List of American Basketball Association awards and honors
Year Player Positions Team
1968 Connie Hawkins * F / C Pittsburgh Pipers
1969 Warren Jabali G / F Oakland Oaks
1970 Roger Brown * F / G Indiana Pacers
1971 Zelmo Beaty * C Utah Stars
1972 Freddie Lewis G Indiana Pacers
1973 George McGinnis * F / C Indiana Pacers
1974 Julius Erving * F New York Nets
1975 Artis Gilmore * C Kentucky Colonels
1976 Julius Erving * ( 2 ) F New York Nets
Awards -- Playoffs MVP
The Playoffs Most Valuable Player Award was an annual award given in the ABA Playoffs . The award was first awarded in the 1968 ABA Playoffs , and was retired as part of the ABA–NBA merger . The inaugural award winner was Pittsburgh Pipers ' player Connie Hawkins . On all occasions , the player who wins the Playoffs MVP award was from the team that won the ABA championship . Julius Erving , who led the New York Nets to two ABA championships in 1974 and 1976 , is the only player to win the award twice .
The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a professional basketball league that operated from the until it ceased to exist with the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. The ABA presented a variety of annual awards and honors to recognize its players and executives. There were six awards presented by the ABA. Three Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards were presented annually in the All-Star Game, the regular season, and the playoffs. In sports, the player judged to be the most important to the team is the Most Valuable Player (MVP). Other annual awards include the Executive of the Year, the Coach of the Year, and the Rookie of the Year. Honors were also presented to players who excelled in the respective categories of: best players, best defensive players, and best rookies. The Executive of the Year Award and the All-Defensive Team started in the , while the rest started in the first season. Julius Erving has won the most ABA awards with five MVP awards - three in the regular season and two in the playoffs. Artis Gilmore has won the most ABA honors with nine. A total of 80 ABA players and executives have received at least one award or honor.