1973–74 Portland Trail Blazers season

The 1973–74 Portland Trail Blazers season was the fourth season of the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Blazers finished at 27–55, a six-game improvement from the previous season.

1973–74 Portland Trail Blazers season
Head coach	Jack McCloskey
General manager	Harry Glickman
Owners	Herman Sarkowsky Larry Weinberg
Arena	Memorial Coliseum
Results
Record	27–55 (.329)
Place	Division: 5th (Pacific) Conference: 9th (Western)
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	KPTV
Radio	KOIN

The season started with promise as Portland opened the year with a 10–8 record. A nine-game losing streak followed and sent the Blazers sinking in the standings. They managed to cling to just under .500 but the months of January and February were unkind. Geoff Petrie and Sidney Wicks each garnered selections to the 1974 NBA All-Star game, but massive deficiencies on defense plagued the Blazers. Their lack of a size and experience at center allowed opponents to score almost at will. The Blazers lost 23 of 25 games and wound up with the worst record in the Western Conference. Coach Jack McCloskey was relieved of his duties at the end of the season.

Draft picks

Barry Parkhill was the Trail Blazers first round selection elected to go to the American Basketball Association.

Main article: 1973 NBA draft

Information from Sports Reference

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
1	15	Barry Parkhill	G	United States	Virginia
4	55	Bird Averitt	G	United States	Pepperdine
5	74	Bernard Hardin	F	United States	New Mexico
7	110	Doug Richards	G	United States	Brigham Young
8	128	Eldridge Broussard	N/A	United States	Pacific University
9	128	Lee Haven	N/A	United States	Colorado
10	163	Ron Jones	N/A	United States	Oregon State

Roster

Portland Trail Blazers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From PG 17 Davis, Charlie 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Wake Forest G 13 Fryer, Bernie 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) BYU SF 27 Johnson, John 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Iowa SF 44 Johnson, Ollie 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Temple PG 12 Layton, Mo 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) USC C 35 Martin, LaRue 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 208 lb (94 kg) Loyola Chicago F 36 Neal, Lloyd 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Tennessee State SG 45 Petrie, Geoff 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Princeton C 30 Roberson, Rick 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 231 lb (105 kg) Cincinnati SG 11 Sibley, Mark 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Northwestern PF 4 Smith, Greg 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Western Kentucky F 15 Steele, Larry 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Kentucky SG 17 Verga, Bob 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Duke PF 21 Wicks, Sidney 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) UCLA

Head coach Jack McCloskey Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Regular season

The Trail Blazers played their home games at Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Season standings

Pacific Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Neutral	Div
y-Los Angeles Lakers	47	35	.573	–	30–11	17–24	–	14–12
Golden State Warriors	44	38	.537	3	23–18	20–20	1–0	15–11
Seattle SuperSonics	36	46	.439	11	22–19	14–27	–	12–14
Phoenix Suns	30	52	.366	17	24–17	6–34	0–1	11–15
Portland Trail Blazers	27	55	.329	20	22–19	5–34	0–2	13–13

#	Western Conference
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Milwaukee Bucks	59	23	.720	–
2	x-Chicago Bulls	54	28	.659	5
3	x-Detroit Pistons	52	30	.634	7
4	y-Los Angeles Lakers	47	35	.573	12
5	Golden State Warriors	44	38	.537	15
6	Seattle SuperSonics	36	46	.439	23
7	Kansas City–Omaha Kings	33	49	.402	26
8	Phoenix Suns	30	52	.366	29
9	Portland Trail Blazers	27	55	.329	32

