Indiana Pacers: Slick Leonard is a once in a franchise type of person

The Indiana Pacers, just like any sports franchise, have had people come through the doors that act as main characters in the team’s story for a period of time. Hardly any other franchise has a person like Bobby “Slick” Leonard, though.

Sure, some expansion teams have had common faces (Pat Riley has been around with the Miami Heat for a good chunk of their existence) but none as consistently present as Leonard for as long as he’s been around the Pacers.

The impact he has had on the story of pro basketball in Indiana goes back to the very start. There is no story of present-day basketball in Indiana without somehow trailing back to Slick. He is truly a once in a franchise person.

Leonard joined the Pacers as head coach in the second year of their existence, then a part of the American Basketball Association. Taking over partway through the season after the team started 2-7, Leonard led the Pacers to the ABA Finals, an incredible first-year turnaround.

The following year the Pacers would return to the ABA Finals, this time winning their first championship. That alone would be enough to get Slick a spot in the history books.

In 1972 and 1973, the Pacers would become back-to-back ABA Champions. Leonard would lead the Pacers to the ABA Finals and lose once more before the team joined the NBA in the 1976 merger.

The Pacers were entering a new era, and a completely new challenge. The team had been the most successful franchise in the ABA and was built on a foundation of success thanks to Leonard’s leadership, but the end of the ABA run had been difficult from a business standpoint. The team had started selling off star players in order to stay afloat, depleting the pool of talent.

Introductory NBA fees caused the team to face the reality of potentially going belly-up and having to sell, likely meaning the team would also relocate to a more revenue-driven market.

Leonard and his wife didn’t let that happen, creatively raising awareness for the need to sell season tickets to stay in Indiana by way of a telethon. The very existence of an NBA team in Indiana today is due in part to Leonard.

As the team transitioned from the ABA to NBA, Leonard coached the first four years in the new league. Unfortunately, due to the financial situation, the need to continue selling star players added pressure, and the team’s talent was not good. They missed the playoffs all four years.

Leonard remained throughout, an everlasting reminder of the team’s principles from the successful days in the ABA. In times of change, having a consistent voice to look to can be a very positive thing to turn to.

Jack McKinney would take over as head coach in 1980, and thus would start the only five years that the Pacers knew without Leonard. The team made the playoffs just once in those five years, and Leonard would be invited back to the team in 1985, this time as the voice of the team in a color commentator role.

Leonard to this day still works as color commentator for the team’s radio broadcasts. His signature “Boom! Baby” can be heard after each and every 3-pointer.

Slick Leonard saved this franchise from leaving Indiana. He led it to the only three championships the team has ever seen and provided it the competitive foundation it has rested on for the several decades following.

We don’t have Reggie Miller or 16 playoff appearances in 17 years in Indiana without Leonard. We don’t have the promise of modern success in Domantas Sabonis and Victor Oladipo in Indiana without Slick.

While many young fans today may just know him as the voice of the team when they can’t catch the TV broadcast of a game, Leonard has been much more than that. He’s been the voice of the team from the very start, speaking the very franchise into existence. His will to win, leadership, and steadiness are why Hoosiers can enjoy pro basketball.