Memphis Tams
| Memphis Tams | ||
|---|---|---|
| founding | 1972 | |
| resolution | 1974 | |
| history |
New Orleans Buccaneers 1967-70 Louisiana Buccaneers |
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| Stadion | Mid-South Coliseum | |
| Location | Memphis , Tennessee | |
| Club colors | green, golden, polar white | |
| league | American Basketball Association | |
| division | Eastern Division | |
| Head coach |
Bob Bass 1972–1973 Butch van Breda Kolff 1973–1974 |
|
| owner | Charles O. Finley | |
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The Memphis Tams were an American basketball franchise , which from 1972 to 1974 in the American Basketball Association played. The team was the New Orleans Buccaneers (1967-1970) for three seasons before relocating to Memphis , Tennessee and continuing as Memphis Pros from 1970 to 1972 . In 1974/75 it was renamed Memphis Sounds . It then moved to Baltimore to play as the Baltimore Claws , but was then disbanded before it could play a regular game.
Origins
The club were a founding member of the ABA and played from 1967 to 1970 in the league, where they could win the 1969 division championship in the Western Division. After the 1969/70 season, the team was slated to be Louisiana Buccaneers with home games in various cities within the state. Nevertheless, the team was sold to a new owner in August 1970 and moved to Memphis, Tennessee, to continue playing as Memphis Pros, because the Bucs jerseys they had already purchased could be converted into Pros jerseys at low cost.
The league took over leadership of the team in its first season after the owner left in December. Nevertheless, she was able to be kept alive by selling shares to her fans. This only turned out to be a short-term solution and the ABA had to take over the team again in the middle of the second season.
At the end of the 1971/72 season it was almost certain that the pros would have to settle elsewhere. Nonetheless, on June 13, 1972, Charles O. Finley, owner of the Oakland A's from the MLB and the California Golden Seals from the NHL , bought the team and promised to keep them in Memphis. Finley hired former University of Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp as president. He also took on the team's responsibilities.
Before the 1972/73 season Finley held a naming contest, from which the nickname "Tams" arose. The name was formed from the three states that were near Memphis: Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi . The team changed their colors to green, gold and polar white, the color scheme of the owner's other teams. A green, white and gold cap (English Tam o'shanter ) has also been incorporated into the logo.
1972-1973
Former coach Babe McCarthy was replaced by Bob Bass. The tams received George Thompson from the draft of the Pittsburgh Condors players. Gerald Govan was given to the Utah Stars in exchange for Merv Jackson. George Thompson took part in the All Star Game. The regular season ended with only 20 wins and 64 defeats. That meant the worst value in the ABA and last place in the Eastern Division. The Tams failed to make it to the playoffs, partly due to their many team changes; they made 28 transfers in the first two months alone. Despite the poor result, an average of 3476 fans came to the games.
Finley made the crew wear all options of green, white, and gold. Still, he paid little to no attention to the franchise business. Contrary to his earlier promises, he was already negotiating with St Paul , Minnesota , to bring the team there. When this became public, Finley went from savior to pariah almost overnight. Several cost-saving transfers did not improve his reputation either. As an example, he fired one seasoned player before Christmas and another on New Year's Day.
1973-1974
The Tams voted in the draft Larry Kenon and Larry Finch, as well as David Thompson, who stayed at college. Finley complained to the ABA about a conflict of interest of the ABA President Bill Daniels, because he wanted to demand a finder's fee from Finley if he helped him to find potential buyers for the team. The ABA did not investigate these allegations.
Finley attempted to sell the team to a group of Providence , Rhode Island investors , but the purchase did not progress. For most of the summer, the status of the tams was unclear. Bass quit to take a position in the league, and the office was closed from mid-June. It wasn't until the end of August that Finley gave his word that the Tams would play. In the process, he upheld almost all of the league's radio and television broadcast contracts. When the training camp started in September, the team had no coach and no management. Two days before the first preparatory game, Butch van Breda Kolff was signed as general manager and head coach.
The Tams signed Charlie Edge, swapping Larry Kenon with the New York Nets for Jim Ard and John Baum, and Johny Neumann with the Utah stars for Glen Combs, Ronnie Robinson, Mike Jackson and money. George Thompson played in the All Star Game. The team again had a poor regular season with 21 wins and 63 losses, the worst result in the league.
Due to the poor performance, the number of spectators fell by a third compared to the previous season and was 2331 spectators per game. This was largely because Finley seemed to be losing interest in the tams. Weeks passed without him talking to van Breda Kolff about team business or transfers. He also stopped the printing of programs and replaced them with freely typed mimeographic team lists . Van Breda Kolff was visibly frustrated with the situation and told Basketball News that the Tams would be a solid club if they had solid support.
Result
After that season, Finley returned the team to the league for $ 1.1 million. ABA Commissioner Mike Storen later found a local community of investors led by Isaac Hayes , Avron Fogelman and Kemmons Wilson to buy the team. He then resigned from his position to take control of Memphis. Storen was previously successful with the Indiana Pacers and the Kentucky Colonels . Bill van Breda Kolff was dismissed as trainer and general manager. The new general manager was former coach Bob Bass, new coach Joe Mullaney. The team signed Wil Jones from the Kentucky Colonels. On July 17, 1974, the team was taken over and renamed Memphis Sounds.
The Sounds stayed in Memphis for another year, finishing fourth in the Eastern Division and losing 4-1 in the first round of the playoffs to upcoming champions Kentucky Colonels. 3879 fans came to the home games, an increase of two thirds over the previous year. Despite the substantial improvement, the team was sold on August 17, 1975 to a group who took it to Baltimore , Maryland , where it became first the Baltimore Hustlers and then the Baltimore Claws. The Claws briefly acquired superstar Dan Issel from the Kentucky Colonels and played three prep games, but they lost Issel, all three games and eventually the franchise due to financial problems. The team was disbanded on October 20, 1975, their players distributed in a draft.