The 1976 ABA All Star Game was the ninth and final American Basketball Association All-Star Game, played at McNichols Arena in Denver, Colorado, on January 27, 1976. This time, the league abandoned the usual East vs. West format it used from the 1967–68 season onward and instead had the league's first-place team at the All Star break face off against a team of ABA All Stars.[1] The change was decided given the league's reduction from ten to seven teams and from two divisions to only one.[2] By the time the ABA entered the All-Star break, the Denver Nuggets were in first place within the entire league,[1] which was convenient for the ABA and secretly what they were hoping for as the Nuggets had also been selected to host the game at the McNichols Arena back when the ABA was projected to have ten competitive teams in two divisions yet again. Kevin Loughery of the New York Nets coached the All-Stars while Larry Brown led the Denver Nuggets. This was the second year in a row that Loughery and Brown coached against each other in the ABA All-Star Game. (The Nuggets went on to finish the regular season in first place at 60-24 (.714), but after beating the Kentucky Colonels 4 games to 3 in the ABA Semifinals the Nuggets lost in the 1976 ABA Finals to the New York Nets, 4 games to 2.)[3]
The 12 All-Stars originally selected included the Nuggets' David Thompson, Bobby Jones, and Ralph Simpson. Coaches replaced them on the all-star squad with Maurice Lucas of Kentucky, Larry Kenon of the San Antonio Spurs, and Don Buse of the Indiana Pacers.[2]
Pre-game entertainment was provided by Glen Campbell and Charlie Rich.[4]
Halftime of the All Star Game saw the first-ever Slam Dunk Contest, which was won by Julius Erving of the New York Nets (who took off from the free throw line for one of his dunks[5]) over Denver's Thompson, Artis Gilmore of Kentucky, and both George Gervin and Larry Kenon of San Antonio.[6] The National Basketball Association later adopted the Slam Dunk Contest as part of its All-Star Game events starting in 1984 (also hosted by the Denver Nuggets).
Denver's 52 fourth quarter points was a record for an ABA All-Star Game and capped a 144–138 comeback win.[4] It was the highest-scoring game in ABA All-Star history. Thompson was named the MVP.[1]
This was the final ABA All Star Game, due to the ABA–NBA merger in June 1976.
All-Stars
| Player, Team | MIN | FGM | FGA | 3PM | 3PA | FTM | FTA | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PFS | PTS |
| Brian Taylor, NYN | 29 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Artis Gilmore, KEN | 27 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 14 |
| Julius Erving, NYN | 25 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 23 |
| James Silas, SAS | 23 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 20 |
| Billy Knight, IND | 23 | 9 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 20 |
| Billy Paultz, SAS | 20 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| Larry Kenon, SAS | 20 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 |
| Ron Boone, SSL | 16 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| George Gervin, SAS | 16 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Maurice Lucas, KEN | 14 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Don Buse, IND | 14 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Marvin Barnes, SSL | 13 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 |
| Team Totals | 240 | 56 | 104 | 2 | 7 | 24 | 29 | 51 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 138 |
Score by period
| Score by Periods: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final |
| Denver | 32 | 23 | 37 | 52 | 144 |
| All-Stars | 31 | 25 | 41 | 41 | 138 |
- Halftime — All-Stars, 56–55
- Third Quarter — All-Stars, 97–92
- Officials: Norm Drucker and Ed Middleton
- Attendance: 17,798