Utah Jazz: Stars Legend Zelmo Beaty Inducted to Hall of Fame

Years before the Utah Jazz were a thing, the Stars brought an ABA title to Utah. Their star player, Zelmo Beaty, was inducted to the Hall of Fame last week.

The ceremony honoring the 2016 class of inductees to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame was held on Friday. It was an especially anticipated event for longtime fans of the sport given the class’ headlining names. NBA legends Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson and Yao Ming were all inducted, joining Sheryl Swoopes, Jerry Reinsdorf, Darell Garretson, Tom Izzo, John McLendon and Cumberland Posey.

Meanwhile, for hoops historians in the state of Utah, the real headliner was Big Z, Zelmo Beaty.

Long before John Stockton sent the Utah Jazz to the NBA Finals in 1997 or Adrian Dantley led the team to its first division title in 1984, the Utah Stars were the class of the American Basketball Association (ABA). Led by Beaty, the Stars captured the 1971 ABA championship, bringing the state its first professional sports title.

In the 1971 Finals, Big Z averaged more than 28 points per game to push the Stars over Dan Issel and the Kentucky Colonels in what was a seven-game series. In the series-deciding game, Beaty dropped 36 points and 16 rebounds on Issel and the Colonels to capture a 131-121 win and the ABA title.

However, his career was much more than a big game or a championship season. Beaty notched seven years and two All-Star appearances in the NBA as a member of the St. Louis/Atlanta Hawks. He would go on to play four seasons with the Stars, beginning with the 1970-71 championship campaign.

Throughout it all, he was one of the game’s premiere big men.

In 319 games in Utah, he averaged 19.1 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. He was also a three-time ABA All-Star and an ABA Playoffs MVP. When all was said and done, he was undoubtedly one of the league’s best-ever players; he was eventually named to the ABA All-Time team for his exploits with the Stars.

Following his induction, KSL Sportsbeat ran this feature on his basketball career–

Although Beaty passed away in 2013, his widow Annie Beaty accepted Zelmo’s Hall of Fame honors on his behalf at the induction ceremony–

Here’s a look back at Beaty’s career and his legacy as a basketball player, with thoughts from the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, Kareem Abdul Jabbar–

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For years, there was always a question about why Beaty hadn’t received induction to the Hall of Fame. Former Indiana Pacers coach and three-time ABA champion Bobby “Slick” Leonard offered this assessment, from the late Dan Pattison’s profile of Beaty for RememberTheABA.com—

"“There weren’t any lights or cameras when Zelmo played the game,” Leonard points out. “By that I mean that there wasn’t the television or cable TV that there is today. And there were a lot of players of that time, and even before my time, who are forgotten. When it comes to the Hall of Fame, Beaty falls into that category. People might have just forgotten what a competitor he was.”"

Following his incredible career and rightful HOF induction on Friday, no one will forget his impact on the game of basketball.

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Utah Stars Legend Zelmo Beaty Inducted to Hall of Fame

By Ryan Aston | Sep 12, 2016

Years before the Utah Jazz were a thing, the Stars brought an ABA title to Utah. Their star player, Zelmo Beaty, was inducted to the Hall of Fame last week.

More from The J-Notes