Last Updated on January 26, 2026 by Mat Diekhake

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Here is the New Jersey Nets 1970–71 season roster and regular season player statistics.

Note: The team was still known as the New York Nets during the 1970–71 ABA season. They played their home games at Island Garden in Hempstead, New York.


Team Roster – 1970–71 New York Nets

# Player Pos Height Weight Birthdate College
10 Bill Melchionni G 6’1″ 180 lb Oct 19, 1944 Villanova
11 Ollie Taylor G 6’2″ 194 lb Mar 7, 1947 Houston
12 Steve Chubin G 6’2″ 185 lb Apr 8, 1944 Utah
14 John Roche G 6’1″ 170 lb Sep 26, 1949 South Carolina
15 Walt Simon F 6’6″ 200 lb Dec 1, 1939 Benedict College
20 Rick Barry F 6’7″ 205 lb Mar 28, 1944 Miami (FL)
21 Levern Tart G 6’2″ 195 lb Jun 1, 1942 Bradley
22 Jim Ard C 6’8″ 215 lb Sep 19, 1948 Cincinnati
23 John Baum F 6’5″ 200 lb Jun 17, 1946 Temple
24 Bob Verga G 6’1″ 180 lb Sep 7, 1945 Duke
25 Ed Johnson C 6’8″ 220 lb Jun 17, 1944 Tennessee State
30 Luther Rackley C 6’10” 220 lb Oct 11, 1946 Xavier (OH)


Regular Season Per Game

PLR POS AGE GP GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TOV FGA FGM FG% 3PA 3PM 3P% FTA FTM FT%
Rick Barry SF 26 59 59 42.4 29.4 6.8 5.0 1.8 3.5 3.4 22.8 10.7 .469 1.5 0.3 .221 8.6 7.6 .890
Levern Tart SG 28 27 27 36.5 18.1 3.9 2.7 1.9 3.2 3.1 16.8 7.1 .424 0.3 0.1 .444 4.9 3.8 .767
Manny Leaks C 25 40 40 35.7 17.0 9.6 1.2 3.4 2.7 2.5 13.8 6.9 .495 0.0 0.0 .000 4.5 3.3 .726
Bill Melchionni PG 26 81 81 40.5 17.6 2.9 8.3 0.6 3.7 3.7 15.4 6.9 .451 0.3 0.0 .091 4.6 3.7 .814
Billy Paultz C 22 83 83 33.2 14.7 11.3 1.9 2.9 3.3 2.5 11.7 6.1 .524 0.0 0.0 .000 3.2 2.4 .747
Sonny Dove PF 25 83 83 27.5 13.5 8.1 1.1 3.2 3.7 2.7 12.1 5.6 .464 0.2 0.0 .286 3.3 2.2 .681
Ed Johnson C 26 26 26 22.8 10.3 8.5 1.0 3.2 3.1 2.5 8.4 3.7 .445 0.0 0.0   4.2 2.8 .673
Joe DePre SG 23 72 72 23.7 8.8 2.4 1.9 0.8 3.6 1.9 6.8 3.5 .512 0.1 0.0 .000 2.4 1.8 .767
Ollie Taylor SG 23 80 80 20.2 8.7 3.8 1.8 1.4 2.9 2.0 6.2 3.1 .506 0.2 0.1 .417 3.5 2.3 .675
Les Hunter PF 28 5 5 22.0 6.4 4.2 0.4 1.2 2.2 3.4 7.8 2.8 .359 0.0 0.0   1.6 0.8 .500
Jim Ard C 22 73 73 14.1 5.8 4.6 0.5 1.5 1.6 1.5 5.2 2.4 .455 0.0 0.0 .000 1.8 1.1 .598
Jeff Congdon PG 27 42 42 13.8 3.8 1.3 2.3 0.2 1.2 1.2 3.6 1.5 .413 0.3 0.1 .308 0.9 0.8 .865
Luther Green PF 24 26 26 6.3 3.8 2.1 0.1 0.8 0.7 0.8 3.4 1.5 .455 0.2 0.0 .000 1.7 0.7 .409
Jim Hayes SG 22 47 47 10.5 3.1 1.0 1.0 0.4 1.6 1.0 2.3 1.0 .422 0.0 0.0   1.4 1.1 .776
Bill Bunting SF 23 39 39 17.6 4.9 3.6 0.9 1.6 2.4 1.3 3.9 1.7 .430 0.0 0.0   1.8 1.5 .870
Billy DeAngelis   24 8 8 5.9 1.3 0.8 1.0 0.3 2.0 0.6 0.8 0.4 .500 0.0 0.0   0.8 0.5 .667
Totals     84 84 241.2 111.0 48.9 22.3 15.8 26.2 21.2 91.7 43.3 .472 2.0 0.5 .224 31.6 24.0 .759

