1967–68 Seattle SuperSonics season

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1967–68 Seattle SuperSonics season
Head coachAl Bianchi
General managerDon Richman
ArenaSeattle Center Coliseum
Results
Record23–59 (.280)
PlaceDivision: 5th (Western)
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionKTNT-TV
RadioKOMO
1968–69 >

The 1967–68 Seattle SuperSonics season was the inaugural season for the expansion Seattle SuperSonics franchise in the National Basketball Association. The team's official arena was the Seattle Center Coliseum.

With a team built in its majority from the 1967 expansion draft featuring Walt Hazzard and six-year veteran Tom Meschery,[1] and with Al Bianchi at the head coach position, the Sonics finished the season with a 23–59 record and fifth place in the Western Division, six games behind the Chicago Bulls, and did not qualify to enter the playoffs.

Draft picks[]

Main articles: 1967 NBA draft and 1967 NBA Expansion Draft

The twelve-man roster for the 1967–68 season consisted of three rookies from the 1967 NBA Draft and nine players from the expansion draft. Al Bianchi's choice of player-coach Richie Guerin from the St. Louis Hawks came as a surprise to most, since Guerin had already announced his retirement, and thus did not play for the Sonics.[2] He would return for the 1968–69 season to play for the relocated Atlanta Hawks after Seattle traded him in the offseason. Selecting Tom Meschery from the San Francisco Warriors was made possible after the Warriors unprotected him for the draft, after Meschery informed the San Francisco front office that he desired to join the Peace Corps. Seattle's offer, however, was accepted by Meschery.[3] The SuperSonics planned to sign former Seattle University player Charlie Williams before the start of the regular season, but league rules prohibited the Seattle franchise to offer him a contract, since Williams was expelled from college after a point shaving scandal.[4][5]

Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 6 Al Tucker SF  United States Oklahoma Baptist
2 19 Bob Rule C / PF  United States Colorado State
5 54 Plummer Lott SF / SG  United States Seattle

Roster[]

1967–68 Seattle SuperSonics roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY-MM-DD) From
F/C 10 Akin, Henry 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1944–07–31 Morehead State
PG 42 Hazzard, Walt 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1942–04–15 UCLA
SG 11 Kron, Tommy 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1943–02–28 Kentucky
SF 43 Lott, Plummer 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1945–12–11 Seattle
PF 14 Meschery, Tom 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1938–10–26 Saint Mary's
F/C 41 Murrey, Dorie 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1943–09–07 Detroit
F/C 24 Olsen, Bud 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1940–07–25 Louisville
F/C 45 Rule, Bob 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1944–06–29 Colorado State
SG 44 Thorn, Rod 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1941–05–23 West Virginia
SF 33 Tucker, Al 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1943–02–24 Oklahoma Baptist
PG 12 Weiss, Bob 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1942–05–07 Penn State
C 15 Wilson, George 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1942–05–09 Cincinnati
Head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Regular season[]

Tom Meschery and Bob Rule of the Seattle SuperSonics going up against Wilt Chamberlain and the Philadelphia 76ers during the NBA's 1967-68 season.

Seattle kicked off the regular season with a game against the San Francisco Warriors on October 13 at the Cow Palace, where they fell 114–116.[6] Walt Hazzard had a high scoring debut, leading the Sonics' offense with 30 points, followed by Tom Meschery with 26.[7] After a week off, the Sonics played in consecutive days against the other expansion franchise, the San Diego Rockets, splitting the series and thus winning their first regular season game in franchise history.[8] After two streaks of four and eight straight losses,[8] the Sonics found themselves quickly near the bottom of the Western Division by the end of the first four weeks of competition.[9] A few surprising results stood out, including their only victory[8] against Bill Russell's Boston Celtics in a double-header in Philadelphia,[10] with the Celtics trailing by as much as 44 points after the first half,[11] and an outstanding performance by rookie Bob Rule, with 47 points in a victory against the Los Angeles Lakers.[12] On the other hand, the SuperSonics were on the losing end of two NBA scoring records. First, in December with a 122–160 loss against defending champions Philadelphia 76ers, that set a new NBA record for most points by a team in a quarter[13] and a 123–154 loss against the Lakers on January that tied a franchise record for Los Angeles for most points in a game.[14] With six games left in the regular season the Sonics were behind two games from the Chicago Bulls in a last effort to obtain a berth in the playoffs,[15] But in spite of defeating the Bulls in two of those six games,[8] Chicago managed to pull away with the fourth place in the Western Division and the last spot in the playoff race, six games above the Sonics.[16]

