30 | Hank Finkel | C | United States | Los Angeles Lakers | Dayton |
| 4 | 33 | Happy Hairston | F | United States | Cincinnati Royals | NYU |
| 4 | 34 | Joe Strawder | C | United States | Boston Celtics | Bradley |
| 5 | 40 | John Tresvant | F/C | United States | St. Louis Hawks | Seattle |
| 7 | 53 | Em Bryant | G | United States | New York Knicks | DePaul |
| 9 | 72 | Tom Black | C | United States | Baltimore Bullets | South Dakota State |
These players were not selected in the 1964 draft but played at least one game in the NBA.
| Player | Pos. | Nationality | School/club team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connie Hawkins^ | F | United States | Harlem Globetrotters |
| Steve Jones | G | United States | Oregon |
| Art Williams | PG | United States | Cal Poly Pomona |
^ 1: Walt Hazzard changed his name to Mahdi Abdul-Rahman in 1972. However, he retained his birth name throughout his professional career.[26]
^ 2: Bill Chmielewski left college in 1962 after his sophomore year. He then played in theAmerican Basketball League (ABL), before the league folded in 1963.[27][28]