Playoff Per Game

PLR POS AGE GP GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TOV FGA FGM FG% 3PA 3PM 3P% FTA FTM FT%
Rick Barry SF 26 6 6 47.8 33.7 11.7 4.0 2.8 3.8 5.5 22.5 11.7 .519 4.5 2.3 .519 9.8 8.0 .814
Bill Melchionni PG 26 5 5 41.0 22.4 1.4 8.2 0.2 3.2 3.6 16.4 8.8 .537 0.0 0.0   5.2 4.8 .923
Billy Paultz C 22 6 6 39.8 20.2 15.0 3.0 2.8 4.8 4.2 12.7 7.5 .592 0.2 0.2 1.000 6.7 5.0 .750
Manny Leaks C 25 6 6 34.0 12.7 7.8 0.5 2.0 2.7 1.7 11.5 5.8 .507 0.0 0.0   2.0 1.0 .500
Joe DePre SG 23 6 6 28.5 12.2 3.0 2.2 1.7 5.3 2.7 9.2 4.8 .527 0.2 0.0 .000 3.2 2.5 .789
Ollie Taylor SG 23 6 6 21.3 8.8 2.5 2.2 1.2 3.0 1.7 5.2 2.5 .484 0.3 0.2 .500 4.8 3.7 .759
Jim Ard C 22 6 6 16.3 7.8 4.8 0.5 1.8 2.5 1.0 4.8 2.7 .552 0.0 0.0   3.7 2.5 .682
Jeff Congdon PG 27 4 4 19.0 5.3 1.5 2.8 0.5 0.5 1.3 5.3 2.0 .381 0.3 0.0 .000 1.3 1.3 1.000
Sonny Dove PF 25 5 5 6.4 2.2 2.2 0.2 0.8 2.0 0.2 2.0 1.0 .500 0.0 0.0   0.8 0.2 .250
Totals     6 6 240.0 119.3 48.8 21.2 15.8 26.8 2.5 84.7 44.5 .526 5.3 2.7 .500 36.0 27.7 .769

Regular Season Per 36 Minutes

PLR POS AGE GP GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TOV FGA FGM FG% 3PA 3PM 3P% FTA FTM FT%
Rick Barry SF 26 59 42.4 24.9 5.8 4.2 2.9 2.9 19.4 9.1 .469 1.2 0.3 .221 7.3 6.5 .890
Luther Green PF 24 26 6.3 21.5 12.1 0.7 4.6 4.2 19.3 8.8 .455 0.9 0.0 .000 9.7 4.0 .409
Levern Tart SG 28 27 36.5 17.9 3.9 2.7 3.2 3.1 16.6 7.0 .424 0.3 0.1 .444 4.9 3.7 .767
Sonny Dove PF 25 83 27.5 17.7 10.7 1.4 3.5 4.8 15.9 7.4 .464 0.2 0.1 .286 4.3 2.9 .681
Manny Leaks C 25 40 35.7 17.1 9.7 1.2 2.5 2.7 14.0 6.9 .495 0.0 0.0 .000 4.5 3.3 .726
Billy Paultz C 22 83 33.2 15.9 12.3 2.1 2.7 3.6 12.7 6.7 .524 0.0 0.0 .000 3.5 2.6 .747
Bill Melchionni PG 26 81 40.6 15.6 2.6 7.4 3.3 3.0 13.6 6.1 .451 0.2 0.0 .091 4.1 3.3 .814
Ollie Taylor SG 23 80 20.2 15.5 6.8 3.3 3.6 5.1 11.0 5.6 .506 0.3 0.1 .417 6.2 4.2 .675
Ed Johnson C 26 26 22.8 16.3 13.5 1.6 4.0 4.9 13.3 5.9 .445 0.0 0.0 6.7 4.5 .673
Jim Ard C 22 73 14.1 15.0 11.8 1.4 3.8 4.2 13.4 6.1 .455 0.1 0.0 4.6 2.8 .598
Joe DePre SG 23 72 23.7 13.3 3.7 2.9 2.9 5.5 10.3 5.3 .512 0.1 0.0 .000 3.6 2.8 .767
Jim Hayes SG 22 47 10.5 10.5 3.3 3.4 3.3 5.3 7.9 3.4 .422 0.0 0.0 4.9 3.8 .776
Les Hunter PF 28 5 22.0 10.5 6.9 0.7 5.6 3.6 12.8 4.6 .359 0.0 0.0 2.6 1.3 .500
Bill Bunting SF 23 39 17.6 10.0 7.4 1.8 2.7 4.9 7.9 3.4 .430 0.0 0.0 3.6 3.1 .870
Jeff Congdon PG 27 42 13.8 9.9 3.4 6.0 3.2 3.1 9.3 3.9 .413 0.8 0.2 .308 2.3 2.0 .865
Billy DeAngelis 24 8 5.9 7.7 4.6 6.1 3.8 12.3 4.6 2.3 .500 0.0 0.0 4.6 3.1 .667

