The RoundHouse | 5/28/2019 5:03:00 PM
Wichita State's history in professional basketball championship series is short and dominated by the ABA.
Toronto guard Fred VanVleet can change that, at least a little, starting Thursday when he becomes the sixth Shocker to play in the NBA/ABA finals.
Big stars – some of the biggest – overshadowed most of his predecessors. VanVleet, in a championship series with enormous star power, is pushing his own story.
He struggled shooting for much of the playoffs and the Raptors bench, a strength most of the season, faded. Late in the Eastern Conference Finals, VanVleet heated up and made 14 of 17 three-pointers in the final three games to help eliminate Milwaukee.
That his scoring resurgence happened after the birth of his second child – Fred Jr. on May 20 – made for an irresistible story. New dad helps Raptors to first NBA Finals – and don't forget that nobody drafted him out of Wichita State.
VanVleet is a discussion point vs. Golden State. The Raptors need his scoring. He will likely see significant time defending Steph Curry.
Antoine Carr (1997 and 1998 for Utah) and Cliff Levingston (1991, 1992 for Chicago) had their moments. Carr scored 12 points, 10 in the second half, of 1998's Game 5 to keep the Jazz alive on their way to a loss to Michael Jordan's Bulls. Levingston won two rings as one of Jordan's sidekicks.
In 1970, Dave Stallworth and Nate Bowman helped the New York Knicks win their first NBA title. Stallworth scored 12 points and helped defend Lakers center Wilt Chamberlain in a Game 5 win. That allowed the Knicks to survive an injury to center Willis Reed and win in seven games.
No former Shocker can match Warren Jabali in the 1969 ABA championship. He earned playoff MVP honors after leading Oakland past Indiana in five games.
The Oaks won the title with Jabali averaging 28.8 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 16 playoff games. He scored 39 points in the title clincher, a 135-131 overtime win over Indiana.
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
