1968–69 Oakland Oaks season explained

The 1968–69 Oakland Oaks season was the 2nd and final season of the Oaks of the ABA. The Oaks finished first in the Western Division and won their first and only ABA title. They were helped in part by the hiring of Alex Hannum and Rick Barry for $85,000 per year.

In the ABA Western Division Semifinals, they defeated the Denver Rockets in seven games. In the ABA Western Division Finals, they swept the previous Division Champion, the New Orleans Buccaneers, in four games. Lastly, they beat the Indiana Pacers in five games to secure the title.^[1]

However, the team operated at a loss. Despite being owned by singer Pat Boone, S. Kenneth Davidson and Dennis A. Murphy, the team lost money due to the proximity of the San Francisco Warriors. Despite winning the title, the team moved to Washington to become the Washington Caps.

Roster

11 Larry Brown (Point guard, University of North Carolina)
12 Henry Logan (Point guard, Western Carolina University)
14 Russ Critchfield (Point guard, University of California)
24 Rick Barry (Small forward, University of Miami)
30 Gary Bradds (Power forward, Ohio State University)
31 Warren Jabali (Shooting guard, Wichita State University)
32 John Clawson (Small forward, University of Michigan)
33 Ira Harge (Center, University of New Mexico)
34 Doug Moe (Small forward, University of North Carolina)
40 Mel Peterson (Shooting guard, Wheaton College)
42 Jim Eakins (Center, Brigham Young University)
44 Andrew Anderson (Guard, Canisius College)

Bold indicates the player was on the final roster prior to the playoffs.

Season standings

! Team !! W !! L !! PCT. !! GB
Oakland Oaks	60	18	.769	-
	46	32	.590	14
	44	34	.564	16
	41	37	.526	19
	33	45	.423	27
	23	55	.295	37

Playoffs

Western Division Semifinals^[2]

Game	Date	Location	Score	Record	Attendance
1	April 5	Oakland	129–99	1–0	2,358
2	April 6	Oakland	119–122	1–1	1,580
3	April 8	Denver	121–99	2–1	5,062
4	April 10	Denver	108–109	2–2	5,431
5	April 12	Oakland	128–118	3–2	3,156
6	April 13	Denver	115–126	3–3	6,481
7	April 16	Oakland	115–102	4–3	5,123

Oaks win series, 4–3

Division Finals^[2]

Game	Date	Location	Score	Record	Attendance
1	April 19	Oakland	128–118	1–0	2,848
2	April 21	Oakland	135–124	2–0	1,749
3	April 23	New Orleans	113–107	3–0	4,253
4	April 25	New Orleans	128–114	4–0	3,583

Oaks win series, 4–0

ABA Finals^[2]

Game	Date	Location	Score	Record	Attendance
1	April 30	Oakland	123–114	1–0	3,290
2	May 2	Oakland	122–150	1–1	4,171
3	May 3	Indiana	134–126 (OT)	2–1	8,467
4	May 5	Indiana	144–117	3–1	7,133
5	May 7	Oakland	135–131 (OT)	4–1	6,340

Oaks win series, 4–1For scoring 21.5 points per game with 9.7 rebounds per game during the playoffs, Warren Jabali was named Playoffs MVP.

Awards, records, and honors

1969 ABA All-Star Game

External links

https://web.archive.org/web/20071017202704/http://remembertheaba.com/PlayoffPages/1969Playoffs.html

Notes and References

Web site: 1968-69 Oakland Oaks Roster and Stats.
Web site: Remember the ABA: 1968-69 Regular Season Standings and Playoff Results . 2016-07-11 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20071017202704/http://remembertheaba.com/PlayoffPages/1969Playoffs.html . 2007-10-17 .