Playoff Per 36 Minutes

PLR POS AGE GP GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TOV FGA FGM FG% 3PA 3PM 3P% FTA FTM FT%
Rick Barry SF 26 6 47.8 25.3 8.8 3.0 6.6 4.1 16.9 8.8 .519 3.4 1.8 .519 7.4 6.0 .814
Bill Melchionni PG 26 5 41.0 19.7 1.2 7.2 1.1 3.2 14.4 7.7 .537 0.0 0.0 4.6 4.2 .923
Billy Paultz C 22 6 39.8 18.2 13.6 2.7 11.0 3.8 11.4 6.8 .592 0.2 0.2 1.000 6.0 4.5 .750
Jim Ard C 22 6 16.3 17.3 10.7 1.1 6.6 2.2 10.7 5.9 .552 0.0 0.0 8.1 5.5 .682
Joe DePre SG 23 6 28.5 15.4 3.8 2.7 1.7 3.4 11.6 6.1 .527 0.2 0.0 .000 4.0 3.2 .789
Ollie Taylor SG 23 6 21.3 14.9 4.2 3.7 2.3 2.8 8.7 4.2 .484 0.6 0.3 .500 8.2 6.2 .759
Manny Leaks C 25 6 34.0 13.4 8.3 0.5 6.2 1.8 12.2 6.2 .507 0.0 0.0 2.1 1.1 .500
Sonny Dove PF 25 5 6.4 12.4 12.4 1.1 7.9 1.1 11.3 5.6 .500 0.0 0.0 4.5 1.1 .250
Jeff Congdon PG 27 4 19.0 9.9 2.8 5.2 1.9 2.4 9.9 3.8 .381 0.5 0.0 .000 2.4 2.4 1.000

Regular Season Totals

PLR POS AGE GP GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TOV FGA FGM FG% 3PA 3PM 3P% FTA FTM FT%
Rick Barry SF 26 59 2502 1734 401 294 105 202 205 1348 632 .469 86 19 .221 507 451 .890
Bill Melchionni PG 26 81 3284 1425 237 672 49 188 300 1244 561 .451 22 2 .091 370 301 .814
Billy Paultz C 22 83 2758 1221 940 160 239 701 206 973 510 .524 2 0 .000 269 201 .747
Sonny Dove PF 25 83 2280 1124 676 88 264 412 224 1006 467 .464 14 4 .286 273 186 .681
Ollie Taylor SG 23 80 1617 694 307 146 111 196 162 496 251 .506 12 5 .417 277 187 .675
Manny Leaks C 25 40 1427 678 385 49 136 249 100 553 274 .495 1 0 .000 179 130 .726
Joe DePre SG 23 72 1707 632 175 138 55 120 137 488 250 .512 4 0 .000 172 132 .767
Levern Tart SG 28 27 985 490 106 73 52 54 87 453 192 .424 9 4 .444 133 102 .767
Jim Ard C 22 73 1027 427 337 40 112 225 108 382 174 .455 3 0 .000 132 79 .598
Ed Johnson C 26 26 592 268 222 26 83 139 66 218 97 .445 0 0 110 74 .673
Bill Bunting SF 23 39 687 190 142 34 64 78 51 151 65 .430 0 0 69 60 .870
Jeff Congdon PG 27 42 579 160 54 97 10 44 51 150 62 .413 13 4 .308 37 32 .865
Jim Hayes SG 22 47 494 144 45 47 20 25 45 109 46 .422 0 0 67 52 .776
Luther Green PF 24 26 164 98 55 3 22 33 21 88 40 .455 4 0 .000 44 18 .409
Les Hunter PF 28 5 110 32 21 2 6 15 17 39 14 .359 0 0 8 4 .500
Billy DeAngelis 24 8 47 10 6 8 2 4 5 6 3 .500 0 0 6 4 .667
Totals 84 20260 9327 4109 1877 1330 2779 1782 7704 3638 .472 170 38 .224 2653 2013 .759

