User:TJSPORTS/sandbox

Overview:
The National Basketball Association (NBA) holds an annual draft for teams to select players from the colligate and international levels that are eligible to enter into the league. The NBA draft started on July 1st, 1947 (the first offseason of the NBA after being founded in 1946). The draft was designed to allow struggling teams to acquire young talented players before becoming free agents, keeping the competitive theme of the league fair and the distribution of power within the league stable and ever-changing. The NBA Draft in the 1970s had one of the most talent-packed draft decades in NBA history. players such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Julius Erving, Bill Walton, and many more were drafted in the years spanning from 1969 to 1979. In 1970, the NBA had an expansion draft for three of its newly formed teams (Buffalo Braves, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Portland Trailblazers).

Rules, regulations, structure of the draft, and which players were eligible to be drafted to NBA teams in the 1970s were much stricter in their requirements. While some players were able to bypass these regulations others such as Larry Bird and Magic Johnson's NBA careers were delayed from starting due to the time frame and age restrictions that league rules had established. The 1970s Drafts structure and process were very long and modest in comparison to 2019's productions on T.V. The first NBA Draft ever televised was in 1980 and was considerably shorter in round selections. Draft picks in the 1970s were record-based earnings, that had some element of unpredictability with the annual coin flip. This along with the implementation of the three-point line resulting from a new wave of NBA talent drafted has given considerable importance to the NBA draft in the 1970s.

NBA Draft Rules and Structure:
The NBA draft structure during the 1970s was much different from how the NBA conducts its drafting process today in 2019. In the early years of the draft, teams would select players until they ran out of prospects they were willing to sign. By 1970 the draft had 19 rounds (totaling 237 players drafted). This was lowered to 18 rounds (198 picks overall) in 1972. In 1973 it was increased to 20 rounds (211 picks overall). By 1974, it had lowered its rounds to 10 (except for the 1977 draft, when the NBA decreased the number of rounds to eight) This was the structure of the drafting process until 1985. In 1989 the draft had lowered its rounds to two, having only 54 players being drafted in total that year.

In the 1970s there was no physical/televised NBA draft as there is produced today (It wasn't televised until USA Network broadcasted the draft in 1980). Team governers would select players in a board room not having media or prospects present during the selections. Governers could trade picks, players, and prospects for movement throughout the draft (much like today). The numbered placement of a team's draft picks were determined before the draft by the seasonal record and ranking of the year prior, except for the two worst teams in each conference, their picks were determined by a coin flip which determined who got the #1 or #2 overall pick https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2012/4/27/2980045/nba-draft-order-2012-coin-flip-lottery. This method was abandoned by the NBA to deter teams from intentionally tanking/losing in order to have a 50/50 chance at the #1 pick.

https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/nwitimes.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/51/e5101690-c015-5961-a158-8cc3fba963e9/515f694cda459.image.jpg

Rules of Player Eligibility
Players could not join NBA teams until four years after their high school graduation, however, players could still be drafted by NBA teams if they declared themselves draft eligible two years after high school graduation. This was most notably done by Larry Bird in 1978 which allowed him to be drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 6th Overall Pick in the 1978 NBA draft, only being in college for three seasons after high school, Bird continued to play for Indiana State during the 1978-79 NCAA season making his league debut in 1979 at the age of 23 https://www.basketball-reference.com/draft/NBA_1970.html. The NBA in the 1970s did not allow any player to join the league before their classes graduation until the "Hardship rule" was introduced. The Rule allowed for colligate players facing financial hardships to enter the draft before their colligate class graduated (Spencer Haywood filed for entry into the NBA due to financial hardships his family was facing). This led to the "Hardship draft" held on September 10th, 1971 http://www.espn.com/classic/s/moment010624four-year-rule.html Only six players were accepted for eligibility to be drafted (only 5 were drafted) including Phil Chenier who was drafted by the Baltimore Bullets fourth overall and has been the only player from the Hardship draft to make an All-NBA team and All-Star Team.

Larry Bird and Magic Johnson; Changing the Game and the NBA Three-point Line:
In 1978 Larry Bird was drafted 6th overall in the 1978 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics but was allowed to continue playing for Indiana State before rules prohibited Collegiate players from returning to their teams after declaring for the NBA draft. Earvin 'Magic' Johnson (point guard of the Michigan State Wolverines) was drafted first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. In both player's collegiate years from 1977-79, they sparked a competitive rivalry that gained fan interest across the nation. Their ability to shoot from far outside the paint and fast-paced new-aged style of play made the NBA implement the '3-point line' during the 1979 season. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00947679.2015.12059221

A league previously dominated by 'big-men' and tall centers started to evolve and allow for smaller faster players to become as equally dominant. Players drafted before Bird and Magic such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Russell were tall centers that excelled at grabbing rebounds and defending the inside paint. With the implication of an alternative method to score more points in an NBA game, teams started to focus on drafting players that could shoot and defend long-range shooters with fast ball movement and agility.

Legacy of the 1970s NBA Drafts:
The Legacy of the NBA drafting process in the 1970s introduced the league to new styles of play and talented prospects who are now Hall of Famers and considered greatest of all time. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Julius Erving, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson all introduced new styles of play the NBA had never seen. Magic Johnson's height as a point guard redefined the parameters for what a successful point guard must fit. Larry Bird's shooting and playmaking ability expanded the league's scoring options having the '3-point shot' as an integral part of his game. Many players to come such as Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Stephen Curry, and Klay Thompson would not be the players they are today without the 3-point line as their height and ability to play the game would have prevented them from dominating the NBA with their long-ranged 3-point heavy style of play. The implementation of the '3-point line' forever changed the game and allowed for front office managers to diversify their requirements for drafting NBA players (Superteam building such as the Golden State Warriors). The '3-point line' has given the opportunity for smaller faster players to impact the game and has also changed the post-centric style of play to a more unpredictable approach of scoring with more and more rebounding seven-footers shooting threes it has truly changed the focus and approach of the game.

Refrences
https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/magic-johnson-1.html

http://www.espn.com/classic/s/moment010624four-year-rule.html

https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2012/4/27/2980045/nba-draft-order-2012-coin-flip-lottery

https://www.basketball-reference.com/draft/NBA_1970.html

https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/nwitimes.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/51/e5101690-c015-5961-a158-8cc3fba963e9/515f694cda459.image.jpg

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00947679.2015.12059221