1976 - The First Slam Dunk Championship

The 1976 ABA All-Star game was the most innovative night in pro basketball history and Julius "Dr. J" Erving stole the show

DENVER - January 28, 1976

The Sports Time Traveler has just returned from a virtual trip to the Mile High City, precisely 50 years ago, where I experienced the most innovative night in basketball history.

The event was the ABA All-Star Game and it featured these innovations:

• A pop-country music Megastar performance

• The first ever Slam Dunk contest

• A new game format pitting the league’s top team against the best players from all the other teams

Sadly, few people have got see this.

It was NOT on national TV.

It was broadcast in just 5 ABA cities: Denver, St. Louis, San Antonio, Louisville, and Indianapolis.

The game was scheduled to be on public TV channel 13 in New York, but the Public Broadcasting System backed out at the last minute citing lack of interest among the local stations.

Boy, did basketball fans miss out on something special.

One problem was that the game didn’t start until 9pm MST which was 11pm EST. The late start also meant that most morning newspapers in the eastern half of the country did not have coverage of the game. So there was little knowledge of the event after it took place.

While the TV audience was small and newspaper coverage sparse, McNichols Arena in Denver was packed, literally. It was the largest crowd in Denver history and in league history with 17,798 in attendance. So there were plenty of eye witnesses to the historic things that took place.

Fortunately, you can experience most of that night the way I did via this YouTube video:

If you watch the video you’re one of the few. Less than 1,000 have seen it on YouTube.

PRE-GAME CONCERT

The concert prior to the game is not on the video. But it was huge. It was the first time megastars from the music world had ever performed a concert prior to a professional basketball game.

The star performers were Glen Campbell and Charlie Rich.

Glen Campbell is one of the top music acts in America here in the mid-1970s. He was is so famous that the Los Angeles Open PGA golf tournament has actually been officially called The Glen Campbell Los Angeles Open since 1971. And Glen Campbell’s hit song, “Rhinestone Cowboy,” which came out last year in 1975, reached #1 on both Billboard’s pop chart and country chart, one of the few songs to ever do that.

Charlie Rich is also a household name here in 1976. He had a Billboard #1 hit in 1973 with “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World.”

THE SLAM DUNK CONTEST

The highlight of the evening was the innovative slam dunk championship, the first of its kind.

You can watch the entire slam dunk championship beginning at the 12 minute mark on the video.

At the 14:30 mark on the tape the 5 slam dunk contest competitors are introduced:

Larry Kenon of the San Antonio Spurs

George Gervin of the San Antonio Spurs

Artis Gilmore of the Kentucky Colonels

Julius “Dr. J” Erving of the New York Nets

David Thompson of the hometown Denver Nuggets

The two most spectacular dunks were performed by David Thompson and of course, Dr. J - Julius Erving.

At the 24 minute mark watch as David Thompson performs the first ever 360 dunk. The announcer, having never seen anything like it, called it a “twist around” slam dunk.

At the 25 minute mark is the highlight of the entire night. Watch as Dr. J first walks to the foul line and then begins to take little leaps back towards to other end of the court. As he does this the crowd noise escalates into a frenzy with the anticipation for what the doctor plans to deliver. Erving is measuring off his steps as he plans to run in from the opposite foul line.

As Erving begins to run, and accelerates, the crowd noise elevates, and when he takes off a few inches in front of the foul line, soars through the air and slams the ball through the rim, the crowd goes wild. It’s a shocking display of athleticism infused with a hint of elegance as only Dr. J can produce.

It’s a dunk from the foul line, a sight to remember, forever.

It is no surprise that Julius Erving wins the slam dunk contest.

THE ALL-STAR GAME

The innovative game featured a format never used before in the ABA or NBA in which the team with the ABA’s best record, the Denver Nuggets, played against a team of all-stars from all the other teams. Would talent trounce teamwork? It was a question for the ages, and it would be answered on this night. What an intriguing match up.

The “All-Star” team was one of the greatest teams ever assembled up to this time. It included:

Julius “Dr. J” Erving, NEW YORK NETS - Erving was ABA MVP in 1974 and 1975. He led the Nets to the ABA title in 1974. Many regard Dr. J has the best player in professional basketball, and nearly all agree he is the most electrifying.

Artis Gilmore, KENTUCKY COLONELS - The ABA MVP from 1972 is regarded as the 2nd most dominating player in pro basketball behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He led the Colonels to the ABA title last season. He’s also the most durable player. In his 5th season in the ABA, Artis has never missed a game.

