Eric Money

Eric Money
Born	(1955-02-06) February 6, 1955 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Occupation	Professional basketball player (retired)
Years active	1974–1980
Known for	NBA player for Detroit Pistons, New Jersey Nets, Philadelphia 76ers

Eric Money (born February 6, 1955) is a retired American professional basketball athlete.

Amateur career

Standing 6 feet tall and playing as a guard, Money attended Kettering High School in Detroit, Michigan, where he contributed to Kettering's capture of the 1971 Detroit Public School League championship alongside peers who later reached the NBA. After completing high school in 1972, he enrolled at Arizona, posting averages of 19.9 points per game in his freshman year and 18.1 points per game as a sophomore before entering the draft through hardship eligibility.

Professional career

Selected in the second round as the 33rd pick overall by his hometown Detroit Pistons during the 1974 NBA draft, Money began his NBA journey at age 19. He earned a starting role in the 1975–76 Detroit Pistons season after Kevin Porter sustained an injury, delivering averages of 13.0 points and 4.2 assists per game while playing a key role in Detroit's first playoff series victory since 1962. Following Porter's trade during the 1977–78 season, Money assumed the starting point guard position, achieving career-high statistics with 18.6 points and 4.7 assists per game.

The 1978–79 NBA season proved tumultuous for Money; he was traded back to the Nets in exchange for Porter and subsequently transferred mid-season to the Philadelphia 76ers. After being waived by Philadelphia prior to the 1979–80 NBA season, he returned to Detroit as a free agent, averaging 10.9 points per game in what would be his final NBA campaign. Released following Detroit’s selection of Isiah Thomas in 1981, Money attempted a return with the San Diego Clippers but was cut before the season commenced.

Across six NBA seasons spanning from 1974 to 1980, Money averaged 12.2 points, 3.8 assists, and 2.1 rebounds per game. His career progression was reportedly influenced by off-court dynamics involving teammate Marvin "Bad News" Barnes, with Hall of Famer Bob Lanier noting Barnes' detrimental effect on Money’s potential despite his proficient shooting abilities.

Two teams, one game

Money is among only three NBA players who have appeared for two different teams within a single game and stands alone as the only player officially credited with scoring for both sides. This unique circumstance arose from officiating mistakes made by referee Richie Powers during a November 1978 matchup between the Nets and 76ers, where several technical fouls were improperly assigned.

The Nets successfully appealed to NBA Commissioner Larry O'Brien for a replay of the third and fourth quarters scheduled for the following March. By that time, Money along with Harvey Catchings and Ralph Simpson had been traded between those franchises, with Money now representing the 76ers. Al Skinner was also involved in trades but did not participate for either team during that game, making him the sole NBA player officially recorded as a DNP for both teams in one contest.

Personal life

Money made an appearance in the 1979 movie The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh, sharing the screen with other professional basketball athletes. In 2014, he contributed as a co-author to Tucson a Basketball Town, a work that details the career of coach Fred Snowden, recognized as the second African American head coach in NCAA Division I basketball, along with the inauguration of the McKale Center in 1973. Currently, Money lives in Arizona, where he dedicates his time to coaching and offering personalized basketball training programs for young players.

NBA

Source

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit | 66 || || 13.5 || .451 || || .689 || 1.3 || 1.5 || .5 || .0 || 4.8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit | 80 || || 28.3 || .474 || || .806 || 2.6 || 4.2 || 1.7 || .1 || 13.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit | 73 || || 21.7 || .521 || || .789 || 1.7 || 3.3 || 1.2 || .2 || 10.2 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit | 76 || || 33.6 || .500 || || .718 || 2.8 || 4.7 || 1.6 || .2 || 18.6 |- | style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2"| | style="text-align:left;"| New Jersey | 47 || || 30.5 || .481 || || .743 || 2.7 || 5.3 || 1.6 || .2||16.7 |- | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 23 || 0 || 23.7 || .548 || || .630 || 1.6 || 3.6 || .6 || .1||11.8 |- | style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2"| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 6 || 0||13.7|| .389|| –|| 1.000||1.2||2.7|| .0|| .2||5.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit |55||||26.7|| .508|| –|| .779||1.8||4.3||1.0|| .2||10.9 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career |426||0||25.4|| .494|| –|| .748||2.1||3.8||1.2|| .1||12.2

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1976	Detroit	30.3 | .457 | .810 | 2.4 | 5.7 | 1.6 | .1 |12.6
1977	Detroit	34.3 | .500 | .846 | 3.0 | 6.7 | 2.0 | .0 | 18.3
1979	Philadelphia	16.1 | .426 | .500 |1.4 |2.8 | .4 | .0 |6.8
Career		25.3 | .457 | .789 |2.1 |4.7 |1.2 | .1 |11.1