z – clinched division title

y – clinched division title

x – clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1973–74 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	BUF	CAP	CHI	CLE	DET	GSW	HOU	KCO	LAL	MIL	NYK	PHI	PHO	POR	SEA
Atlanta	–	1–5	2–4	4–4	1–3	4–3	0–4	1–3	5–2	1–3	4–0	1–3	1–5	3–3	1–3	2–2	4–0
Boston	5–1	–	5–2	2–4	2–2	4–2	3–1	3–1	4–2	3–1	2–2	2–2	5–2	7–1	3–1	4–0	2–2
Buffalo	4–2	2–5	–	3–3	1–3	5–1	1–3	1–3	4–2	2–2	0–4	1–3	4–4	6–1	3–1	3–1	2–2
Capital	4–4	4–2	3–3	–	1–3	6–1	2–2	3–1	4–3	3–1	2–2	1–3	3–3	4–2	2–2	3–1	2–2
Chicago	3–1	2–2	3–1	3–1	–	4–0	5–2	4–2	4–0	5–2	1–5	3–3	2–2	3–1	4–2	4–2	4–2
Cleveland	3–4	2–4	1–5	1–6	0–4	–	2–2	0–4	4–4	0–4	3–1	0–4	1–5	5–1	1–3	4–0	2–2
Detroit	4–0	1–3	3–1	2–2	2–5	2–2	–	5–1	3–1	4–2	4–2	3–4	1–3	2–2	6–0	5–1	5–1
Golden State	3–1	1–3	3–1	1–3	2–4	4–0	1–5	–	4–0	3–3	4–2	3–3	1–3	3–1	5–2	3–4	3–3
Houston	2–5	2–4	2–4	3–4	0–4	4–4	1–3	0–4	–	2–2	2–2	0–4	4–2	4–2	2–2	3–1	1–3
Kansas City-Omaha	3–1	1–3	2–2	1–3	2–5	4–0	2–4	3–3	2–2	–	1–5	0–7	1–3	1–3	4–2	4–2	2–4
Los Angeles	0–4	2–2	4–0	2–2	5–1	1–3	2–4	2–4	2–2	5–1	–	4–2	2–2	4–0	4–2	4–3	4–3
Milwaukee	3–1	2–2	3–1	3–1	3–3	4–0	4–3	3–3	4–0	7–0	2–4	–	2–2	4–0	5–1	6–0	4–2
New York	5–1	2–5	4–4	3–3	2–2	5–1	3–1	3–1	2–4	3–1	2–2	2–2	–	4–3	3–1	2–2	4–0
Philadelphia	3–3	1–7	1–6	2–4	1–3	1–5	2–2	1–3	2–4	3–1	0–4	0–4	3–4	–	3–1	2–2	0–4
Phoenix	3–1	1–3	1–3	2–2	2–4	3–1	0–6	2–5	2–2	2–4	2–4	1–5	1–3	1–3	–	3–3	4–3
Portland	2–2	0–4	1–3	1–3	2–4	0–4	1–5	4–3	1–3	2–4	3–4	0–6	2–2	2–2	3–3	–	3–3
Seattle	0–4	2–2	2–2	2–2	2–4	2–2	1–5	3–3	3–1	4–2	3–4	2–4	0–4	4–0	3–4	3–3	—