George Gervin, SAN ANTONIO SPURS - One of the greatest shooters in basketball, he has been among the league leaders in scoring the past 2 seasons.

NOTE From The Sports Time Traveler - I interrupt from the present time to inform you that George Gervin went on to win 4 NBA scoring titles, and had a run of 5 consecutive seasons in which he finished in the top 6 in MVP voting, including twice being the runner-up. Now back to 1976.

Billy Knight, INDIANA PACERS - In his 2nd season, Knight is challenging Julius Erving as the leading scorer in the ABA.

Maurice Lucas, KENTUCKY COLONELS - In his 2nd season, Lucas has emerged as perhaps the best power forward in the game.

NOTE From The Sports Time Traveler - I interrupt from the present again to share just how good Lucas was in his prime. Next year he will team with Bill Walton to capture the NBA title for the Portland Trailblazers. In 1977 and 1978, he will finish in the top 10 in MVP voting in the NBA. Now back again to 1976.

Larry Kenon, SAN ANTONIO SPURS - The 23-year-old has a deadly mid-range jumper and can sky as high as Dr. J who he teamed with for the ABA title in his rookie year. Now

Don Buse, INDIANA PACERS - The 4th year player has emerged as one of the top point guards in pro basketball as he leads the ABA in assists and steals.

NOTE From The Sports Time Traveler - I interrupt one last time to let you know some incredible facts about Don Buse. You may have never heard of him, but next year, in 1977, Buse will lead the NBA in both assists and steals. In doing so, he will become the ONLY NBA player ever to perform this double while averaging at least 3.5 steals. Think about that. In addition, he will earn First Team All-NBA Defensive honors for 4 consecutive seasons. So this All-Star team was a truly remarkable group. Now back to 1976 for the conclusion of the article.

The Denver Nuggets were the opponents of this ABA “Dream Team.” They have breezed through their schedule this season with a 32 - 11 record at the All-Star break. They’re coached by Larry Brown who guided them to a 65 - 19 season last year. This year they’re even better on paper as the Nuggets feature a frontcourt that has 3 very special players:

David Thompson - The 2-time national college player of the year is the most exciting rookie in basketball this year.

Dan Issel - One of the most dominant big men in the ABA for his entire 6 years in the league.

Bobby Jones - 4th in MVP voting in his rookie year in 1975, the 6’-9” Jones may be the best defensive player in all of professional basketball.

In the days leading up to the game, both coaches, Larry Brown of the Nuggets, and the Nets’ Kevin Loughery, coach of the ABA All-Stars, insisted that the All-Star squad could beat any NBA team.

The game was a close one, neither side ever held a double-digit lead. The All-Stars led at the half 56 - 55. They extended their lead to 5 points at 97 - 92 after 3 quarters. The Nuggets tied the game in the early 4th quarter and the game was very close, as it was tied 9 more times during the 4th quarter. The All-Stars put up 41 points in the closing quarter. But the Nuggets, led by David Thompson, who scored 15 of his game-high 29 points in the 4th quarter, put up an incredible 52 in the 4th quarter to win the game 144 - 138.

Dr. J, shooting 9 for 12 from the field, in 25 minutes of action, led the All-Stars with 23 points.

FINAL NOTE From The Sports Time Traveler

Back here in 2026, I look back at the Dr. J dunk from the foul line as one of the most iconic moments in basketball history.

But it’s also one of the oddest.

I was a 12 year old basketball fan growing up in the New York area, and I didn’t even know about it. Neither did most sports fans. The game wasn’t on TV. There was no ESPN or social media to share the viral video of this mind-blowing feat.

We only found out about the dunk from the foul line well after it took place. It was like a mythical thing until you could finally see the tape. And you just never knew when that might be because you were at the mercy of the little bit of sports programming on TV to show it. Life in 1976 was quite different.

When you did get to see it, you wanted to see it again, but you couldn’t. Because no one had a VCR to tape it. In this age before YouTube you simply didn’t know when it might be shown again on TV.

The Dr. J dunk from the foul line was stunning and breathtaking. It was explosive yet graceful. It was absolutely amazing.

Dunking from the foul line had never been heard of before, it had never been conceived of previously. It was a breakthrough moment for basketball. And it inspired the next generation of basketball players, most notably Michael Jordan who famously emulated Dr. J with his dunk from the foul line in the 1988 NBA slam dunk contest. That was one that everyone saw over and over and over again.