The SuperSonics registered an attendance of 202,263 during the regular season, the sixth best in the league in that regard.[17] Walt Hazzard was selected to represent the West in the 1968 NBA All-Star Game[18] and Bob Rule and Al Tucker were selected to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.[19]

Season standings[]

Western Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
x-St. Louis Hawks 56 26 .683 – 25–7 22–13 9–6 31–9
x-Los Angeles Lakers 52 30 .634 4 30–11 18–19 4–0 28–12
x-San Francisco Warriors 43 39 .524 13 27–14 16–23 0–2 24–16
x-Chicago Bulls 29 53 .354 27 11–22 12–24 6–7 11–29
Seattle SuperSonics 23 59 .280 33 10–21 7–24 6–14 15–25
San Diego Rockets 15 67 .183 41 8–33 4–26 3–8 11–29


Record vs. opponents[]

1967–68 NBA records
Team BAL BOS CHI CIN DET LAL NYK PHI SDR SFW SEA STL
Baltimore – 3–5 2–5 5–3 4–4 3–4 3–5 0–8 7–0 2–5 5–2 2–5
Boston 5–3 – 5–2 3–5 6–2 4–3 6–2 4–4 7–0 4–3 6–1 4–3
Chicago 5–2 2–5 – 5–2 3–4 1–7 2–5 1–6 4–4 2–6 3–5 1–7
Cincinnati 3–5 5–3 2–5 – 4–4 1–6 3–5 3–5 7–0 4–3 6–1 1–6
Detroit 4–4 2–6 4–3 4–4 – 2–5 4–4 1–7 5–2 4–3 6–1 4–3
Los Angeles 4–3 3–4 7–1 6–1 5–2 – 4–3 2–5 7–1 4–4 4–4 6–2
New York 5–3 2–6 5–2 5–3 4–4 3–4 – 3–5 6–1 5–2 4–3 1–6
Philadelphia 8–0 4–4 6–1 5–3 7–1 5–2 5–3 – 6–1 4–3 7–0 5–2
San Diego 0–7 0–7 4–4 0–7 2–5 1–7 1–6 1–6 – 2–6 3–5 1–7
San Francisco 5–2 3–4 6–2 3–4 3–4 4–4 2–5 3–4 6–2 – 7–1 1–7
Seattle 2–5 1–6 5–3 1–6 1–6 4–4 3–4 0–7 5–3 1–7 – 0–8
St. Louis 5–2 3–4 7–1 6–1 3–4 2–6 6–1 2–5 7–1 7–1 8–0 —

Game log[]

