Connie Hawkins, 1942-2017

A more exciting basketball player than LeBron James has died, and most of you under age 40 have never heard of him. Even most of those who have haven't really seen him play.

Cornelius Lance Hawkins was born on July 17, 1942 in Brooklyn. He grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section, and became a playground basketball legend. "The Hawk" led Boys High School to undefeated City Championship seasons in 1959 and 1960. He received a scholarship to the University of Iowa.

Up until 1972, the NCAA prohibited freshmen from playing varsity football and basketball. So Connie Hawkins did not play for Iowa as a freshman in the 1960-61 season. What he did do was borrow $200 for school expenses from a New York lawyer named Jack Molinas. Connie's brother Fred paid that money back. Now, this was a rules violation, which, under today's rules, probably (and unfairly) would have earned him a suspension.

Then came what became known as the 1961 College Basketball Gambling Scandal. Molinas was at the center of it, having paid players to shave points. Hawkins was not one of those players -- he couldn't be, since he was already ineligible.

New York cops investigated, and questioned Connie, and didn't let him talk to a lawyer. This was before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, in the case of Miranda v. Arizona, that, among other things, the police had to tell anyone that they questioned had the right to have an attorney present. Connie never admitted to any wrongdoing, and there was nothing to admit to, except the $200, which the cops couldn't prove affected a single game. He was never arrested, let alone indicted or convicted.

But the University of Iowa expelled him before he'd ever played a college game. No other NCAA or even NAIA school would let him in. NBA Commissioner J. Walter Kennedy could have let him go straight in -- there was no rule prohibiting it, and the NFL had let in players who hadn't played in college -- but he told the team owners that he would not approve any contract for him. And he had been too young to play for the U.S. Olympic team in 1960, and there was no chance he'd be chosen for it in 1964, since, as far as everybody was concerned, he was now a professional.

Instead, he signed with the Pittsburgh Rens of the American Basketball League, named for the old New York Rens (Renaissance Five), an early pro team from Harlem. The ABL folded during its 2nd season, 1962-63, and he was out of a job. But with his skills, he became a natural for the Harlem Globetrotters.

He became eligible for the NBA Draft in 1964, and wasn't drafted. Nor was he drafted in 1965. Finally, he sued the NBA, claiming he had done nothing in violation of NCAA or NBA rules, and that he should be allowed to play.

In the meantime, in 1967, the American Basketball Association was founded. Since the ABA hadn't banned him, and he had previously played for a Pittsburgh team, Connie signed with the Pittsburgh Pipers. He led the league in scoring, won the regular-season Most Valuable Player award, led the Pipers to the 1st ABA Championship -- meaning that Pittsburgh, which hasn't had an NBA team since the 1st season of 1946-47, has won championships in all 4 sports -- and won the Playoff MVP as well. He had proven his competitive point, if not his legal point.

In spite of the title, the Pipers lost money, so they moved to Minnesota for the 1968-69 season. Hawkins hurt his knee, and had surgery, and the Pipers were eliminated in the 1st round.

In the 1969 off-season, the NBA settled with him, offering him $1.3 million -- about $8.7 million in today's money -- and assigned his rights to the Phoenix Suns, who had finished tied for the worst record in the NBA with their fellow 1968-69 expansion team, the Milwaukee Bucks, and then lost the coin flip to decide the 1st pick in the 1969 NBA Draft, which they used on Lew Alcindor of UCLA, who later changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Connie Hawkins was 27 years old when he played his 1st NBA game. Think about that when you think about the 19-year-olds who think they're ready. Until this point, he had been more legend than man, his name associated with great feats that few people had actually seen.

Remember, there was no saturation coverage of sports back then. Under today's system, he would have been one of the most sought-after high school players, and, presuming he stayed in college, Dick Vitale would have called him a real P-T-P'er, a Prime Time Player, slam-jam-bam! ESPN would have had him in its Top 10 Plays after just about every college and pro game he played.

In 1969-70, he played in 81 of the 82 games, and averaged 24.6 points per game. NBA fans finally got to see his amazing aerial skills. The Suns, in only their 2nd season of play, reached the Western Conference Finals, and Connie averaged 25 points, 14 rebounds and 7 assists in that series, against the Los Angeles Lakers of Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor and Gail Goodrich.

That would be the best of Connie Hawkins at the highest level. Injuries kept him from playing most of the 1970-71 season. He led the Suns in scoring in 1971-72, but tailed off in 1972-73, and was traded to the Lakers. Injuries kept him from being the star he was, and he was traded to the Atlanta Hawks. He retired in 1976, only 34 years old, having spent only 7 seasons in the NBA -- 3 of them as an All-Star.

That same year, the ABA folded, and he was named to its All-Time Team. The Suns retired his Number 42, and in 1992, in recognition of his performance at all available levels, he was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Connie Hawkins died yesterday, October 6, 2017, at the age of 75.

UPDATE: He was buried at The Cemetery of the Evergreens, on the Brooklyn-Queens border.