Remember the ABA: Marvin Barnes (original) (raw)

FROM THE FEBRUARY 1975 ABA FAN CLUB NEWSLETTER (by Scott Haebich): "St. Louis held a 'Beat the Nets' night on February 6, in the hopes of ending a six game losing streak to the defending ABA Champion Nets. Some 2,500 clickers were handed out to fans, the Nets were forced to run under a ladder in order to get from the locker room to the court, and Julius Erving was hanged in effigy. Marvin Barnes, the Spirits' rookie All Star, even wrote the following poems just for the occasion:

Gather up close and hear what I say,
On Feb. 6 we'll be ready to play.
The New York Nets are going to be here,
And we need ALL our fans to come out and cheer,
Because the Nets are rough when they come to play,
With Kenon and Paultz and the bad Dr. J.,
But our time has come and WE ARE READY,
With Fly and Gus and Goo and Freddie.
So gather your money and place your bets,
Because on the night of the 6th,
We're going to beat the Nets.

AND . . .

There once was a doctor named Erving,
Whose slam dunks were especially unnerving,
But when Marvin gets movin',
And the crowd gets to groovin',
For the doctor a hospital bed they'll be reserving.

The final score of the game? NEW YORK 113, ST. LOUIS 92."