2012–13 game log
Total: 23–59 (Home: 10–21; Road: 7–23; Neutral: 6–15)
October: 2–6 (Home: 1–2; Road: 1–4)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 October 13 @ San Francisco L 116–144 Walt Hazzard (30) Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena
5,619 		0–1
2 October 20 San Diego L 114–121 Walt Hazzard (32) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,473 		0–2
3 October 21 @ San Diego W 117–110 (OT) Walt Hazzard (22) San Diego Sports Arena
5,413 		1–2
4 October 22 Cincinnati L 94–106 Walt Hazzard (27) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,116 		1–3
5 October 24 Baltimore L 125–136 Bob Rule (25) Portland, Oregon
1,533 		1–4
6 October 27 @ Philadelphia L 115–132 Bob Rule (18) The Spectrum
4,352 		1–5
7 October 28 @ St. Louis L 109–116 Tommy Kron (21) Kiel Auditorium
5,218 		1–6
8 October 31 Chicago W 114–104 Walt Hazzard (34) Seattle Center Coliseum
3,109 		2–6
November : 5–11 (Home: 3–1; Road: 2–10)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
9 November 1 San Diego L 125–139 Al Tucker (23) Portland, Oregon
2,593 		2–7
10 November 2 Chicago L 105–109 Bob Rule (27) Spokane, Washington
1,051 		2–8
11 November 3 New York L 100–134 Walt Hazzard (19) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,654 		2–9
12 November 7 @ San Francisco L 112–126 Bob Weiss (20) Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena
3,168 		2–10
13 November 8 @ St. Louis L 96–111 Walt Hazzard (20) Kiel Auditorium
3,022 		2–11
14 November 9 Detroit L 118–119 Walt Hazzard (33) Madison Square Garden 2–12
15 November 11 @ Baltimore L 129–134 Walt Hazzard (26) Baltimore Civic Center
4,685 		2–13
16 November 14 Boston L 111–114 Bob Weiss (29) Madison Square Garden 2–14
17 November 17 San Diego W 130–124 Walt Hazzard (30) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,162 		3–14
18 November 19 Detroit W 132–130 (OT) Bob Rule (31) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,468 		4–14
19 November 20 Detroit L 118–120 Bob Weiss (27) Tacoma, Washington
2,311 		4–15
20 November 21 L. A. Lakers W 137–132 Bob Rule (47) Seattle Center Coliseum
8,122 		5–15
21 November 23 Boston W 133–106 Bob Rule (26) Philadelphia 6–15
22 November 25 Cincinnati L 133–153 Walt Hazzard (19) Cleveland, Ohio
3,455 		6–16
23 November 25 @ New York L 110–111 Walt Hazzard (21) Madison Square Garden
9,011 		6–17
24 November 28 @ Chicago W 111–108 Three players (20) Chicago Stadium
1,659 		7–17
December : 4–14 (Home: 2–8; Road: 2–6)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
25 December 1 Philadelphia L 109–133 Bob Rule (29) Boston 7–18
26 December 3 St. Louis L 109–123 Tom Meschery (23) Seattle Center Coliseum
7,938 		7–19
27 December 5 @ San Francisco L 121–133 Walt Hazzard (29) Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena
2,306 		7–20
28 December 8 Chicago L 114–115 Walt Hazzard,
Bob Rule (21) 		Seattle Center Coliseum
3,835 		7–21
29 December 10 L. A. Lakers W 133–123 Al Tucker (35) Seattle Center Coliseum
7,006 		8–21
30 December 12 Philadelphia L 107–118 Al Tucker (27) New York City 8–22
31 December 15 @ Chicago W 122–115 Walt Hazzard (36) Chicago Stadium
1,686 		9–22
32 December 17 Philadelphia L 124–139 Rod Thorn (22) Seattle Center Coliseum
11,294 		9–23
33 December 18 Detroit L 122–140 Rod Thorn (29) Tacoma, Washington
1,658 		9–24
34 December 19 Boston L 114–118 Walt Hazzard (37) Seattle Center Coliseum
6,889 		9–25
35 December 20 Philadelphia L 122–160 Walt Hazzard (20) Seattle Center Coliseum
7,714 		9–26
36 December 22 New York W 120–108 Al Tucker (31) Seattle Center Coliseum
8,515 		10–26
37 December 23 @ San Francisco L 124–131 Walt Hazzard (19) Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena
3,862 		10–27
38 December 24 San Francisco L 113–127 Walt Hazzard (20) Seattle Center Coliseum
6,226 		10–28
39 December 25 @ Cincinnati L 112–118 Rod Thorn (26) Cincinnati Gardens
3,323 		10–29
40 December 26 New York W 137–135 Walt Hazzard (37) Philadelphia 11–29
