Bill Melchionni
William P. Melchionni | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 19, 1944 United States |
| Occupation(s) | Professional basketball player, basketball executive |
| Years active | 1966–1977 (player), post-1977 (executive) |
| Known for | NBA and ABA player; three-time ABA All-Star; ABA and NBA champion; general manager of the New York Nets |
William P. Melchionni (born October 19, 1944) is a retired professional basketball player from the United States who competed in both the NBA and ABA. A three-time All-Star, Melchionni is distinguished as one of the few athletes to secure championships in both leagues.
Early life
Melchionni played as a guard at Bishop Eustace Prep in Pennsauken Township, New Jersey, where his squads captured two state titles.
He excelled at Villanova University during the mid-1960s, earning the MVP award in the 1966 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) as Villanova achieved a third-place finish. In his senior year, he averaged 27.6 points on an 18–11 team, and as a junior, he posted 19.4 points per game on a 23–5 roster ranked eighth nationally. Over his collegiate tenure, he accumulated 1,612 points and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in economics in 1966.
Professional career
Following his graduation from Villanova, Melchionni was selected in the second round (19th overall) of the 1966 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. Initially, he played with the Phillips 66ers AAU Elite team before joining the 76ers for the 1966–1967 NBA season.
As a valuable reserve on the 1967 NBA championship-winning 76ers—led by luminaries such as Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer, and Billy Cunningham, under coach Alex Hannum—Melchionni participated in 71 games, averaging 4.3 points and 1.3 assists per contest.
After spending another season with Philadelphia, he competed for the Trenton Colonials in the Eastern Professional Basketball League during 1968–1969.
In the 1969–1970 season, Melchionni joined the ABA's New York Nets, where he earned three All-Star selections, led the league multiple times in assists, and contributed to two championship victories. His scoring and assist statistics improved consistently: 15.2 points and 5.7 assists (1969–1970), 17.6 points with a league-leading 8.3 assists (1970–1971), 21.0 points alongside a league-best 8.4 assists (1971–1972), and finally 12.3 points with 7.4 assists (1972–1973).
Despite suffering a broken hand during the 1971–1972 campaign, Melchionni remained integral to the team’s success alongside stars such as Rick Barry and an emerging Julius Erving. After drafting future ABA All-Star Brian Taylor in 1972, the Nets utilized Melchionni as a key bench contributor during their ABA championship runs in 1974 and 1976. Throughout seven seasons with New York, he averaged 12.4 points and 6.1 assists per game.
Over his entire professional career spanning 646 games, Melchionni posted averages of 10.6 points and five assists per contest. Reflecting on his achievements, he emphasized the importance of winning titles alongside iconic figures like Wilt Chamberlain and Julius Erving—two legends of basketball history.
Post-playing career
Following retirement from active play, Melchionni took on the role of general manager for the Nets for two years. Confronted with financial challenges, he orchestrated the sale of Julius Erving to the Philadelphia 76ers to finance the Nets’ entry fee into the NBA amid the ABA-NBA merger. He stepped down from his GM position on March 15, 1978, subsequently pursuing a career at Salomon Brothers Investment Bank.
Awards and personal life
Melchionni earned three ABA All-Star nods and was named to the All-ABA First Team in 1972. He led the ABA in assists per game for three consecutive seasons: 1971 through 1973.
Villanova University retired his number 25 jersey in honor of his contributions in 1995. The New Jersey Nets also retired his number 25—one of only seven numbers retired by the franchise alongside those of stars such as Dražen Petrović, Jason Kidd, Vince Carter, Julius Erving, and Buck Williams.
He holds the #15 spot on the Nets’ All-Time Top 25 players ranking.
Basketball talent runs in Melchionni’s family: his brother Gary captained Duke University’s basketball team for two years and was an All-ACC honoree; Gary’s son Lee played at Duke from 2002 to 2006; meanwhile, Bill’s brother Bob competed at Villanova between 1966 and 1969.
NBA/ABA
Source
Regular season
| Season | Team | Games Played | Minutes Per Game | Field Goal % | Three-Point % | Free Throw % | Rebounds Per Game | Assists Per Game | Steals Per Game | Blocks Per Game | Points Per Game | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| † | Philadelphia | 73 | 9.5 | .391 | .650 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 4.3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Philadelphia | 71 | 10.7 | .435 | .702 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 4.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N.Y. Nets (ABA) | 80 | 39.5 | .465 | .179 | .820 | 2.9 | 5.7 | 15.2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N.Y. Nets (ABA) | 81 | 40.5 | .451 | .091 | .814 | 2.9 | 8.3* | 17.6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N.Y. Nets (ABA) | 80 | 41.6 | .499 | .105 | .808 | 3.1 | 8.4* | 21.0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N.Y. Nets (ABA) | 61 | 30.3 | .450 | .400 | .840 | 2.1 | 7.4* | 12.3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † | N.Y. Nets (ABA) | 56 | 20.5 | .420 | .217 | .831 | 1.4 | 3.7 | .9 | .1 | 5.3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N.Y. Nets (ABA) | 77 | 18.0 | .487 | .296 | .795 | 1.0 | 4.2 | .9 | .1 | 6.1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † | N.Y. Nets (ABA) | 67 | 17.8 | .416 | .391 | .849 | 1.3 | 4.0 | .8 | .1 | 5.8 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career (NBA) | 144 | 10.1 | .412 | .673 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 4.4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career (ABA) | 502 | 30.6 | .465 | .236 | .819 | 2.2 | 6.1 | .9 | .1 | 12.4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career (overall) | 646 | 26.0 | .459 | .236 | .809 | 2.0 | 5.0 | .9 | .1 | 10.6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| All-Star (ABA) | 3 | 22.0 | .400 | – | .833 | 3.7 | 2.7 | 1.0 | .0 | 7.0
Playoffs
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