Bill Melchionni

Bill Melchionni's career is a tidy map of pro basketball's two-league era. A Villanova guard drafted by the 76ers, he won an NBA title as a rookie reserve on Philadelphia's celebrated 1967 champions, playing behind Wilt Chamberlain and Hal Greer. Rather than wait his turn, he jumped to the ABA's New York Nets in 1969 and became a star, leading the league in assists per game three straight seasons (1971-1973), earning three ABA All-Star nods, and topping 20 points a game at his peak. He added two ABA championships as a steadying veteran on the 1974 and 1976 Nets, sharing the floor with a young Julius Erving. New Jersey later retired his No. 25 — one of the first numbers the franchise honored — recognizing him as the original Nets great from the red-white-and-blue-ball days.