41 December 28 San Diego L 125–143 Walt Hazzard (45) Seattle Center Coliseum
5,889 		11–30
42 December 31 San Francisco L 124–126 Walt Hazzard (26) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,591 		11–31
January : 5–7 (Home: 1–3; Road: 4–4)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
43 January 1 St. Louis L 94–115 Walt Hazzard (17) Seattle Center Coliseum
3,604 		11–32
44 January 5 Boston L 121–128 Bob Rule (31) Seattle Center Coliseum
9,188 		11–33
45 January 6 @ San Diego W 122–104 Walt Hazzard (28) San Diego Sports Arena
6,738 		12–33
46 January 8 New York L 113–119 Tom Meschery (24) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,548 		12–34
47 January 10 @ Boston L 110–123 Walt Hazzard Boston Garden
3,701 		12–35
48 January 15 New York W 129–113 Walt Hazzard (24) Boston 13–35
49 January 16 Baltimore W 142–116 Tom Meschery (33) Chicago, Illinois
3,500 		14–35
50 January 19 @ Detroit L 119–133 Walt Hazzard (41) Cobo Arena
5,887 		14–36
51 January 20 @ St. Louis L 115–120 Walt Hazzard (25) Kiel Auditorium
5,118 		14–37
52 January 21 @ L. A. Lakers L 123–154 Walt Hazzard (24) The Forum
9,262 		14–38
53 January 28 Baltimore W 135–126 Walt Hazzard (23) Tacoma, Washington
3,181 		15–38
54 January 30 L. A. Lakers W 128–116 Walt Hazzard (31) Seattle Center Coliseum
6,262 		16–38
February : 4–10 (Home: 2–2; Road: 2–8)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
55 February 1 St. Louis L 110–113 Rod Thorn (32) Seattle Center Coliseum
5,564 		16–39
56 February 2 @ L. A. Lakers L 113–151 Walt Hazzard,
Bob Rule (17) 		The Forum
12,021 		16–40
57 February 4 @ L. A. Lakers L 131–137 Tom Meschery (28) The Forum
7,796 		16–41
58 February 5 Cincinnati W 132–129 (OT) Walt Hazzard (45) Phoenix, Arizona
4,680 		17–41
59 February 8 L. A. Lakers W 115–110 Walt Hazzard (31) Seattle Center Coliseum
6,526 		18–41
60 February 11 San Francisco W 146–118 Walt Hazzard (29) Seattle Center Coliseum
9,505 		19–41
61 February 14 Philadelphia L 125–149 Walt Hazzard (25) Seattle Center Coliseum
9,449 		19–42
62 February 15 @ Cincinnati L 119–132 Walt Hazzard (31) Cincinnati Gardens
2,306 		19–43
63 February 16 @ Baltimore L 118–147 Walt Hazzard (30) Baltimore Civic Center
3,748 		19–44
64 February 17 @ New York L 111–134 Bob Weiss (22) Madison Square Garden
13,256 		19–45
65 February 20 @ Philadelphia L 108–140 Walt Hazzard (25) The Spectrum
6,417 		19–46
66 February 21 Chicago L 106–108 Walt Hazzard,
Rod Thorn (25) 		Baltimore, Maryland 19–47
67 February 23 @ San Diego W 127–122 Walt Hazzard (31) San Diego Sports Arena
4,834 		20–47
68 February 24 Boston L 137–141 Walt Hazzard (38) Vancouver, Canada
8,129 		20–48
March : 3–11 (Home: 1–5; Road: 2–6)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
69 March 2 @ L. A. Lakers L 121–127 Walt Hazzard (31) The Forum
11,335 		20–49
70 March 3 Cincinnati L 128–138 Rod Thorn (22) Seattle Center Coliseum
8,894 		20–50
71 March 5 Baltimore L 121–126 Tommy Kron (27) Seattle Center Coliseum
4,939 		20–51
72 March 7 St. Louis L 133–150 Walt Hazzard,
Rod Thorn (29) 		Portland, Oregon
2,428 		20–52
73 March 8 Baltimore L 116–122 Tom Meschery (30) Olympia, Washington
4,012 		20–53
74 March 9 @ San Diego W 115–111 Tom Meschery (23) San Diego Sports Arena
6,331 		21–53
75 March 10 San Francisco L 112–118 Al Tucker (28) Seattle Center Coliseum
5,536 		21–54
76 March 11 Boston L 112–119 Tom Meschery (22) Seattle Center Coliseum
8,136 		21–55
77 March 12 @ Detroit L 123–139 Tommy Kron (24) Cobo Arena
5,304 		21–56
78 March 13 @ Cincinnati L 123–142 Bob Rule (46) Cincinnati Gardens
4,958 		21–57
79 March 15 @ Chicago W 113–101 Walt Hazzard (21) Chicago Stadium
3,426 		22–57
80 March 16 @ St. Louis L 106–124 Walt Hazzard (24) Kiel Auditorium
7,665 		22–58
81 March 18 Detroit L 82–88 Walt Hazzard (22) Seattle Center Coliseum
6,244 		22–59
82 March 19 Chicago W 122–104 Walt Hazzard (36) Seattle Center Coliseum
10,429 		23–59
1967–68 season schedule

