Editor's note: The Pacers played their first regular season game on Oct. 14, 1967, against the Kentucky Colonels, so today in a sense marks their 50th birthday. The following is an excerpt from Mark Montieth's book, "Reborn: The Pacers and the Return of Pro Basketball to Indianapolis," which details the formation and first two seasons of the franchise. The book can be purchased at retail outlets throughout central Indiana and online at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com.
And so it began, 14 years after the death of the Olympians and about nine months after the frenetic process of birthing a franchise had begun.