George McGinnis

ABA MVP and Hall of Famer who starred for the Pacers and 76ers.

George F. McGinnis (August 12, 1950 – December 14, 2023) was an American professional basketball player who played 11 seasons in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers, earning third-team All-American honors in 1971, before starting his pro career in the ABA with the Indiana Pacers. A three-time ABA All-Star with the Pacers, McGinnis was named the ABA Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1975 and won two ABA championships with the team. He was a three-time NBA All-Star with the Philadelphia 76ers. He was named to the ABA All-Time Team and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Quick Facts

Aba championships: 2 (1972, 1973)
All-star selections: 6

Lore & Background

McGinnis was born in Harpersville, Alabama, on August 12, 1950, but grew up in Indianapolis, where he attended Washington High School. He and teammate Steve Downing led Washington to a 31–0 record and a state championship in 1969. McGinnis set an Indiana state tournament scoring record with 148 points in his final four games. He was also named Mr. Basketball for the state of Indiana that year. McGinnis lost his father in the midst of his senior season when Burnie died in a construction accident. McGinnis also played football in high school, serving as wide receiver and defensive end, and he later stated that his best sport was 'probably football', which he didn't even like as much as basketball. In the 1970–71 season at Indiana University Bloomington, McGinnis became the first sophomore to lead the Big Ten in scoring and rebounding. He averaged 29.9 points per game in his lone season with the Hoosiers, earning All-American and All-Big Ten Honors in 1971. He played for coach Lou Watson, the year before Indiana hired Bob Knight.

Reader's Guide

McGinnis immediately became one of the marquee players of the ABA, playing a key role on the Indiana Pacers' championship teams in each of his first two seasons with his hometown franchise. He was named the ABA Playoffs MVP in 1973, averaging 23.9 points and 12.3 rebounds in 18 playoff games to help the Pacers repeat as champs. His best season came in 1974–75, when McGinnis scored a career-high 29.8 points and also recorded a career-high 6.3 assists per game en route to ABA MVP honors. In the 1975 ABA Playoffs, he nearly averaged a triple-double (32.3 points, 15.9 rebounds, and 8.2 assists in 18 games), but the Pacers fell short of the title, losing to Kentucky in the ABA Finals. However, in these playoffs, McGinnis established multiple statistical feats. Against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 4 of the 1975 ABA Western Division Semifinals on April 12, 1975, McGinnis recorded the first 50+ point triple-double in NBA/ABA Playoff history with 51 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists, a feat later matched by Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2017. McGinnis also became the first player in NBA/ABA history to record 200+ points, 100+ rebounds, and 50+ assists in a single playoff series, which he accomplished twice in back-to-back series. In six games against the San Antonio Spurs in the 1975 ABA Western Division Semifinals, he registered totals of 230 points (38.3 per game), 113 rebounds (18.8 per game), and 55 assists (9.2 per game). In seven games against the Denver Nuggets in the 1975 ABA Western Division Finals, McGinnis registered totals of 214 points (30.6 per game), 103 rebounds (14.7 per game), and 61 assists (8.7 per game). Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks is the only other player to replicate this, doing so in the 2022 Eastern Conference Semifinals. McGinnis became the first player in NBA/ABA history to lead the playoffs in total points (581), total rebounds (286), and total assists (148) — a feat matched only by Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 NBA Playoffs. Two years into his professional career, McGinnis was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers as the 22nd overall pick in the second round of the 1973 NBA draft. In October 1974, the 76ers were ready to send McGinnis' draft rights to the New York Knicks with the stipulation that the latter ballclub signs him before the agreed-upon deadline.