Player statistics[]

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Henry Akin 36 – 7.2 .336 – .645 1.6 .4 – – 3.1
Walt Hazzard 79 – 33.7 .441 – .774 4.2 6.2 – – 24.0
Tommy Kron 76 – 23.6 .396 – .790 4.7 3.7 – – 9.7
Plummer Lott 44 – 10.9 .311 – .613 2.1 .8 – – 2.5
Tom Meschery 82 – 34.8 .469 – .707 10.2 2.4 – – 14.5
Dorie Murrey 81 – 18.4 .436 – .689 7.4 .8 – – 7.3
Bud Olsen 73 – 12.3 .456 – .274 2.8 1.0 – – 3.8
Bob Rule 82 – 29.6 .489 – .658 9.5 1.2 – – 18.1
Rod Thorn 66 – 25.3 .451 – .737 4.0 3.5 – – 15.2
Al Tucker 81 – 29.2 .442 – .707 7.5 1.4 – – 13.1
Bob Weiss 82 – 19.7 .430 – .839 1.8 4.2 – – 9.8
George Wilson 77 – 16.1 .359 – .703 6.1 .7 – – 6.1

Awards and records[]

References[]

  1. ^ Associated Press (May 4, 1967). Meschery Going to Seattle, The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  2. ^ "Seattle Makes Sure Guerin Stays Retired". The Free Lance–Star. Associated Press. May 2, 1967. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
  3. ^ "Meschery signs to play with Sonics". The Bulletin. May 4, 1967. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
  4. ^ "Sonics Lose Sweet Charlie". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. September 2, 1967. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  5. ^ United Press International (September 1, 1967) Williams Says Ruling Wrecked Hopes of Pro Basketball Play, The Modesto Bee. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  6. ^ Associated Press (October 14, 1967). Oaks Win in ABA Debut; Warriors Trounce Seattle, The Portsmouth Times. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  7. ^ Seattle SuperSonics at San Francisco Warriors Box Score, October 13, 1967. Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  8. ^ a b c d 1967–68 Seattle SuperSonics Schedule and Results. Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  9. ^ United Press International (November 15, 1967). Coaches of Royals and Bulls Having It Tough, The Dispatch. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  10. ^ Ralph Bernstein, Associated Press (November 24, 1967). You Had to See It to Know It Wasn't a Joke, Lewiston Evening Journal. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  11. ^ Seattle SuperSonics vs Boston Celtics Box Score, November 23, 1967. Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  12. ^ United Press International (November 22, 1967). Rule Scores 47 as Seattle Halts Los Angeles Lakers, The Beaver County Times. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  13. ^ Associated Press (December 21, 1967). Sonics Pounded–Mightily, Ellensburg Daily Record. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  14. ^ United Press International (January 22, 1968). Baylor & West Set Scoring Record As Lakers Dump Sonics, The Bryan Times. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  15. ^ Associated Press (March 12, 1968). Bulls Nearing Playoff Spot, Spokane Daily Chronicle. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  16. ^ Bulls Clinch Playoff Spot With Victory, The Beaver County Times. March 14, 1968. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  17. ^ 1967–68 Seattle SuperSonics Roster and Statistics. Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  18. ^ Associated Press (January 23, 1968). West Stars—Lost Their Glitter?, Meriden Journal. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  19. ^ Monroe Leads All-Rookie Five, The Washington Afro American. April 9, 1968. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
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