Power Forward · Utah Jazz
Mel Counts
Age 84 · USA · 213 cm (6'12") · 104 kg · Born Oct 16, 1941 · Oregon State
7.9 PPG
5.9 RPG
1.4 APG
689 games
9 seasons

Career snapshot
9seasons
689games
5,421career pts
14.2PER (avg)
Most-played franchise:
Los Angeles Lakers
· 344 games · 1967-68–1973-74
Position rank · 1974-75
#13PPG rank
#16PER rank
#16WS rank
Among 20 Power Forward players (min. 41 games)
Career highs (single season)
PPG
12.6
1969-70 · LAL
RPG
8.9
1967-68 · LAL
APG
2.4
1974-75 · UTA
PER
18.4
1967-68 · LAL
WS
5.0
1967-68 · LAL
Draft
Career by team
Utah Jazz
1974-75 – 1974-75 · 1 seasons
6.9 PPG
5.9 RPG
2.4 APG
75 games
Los Angeles Lakers
1967-68 – 1973-74 · 5 seasons
9.8 PPG
7.0 RPG
1.5 APG
344 games
Philadelphia 76ers
1972-73 – 1972-73 · 1 seasons
1.4 PPG
2.3 RPG
0.4 APG
7 games
Boston Celtics
1964-65 – 1965-66 · 2 seasons
6.8 PPG
5.7 RPG
0.6 APG
121 games
Stats by season
| Season | Team | G | GS | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG% | 3P% | FT% | PER | WS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964-65 | BOS | 54 | 0 | 10.6 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 36.8 | 0.0 | 78.4 | 13.5 | 1.5 |
| 1965-66 | BOS | 67 | 0 | 15.2 | 8.4 | 6.4 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 40.3 | 0.0 | 82.8 | 16.4 | 2.9 |
| 1967-68 | LAL | 82 | 0 | 21.2 | 11.7 | 8.9 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 47.5 | 0.0 | 74.8 | 18.4 | 5.0 |
| 1968-69 | LAL | 77 | 0 | 24.2 | 12.4 | 7.8 | 1.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 45.0 | 0.0 | 80.5 | 16.5 | 4.3 |
| 1969-70 | LAL | 81 | 0 | 27.1 | 12.6 | 8.4 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 42.7 | 0.0 | 77.6 | 13.9 | 2.7 |
| 1971-72 | NBA | 76 | 0 | 11.9 | 5.2 | 3.4 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 42.7 | 0.0 | 72.1 | — | — |
| 1972-73 | NBA | 66 | 0 | 10.0 | 4.6 | 3.8 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 44.9 | 0.0 | 67.2 | — | — |
| 1972-73 | LAL | 59 | 0 | 10.4 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 45.7 | 0.0 | 67.2 | 17.1 | 1.6 |
| 1972-73 | PHI | 7 | 0 | 6.7 | 1.4 | 2.3 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 31.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6.2 | -0.1 |
| 1973-74 | LAL | 45 | 0 | 11.1 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 36.5 | 0.0 | 72.7 | 11.4 | 0.3 |
| 1974-75 | UTA | 75 | 0 | 18.9 | 6.9 | 5.9 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 43.8 | 0.0 | 76.1 | — | — |
Transfers & team changes
Derived from season-by-season team membership.
| Date | Move | Type | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 1974 | Los Angeles Lakers | Utah Jazz | season change | ||
| Jul 1973 | Philadelphia 76ers | Los Angeles Lakers | season change | ||
| Oct 1972 | Los Angeles Lakers | Philadelphia 76ers | mid season trade | From 1972-73 to 1972-73 | |
| Oct 1967 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | offseason | From 1965-66 to 1967-68 | |
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About Mel Counts
Mel Grant Counts is an American former basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1964 to 1976. He was on the United States Olympic basketball team that won the gold at the 1964 Summer Olympics. He played college basketball for the Oregon State Beavers and was selected by the Boston Celtics in the 1964 NBA draft. The Celtics won the NBA Championship in 1965 and 1966 with Counts on the team as Bill Russell's backup, but he was traded for the 1967 season to the Baltimore Bullets. Halfway through that season he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, who made it