Playoff Totals

PLR POS AGE GP GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TOV FGA FGM FG% 3PA 3PM 3P% FTA FTM FT%
Rick Barry SF 26 6 287 202 70 24 17 53 33 135 70 .519 27 14 .519 59 48 .814
Billy Paultz C 22 6 239 121 90 18 17 73 25 76 45 .592 1 1 1.000 40 30 .750
Bill Melchionni PG 26 5 205 112 7 41 1 6 18 82 44 .537 0 0 26 24 .923
Manny Leaks C 25 6 204 76 47 3 12 35 10 69 35 .507 0 0 12 6 .500
Joe DePre SG 23 6 171 73 18 13 10 8 16 55 29 .527 1 0 .000 19 15 .789
Ollie Taylor SG 23 6 128 53 15 13 7 8 10 31 15 .484 2 1 .500 29 22 .759
Jim Ard C 22 6 98 47 29 3 11 18 6 29 16 .552 0 0 22 15 .682
Jeff Congdon PG 27 4 76 21 6 11 2 4 5 21 8 .381 1 0 .000 5 5 1.000
Sonny Dove PF 25 5 32 11 11 1 4 7 1 10 5 .500 0 0 4 1 .250
Totals 6 1440 716 293 127 81 212 124 508 267 .526 32 16 .500 216 166 .769

Team Impact Spotlight

Player Name Role Tier MPG Usage Tier PPG RPG APG STK (SPG+BPG) Impact Index* Notes Awards
Rick Barry Primary Offensive Engine / Franchise Wing 42.4 Elite 29.4 6.8 5.0 0.0 20.6 Offensive centerpiece of the ABA champion Nets; led the league in scoring, functioned as a point-forward initiator, and carried extreme shot creation and playmaking load; widely regarded as the best player in the ABA that season. MVP-5, All-Star
Bill Melchionni Primary Playmaker / Floor General 40.5 High 17.6 2.9 8.3 0.0 14.4 Starting point guard and tempo controller; elite passer by ABA standards, orchestrated offense around Barry while providing secondary scoring and transition creation. MVP-9, All-Star
Billy Paultz Interior Anchor / Rebounding Big 33.2 Medium 14.7 11.3 1.9 0.0 14.0 Young starting center who emerged as one of the league’s top rebounders; efficient interior finisher and physical presence despite limited offensive self-creation.
Manny Leaks Two-Way Interior Scorer 35.7 Medium-High 17.0 9.6 1.2 0.0 13.9 Provided reliable scoring and rebounding at center; strong interior finisher with physical defense, often carrying second-unit offense when Barry rested.
Levern Tart Secondary Scoring Wing 36.5 Medium-High 18.1 3.9 2.7 0.0 12.4 Aggressive perimeter scorer with slashing tendencies; took on higher usage in limited games, functioning as a microwave scorer alongside Barry.
Sonny Dove Hustle Forward / Defensive Connector 27.5 Medium 13.5 8.1 1.1 0.0 11.4 High-energy forward known for rebounding, interior defense, and effort plays; key rotation piece who added physicality and lineup balance.
Ed Johnson Reserve Rim Protector 22.8 Low-Medium 10.3 8.5 1.0 0.0 9.9 Bench center who supplied rebounding and interior defense in short bursts; reliable physical presence when starters sat.
Ollie Taylor Efficient Role Guard 20.2 Low-Medium 8.7 3.8 1.8 0.0 7.2 Low-usage guard who scored efficiently and defended multiple positions; valued for discipline and lineup stability.
Joe DePre Bench Scorer / Combo Guard 23.7 Low-Medium 8.8 2.4 1.9 0.0 6.6 Provided instant offense off the bench; efficient shooter in limited attempts, used to maintain spacing and scoring flow.
Les Hunter Depth Power Forward 22.0 Low 6.4 4.2 0.4 0.0 5.5 Short-rotation big used primarily for physical matchups and frontcourt depth; limited offensive role.
Jim Ard Backup Center 14.1 Low 5.8 4.6 0.5 0.0 5.5 Reserve big who provided size and fouls; low-usage interior role focused on rebounding and screening.
Bill Bunting Developmental Wing 17.6 Low 4.9 3.6 0.9 0.0 4.7 Young forward used sparingly; contributed energy, rebounding, and defensive effort rather than scoring.
Jeff Congdon Reserve Ball-Handler 13.8 Low 3.8 1.3 2.3 0.0 3.7 Backup point guard tasked with maintaining offensive organization; low scoring emphasis.
Luther Green End-of-Bench Forward 6.3 Very Low 3.8 2.1 0.1 0.0 3.0 Limited-minutes forward used situationally; minimal offensive responsibility.
Jim Hayes Deep Rotation Guard 10.5 Very Low 3.1 1.0 1.0 0.0 2.6 Spot-minute guard focused on ball security and basic perimeter defense.
Billy DeAngelis Emergency Guard 5.9 Minimal 1.3 0.8 1.0 0.0 1.6 End-of-roster guard used in limited appearances; depth option only.