Rick Mount

Rick Mount
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Name	Rick Mount
Position	Guard
Weight lb	185
Birth date	17 November 1947
Birth place	Evansville, Indiana
High school	Lenape High School; Linton-Stockton High School; Mount Vernon High School
College	Purdue University
Draft year	1971
Draft pick	15
Draft team	Cleveland Cavaliers
Years	1971–1974
Teams	Indiana Pacers (ABA)

Rick Mount (born November 17, 1947) is an American former collegiate and professional basketball player noted for prolific scoring and long-range shooting during the 1960s and 1970s. A star at Purdue University, he became one of the first nationally recognized high school phenoms in Indiana high school basketball and later played professionally in the American Basketball Association and was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association. Mount's career intersected with major institutions and events in college basketball and the ABA–NBA era.

Early life and high school career

Born in Evansville, Indiana, Mount grew up in a region steeped in Indiana basketball tradition and attended several local schools while emerging as a sharpshooting guard. As a teenager he became a household name in coverage by outlets that followed high school basketball across the Midwestern United States, drawing comparisons to other prep luminaries from Indiana and the NCAA Division I recruiting class of the era. He led his high school teams to prominent showings in state-level tournaments administered by the Indiana High School Athletic Association, and his exploits were chronicled alongside storied programs such as Muncie Central High School and Marion High School (Indiana). Mount's scoring feats in statewide matchups and national exhibition games attracted attention from major college programs including Purdue University and others competing for elite high school talent.

College career

At Purdue University, Mount played for the Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball program under head coach George King and later George Raveling’s contemporaries in the coaching ranks. He led the Boilermakers in scoring, breaking school and conference records in the Big Ten Conference and gaining All-American recognition from organizations such as the Associated Press and the United States Basketball Writers Association. Mount’s collegiate tenure featured matchups against powerhouse teams like UCLA during the era of John Wooden, as well as contests with rivals from Indiana University Bloomington and Michigan State University. His performances in conference play and postseason tournaments boosted Purdue University’s national profile and contributed to the school’s recruiting successes.

Professional career

After college, Mount was selected in the first round of the 1971 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers but ultimately began his professional journey in the American Basketball Association with the Indiana Pacers. While with the Pacers he played alongside established ABA figures and competed in a league that featured stars from the New York Nets, Kentucky Colonels, and Virginia Squires. Mount’s professional career included appearances in regular-season and playoff games during the early 1970s as the ABA vied with the National Basketball Association for talent and market share before the eventual ABA–NBA merger. His seasons with the Pacers placed him on rosters that faced opponents such as the San Antonio Spurs and the Denver Nuggets in matchups that showcased the ABA’s up-tempo style and emphasis on long-range shooting.

Playing style and achievements

Mount was renowned for an accurate, quick-release jump shot and range that prefigured later trends in perimeter scoring embodied by players from the NBA and ABA alike. He combined a scoring mindset with ball-handling skills honed in elite high school and collegiate programs, producing single-game and season scoring marks that drew comparisons to contemporaries in college basketball and the professional ranks. Honors during his playing days included All-American selections and inclusion in lists of the NCAA Division I men's basketball statistical leaders. At Purdue University he set school scoring records and earned attention from national award committees, while his professional tenure added to his résumé in the context of ABA statistics and franchise history with the Indiana Pacers.

Later life and legacy

Following his playing career, Mount remained connected to basketball and to communities in Indiana, participating in alumni events for Purdue University and appearances tied to former ABA franchises. His legacy is reflected in historical treatments of Indiana basketball greats, high school scoring legends, and the history of long-range shooting that influenced later generations of players in the NBA and collegiate ranks. Mount has been cited in retrospective accounts alongside other mid-20th-century stars whose high school fame, collegiate productivity, and professional experience shaped conversations about recruitment, media coverage, and the evolution of perimeter offense in American basketball.

Category:1947 births Category:Living people Category:American men's basketball players Category:Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball players Category:Indiana Pacers players