1974–75 San Diego Conquistadors season

The 1974–75 San Diego Conquistadors season was the third and final full season of play for the Conquistadors in the American Basketball Association. While the team was finally was able to play in the San Diego Sports Arena due to the franchise being able to resolve something with proprietor Peter Graham by this time, the Conquistadors still floundered both on the court and in the box office, with Wilt Chamberlain having left the team's coaching staff after the previous season due to his increasing lack of care in being a head coach without playing basketball on his end. They finished fifth in points per game at 109.9, but dead last in points allowed at 115.5 per game. One of the most notable games they played was against the New York Nets in a quadruple-overtime game on February 14, winning what would become the highest-scoring game in ABA history in a 176–166 final score (which would be the highest-scoring professional basketball game overall (either in the ABA or NBA) until the Denver Nuggets won a 186–184 triple-overtime game over the Detroit Pistons in the NBA on December 13, 1983). A victory over the Virginia Squires (the worst team of the entire ABA not just during this season, but arguably all time in terms of seasons completed at this time) on March 12 turned out to be their last, as they would lose 11 straight games to end the season, finishing the Western Division dead last and failing to make it to the 1975 ABA Playoffs by 7 games. After this season ended, Frank Goldberg (who formerly held ownership interest in the Denver Nuggets) bought the San Diego Conquistadors, assuming the $2 million in team debt that was held at that point in time. Goldberg soon renamed the team for the upcoming season, with the team now becoming the San Diego Sails for what would have later become the ABA's final season of play. However, the Sails would ultimately fold only 11 games into that brief season of theirs.^[1]

The alternating draft picks after the third round relates to them tying the Denver Rockets (now Denver Nuggets) in terms of records last season. Also, this draft table does not include the "ABA Draft of NBA Players" done immediately afterward.

The "ABA Draft of NBA Players" that was done on April 17, 1974 happened immediately after the actual ABA Draft done for this season was concluded on that day. None of the five players drafted by the Conquistadors would report to the team this season, though Connie Hawkins previously played a couple of seasons with the formerly existing Pittsburgh/Minnesota Pipers before being unbanned by the NBA (with his prior banning relating to alleged involvement with Jack Molinas in the 1961 NCAA University Division men's basketball gambling scandal during his freshman year at the University of Iowa when he didn't play college basketball whatsoever there) and signing a deal with that league's Phoenix Suns in 1969. Incidentally, Hawkins would also join Gail Goodrich as the only selections by the Conquistadors there to become future members of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

1975 ABA All-Star Game selection (game played on January 28, 1975)

• Caldwell Jones

• RememberTheABA.com 1974–75 regular season and playoff results
• San Diego Conquistadors page