End date 1971 | ||
Full case name In re Spencer Haywood v. National Basketball Association Citations 401 U.S. 1204 (more)
91 S.Ct. 672; 28 L.Ed.2d 206 People also search for Toolson v. New York Yankees, Inc. | ||
Haywood v. National Basketball Association, 401 U.S. 1204 (1971), was a U.S. Supreme Court decision that ruled, 7–2, against the National Basketball Association’s old requirement that a player may not be drafted by an NBA team unless he waited four years (which meant playing at the college level in most cases) following his graduation from high school.
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Background
Spencer Haywood turned pro after his sophomore season at the University of Detroit, joining the American Basketball Association’s Denver Rockets and leading the league in scoring (30.0 per game) and rebounding (19.5 per game) in 1969-70 before jumping to the NBA the following season. Seattle SuperSonics owner Sam Schulman signed Haywood to a six-year, $1.5 million contract, ignoring the rule that a player cannot join the league until he is four years out of high school. As a result, the NBA threatened to disallow the contract and implement various punitive sanctions against the SuperSonics.
Procedural history
Haywood challenged this decision by commencing an antitrust action against the NBA. As part of his claim against the NBA, Haywood argued that the conduct of the NBA was a "group boycott" and a violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. The central issue that had to be determined was whether the NBA draft policy was a restraint on trade and therefore was illegal in accordance with the Sherman Act.
The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, which issued an injunction in Haywood's favor, ruling:
The NBA appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which stayed the injunction. Joined by the SuperSonics, Haywood appealed to the Supreme Court, which upheld the District Court, reinstated that court's injunction against the NBA, and remanded the case to the District Court for further proceedings.
Impact
Shortly after the Supreme Court's decision, the league and Haywood reached an out-of-court settlement which allowed him to stay with the Sonics permanently.
The decision allowed a significant number of high school graduates and college attendees to make themselves eligible for the NBA Draft before completing four years in college.