Game log

1973–74 Game log
#	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	Record
1	October 13	Capital	87–132	Geoff Petrie (29)	1–0
2	October 19	Kansas City–Omaha	99–111	Geoff Petrie (25)	2–0
3	October 20	Seattle	108–123	Geoff Petrie (32)	3–0
4	October 23	@ Cleveland	96–103	Sidney Wicks (22)	3–1
5	October 24	@ Philadelphia	110–132	Geoff Petrie (26)	3–2
6	October 26	Atlanta	110–127	Sidney Wicks (30)	4–2
7	October 27	Detroit	111–98	Geoff Petrie (37)	4–3
8	October 28	@ Los Angeles	98–111	Layton, Neal (19)	4–4
9	October 30	Los Angeles	112–114	Geoff Petrie (26)	5–4
10	November 3	New York	100–107	Petrie, Wicks (21)	6–4
11	November 9	Buffalo	108–122	Sidney Wicks (31)	7–4
12	November 10	Chicago	106–104	Geoff Petrie (27)	7–5
13	November 13	@ Milwaukee	100–108	Geoff Petrie (23)	7–6
14	November 14	@ Detroit	111–108	Geoff Petrie (36)	8–6
15	November 15	@ Atlanta	114–123	Geoff Petrie (40)	8–7
16	November 17	@ Houston	96–87	Sidney Wicks (23)	9–7
17	November 20	@ Chicago	101–106	Geoff Petrie (29)	9–8
18	November 22	Seattle	125–131	Geoff Petrie (43)	10–8
19	November 23	@ Seattle	106–127	Sidney Wicks (16)	10–9
20	November 24	Los Angeles	113–108	Geoff Petrie (27)	10–10
21	November 25	@ Los Angeles	109–137	Rick Roberson (23)	10–11
22	November 29	@ Golden State	89–119	Sidney Wicks (26)	10–12
23	November 30	Phoenix	107–99	John Johnson (24)	10–13
24	December 1	Los Angeles	115–134	John Johnson (31)	11–13
25	December 4	@ New York	100–113	Geoff Petrie (28)	11–14
26	December 5	@ Buffalo	110–114	Roberson, Wicks (24)	11–15
27	December 7	@ Milwaukee	86–116	Geoff Petrie (21)	11–16
28	December 8	@ Detroit	91–106	Larry Steele (19)	11–17
29	December 11	Capital	87–82	Sidney Wicks (22)	11–18
30	December 13	@ Phoenix	119–108	Geoff Petrie (25)	12–18
31	December 14	Golden State	101–109	Sidney Wicks (25)	13–18
32	December 16	Milwaukee	121–98	John Johnson (26)	13–19
33	December 18	Phoenix	117–133	Geoff Petrie (37)	14–19
34	December 21	Boston	124–120 (OT)	Geoff Petrie (38)	14–20
35	December 22	Philadelphia	105–110	Geoff Petrie (26)	15–20
36	December 27	@ Golden State	118–117	Geoff Petrie (31)	16–20
37	December 28	@ Seattle	93–110	Geoff Petrie (25)	16–21
38	December 30	Chicago	92–99	John Johnson (24)	17–21
39	January 1	Buffalo	120–119	Geoff Petrie (39)	17–22
40	January 4	Houston	119–113	John Johnson (32)	17–23
41	January 6	Golden State	105–106	Petrie, Wicks (26)	18–23
42	January 8	Kansas City–Omaha	110–129	Petrie, Wicks (27)	19–23
43	January 13	@ Kansas City–Omaha	99–103	Geoff Petrie (23)	19–24
44	January 17	@ Atlanta	99–126	Sidney Wicks (23)	19–25
45	January 19	@ Milwaukee	106–121	Sidney Wicks (27)	19–26
46	January 20	@ Chicago	97–99	Sidney Wicks (21)	19–27
47	January 22	@ Kansas City–Omaha	96–103	Sidney Wicks (26)	19–28
48	January 23	@ Detroit	95–121	Bob Verga (22)	19–29
49	January 25	Cleveland	87–84	Sidney Wicks (31)	19–30
50	January 29	Milwaukee	126–106	Sidney Wicks (25)	19–31
51	January 31	@ Phoenix	100–112	Sidney Wicks (38)	19–32
52	February 2	Seattle	97–102	Sidney Wicks (26)	20–32
53	February 3	@ Los Angeles	91–124	Sidney Wicks (24)	20–33
54	February 5	Detroit	104–102	Geoff Petrie (27)	20–34
55	February 6	@ Seattle	94–107	Geoff Petrie (28)	20–35
56	February 8	Kansas City–Omaha	104–99	Sidney Wicks (25)	20–36
57	February 10	Houston	112–106	John Johnson (27)	20–37
58	February 12	Phoenix	104–113	Rick Roberson (37)	21–37
59	February 15	Boston	106–104	Fryer, Roberson (27)	21–38
60	February 16	Cleveland	106–101	Sidney Wicks (22)	21–39
61	February 17	@ Phoenix	100–112	Sidney Wicks (23)	21–40
62	February 19	@ New York	116–119 (OT)	Sidney Wicks (34)	21–41
63	February 20	@ Capital	101–116	Petrie, Wicks (26)	21–42
64	February 22	@ Chicago	100–117	Geoff Petrie (22)	21–43
65	February 24	@ Houston	115–133	Geoff Petrie (23)	21–44
66	February 26	Philadelphia	118–110	Geoff Petrie (32)	21–45
67	February 28	@ Golden State	109–129	Geoff Petrie (32)	21–46
68	March 1	Chicago	91–95	Geoff Petrie (33)	22–46
69	March 3	Detroit	99–95	Geoff Petrie (32)	22–47
70	March 5	Los Angeles	102–107	Sidney Wicks (28)	23–47
71	March 9	@ Capital	103–106	Geoff Petrie (22)	23–48
72	March 10	N Buffalo	112–122	Geoff Petrie (26)	23–49
73	March 12	N Boston	93–110	John Johnson (32)	23–50
74	March 15	New York	105–107	Geoff Petrie (29)	24–50
75	March 16	Atlanta	127–128	Geoff Petrie (37)	25–50
76	March 18	@ Kansas City–Omaha	105–114	Geoff Petrie (31)	25–51
77	March 19	@ Cleveland	103–107	Geoff Petrie (34)	25–52
78	March 20	@ Philadelphia	113–106	Geoff Petrie (43)	26–52
79	March 22	@ Boston	118–126	Geoff Petrie (23)	26–53
80	March 24	Milwaukee	120–110	Larry Steele (26)	26–54
81	March 26	@ Golden State	120–143	Geoff Petrie (32)	26–55
82	March 27	Golden State	122–132	Sidney Wicks (30)	27–55

Awards and honors

• Sidney Wicks, NBA All-Star
• Geoff Petrie, NBA All-Star

Transactions

Rick Adelman, who was selected by the Trail Blazers in the 1970 NBA Expansion Draft, was traded to the Chicago Bulls on October 14, 1973.

• September 27, 1973 – Waived forward Bob Davis
• October 1, 1973 – Signed free agent guard Mo Layton
• October 14, 1973 – Traded guard Rick Adelman to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for a second round pick in the 1974 NBA draft (Phil Lumpkin was chosen).
• October 31, 1973 – Waived guard Charlie Davis and signed free agent guard Mark Sibley
• December 1, 1973 – Waived guard Mo Layton
• December 26, 1973 – Signed free agent guard Bob Verga
• January 8, 1974 – Waived guard Bernie Fryer
• May 20, 1974 – Forward Ollie Johnson was selected by the New Orleans Jazz in the 1974 NBA Expansion Draft
• June 12, 1974 – Waived guards Mark Sibley and Bob Verga

Transactions via Sports Reference